Developer Deicorp gets approval for stage one of Westmead apartment project

Developer Deicorp has got approval for the first part of its $400 million mixed-use project in Sydney’s Westmead.

The West Joint Regional Planning Panel gave its nod to Deicorp’s first half of Highline Westmead at 151 Hawkesbury Road. It will comprise 556 apartments and the cost of construction is pegged at $168 million.

Overall, the $400 million project will include residential, medical, university and a retail precinct in Westmead, the first of its kind in Australia, The Australian Financial Review reported.

Application for the second part is pending and is on exhibition with Parramatta City Council. That will allow the construction of another 344 units and cost $113 million.

Apartments will come in a mix of studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom units. There will also be a communal kitchen, dining and barbecue areas and a rooftop garden.

The whole development spans four hectares.

Deicorp bought the sites through an expressions-of-interest campaign from Western Sydney University in late 2015.

The project is being designed by Turner Architects, and it will have a light rail station in front of the site as part of the new Parramatta Light Rail.

There will be spaces for medical support services and community facilities such as childcare centres, the AFR said.

The heritage-listed St Vincent's and Farmhouse buildings on the site will be retained.

Deicorp managing director Fouad Deiri said previously the company would embark on a sales strategy that limited foreign buyers to 50 per cent of the project. Strong local demand for the project is expected.