Doma Group has unveiled plans for Newcastle’s largest stand-alone office building beside what will be the city’s tallest apartment towers.
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The 12-storey, $54 million building next door to the Wickham transport interchange will include 16,600 square metres of office space, 70 per cent more than in the nearby Gateway 2 building, Newcastle City Council’s future home.
The NSW government has given Doma a 10-year commitment as anchor tenant of the Stewart Avenue building, though it is not clear which departments will move to the new premises.
The offices, to be built by fellow Canberra firm Bloc on the site of a dilapidated car park, are scheduled to be finished by late 2020.
They will include underground parking for only 40 cars but will be beside a 678-space car park serving the two 30-storey residential towers Doma plans to build on the Store site. The entire site reserves 198 parking spots for office workers and 537 for residents of the apartment blocks.
Doma has lodged with Newcastle City Council a development application for the office building and a concept plan for the overall $200 million project, which includes the office building, apartment towers, bus interchange and car park.
The concept plan shows the twin 90-metre residential towers, eight floors higher than the Verve apartments in King Street, will include 300 to 350 apartments from the fourth floor to the 29th.
The first three floors will contain commercial space.
The entire site includes 34,600 square metres of apartment space, 22,700 of offices and 1000 of retail.
The concept plan reflects Doma’s winning bid when it won a government tender to acquire the Store site in April.
The Hunter and Central Coast Regional Planning Panel is the consent authority for the various stages of the redevelopment.
Architectural plans lodged with the office DA say the building will be finished in “earthy tones” reflecting the varying brick colours of Newcastle’s syline.
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“We have worked very closely with Bates Smart architects to create an innovative design for the renewal of the site, in conjunction with Transport for NSW and Hunter and Central Coast Development Corporation,” Doma’s general manager of development, Gavin Edgar, said.
Doma completed the 7100 square metre Gosford tax office in March and has a 20-year commitment from the ACT government for 13,200 square metres of office space next to a transport interchange in the Canberra suburb of Dickson.
The Store is among seven Doma projects in Newcastle, including a hotel, apartments and offices.
Michael Parris
Michael Parris reports on politics for the Newcastle Herald. He started at the Herald in 1994 after working in the ABC Newcastle newsroom. Michael spent much of his career as a sub-editor before moving into political reporting in 2017. He was a finalist in the Sports Australia national media awards for his stories about a male-only tennis club in Newcastle. He has covered NSW and federal elections, state and federal budgets and local politics. He has also written extensively about the COVID-19 pandemic with a special focus on data analysis and the effects of lockdowns on the Hunter community.
Michael Parris reports on politics for the Newcastle Herald. He started at the Herald in 1994 after working in the ABC Newcastle newsroom. Michael spent much of his career as a sub-editor before moving into political reporting in 2017. He was a finalist in the Sports Australia national media awards for his stories about a male-only tennis club in Newcastle. He has covered NSW and federal elections, state and federal budgets and local politics. He has also written extensively about the COVID-19 pandemic with a special focus on data analysis and the effects of lockdowns on the Hunter community.
