Developer Coronation has secured approval for a $500m Build to Rent precinct in Waterloo, Sydney’s inner south. The development is set to comprise 826-homes across nine towers on a 2.15ha site.
The approved scheme will be delivered across four development parcels, with the buildings designed by SJB, Bates Smart, Curious Practice and Chenchow Little. The towers will range from seven to 33 storeys, with the height of the tallest building reduced by three storeys during the approval process.
Amenities include gyms, swimming pools and saunas, alongside an open-air cinema, pickleball court, podcast and music studios and rooftop barbecue areas. The development will also include almost 4,942 sqm of retail space, adding a commercial component to the residential precinct.
A consolidated two-storey basement will provide 426 car parking spaces beneath the development. Almost one-third of the total site area, when ground, podium and rooftop levels are considered, will be dedicated to communal open space.
The precinct will provide a gross floor area of 62,235 sqm and a floor space ratio of 3:1. The approved plans differ from Coronation’s original proposal, which included 73 affordable homes. Instead, the developer will make a contribution equivalent to 9% of the uplift to the City of Sydney’s Affordable Housing Program.
Coronation’s Build to Rent operator Nation will manage a significant portion of the precinct. A key element of the offering will be Nation’s City Starter/Stayer studios, which are smaller than typical apartments.
A total of 201 homes will use the format, accounting for almost a quarter of the precinct’s 826 residences. Many of these studios will have a minimum floor area of 30 sqm.
Under the NSW Apartment Design Guide, studios are generally required to have a minimum floor area of 35 sqm. Coronation argued that the smaller City Starter/Stayer apartments would be appropriate because of the larger provision of communal open space across the development.
The scheme adds a substantial new Build to Rent offering to an area of Sydney that has seen increasing development activity across alternative housing and rental formats.
