State Planners approve $51 million Azzura apartment complex in South Hedland

A $51 million nine-storey apartment complex will be built in South Hedland after securing the green light from State Planners, a project that will “change the face of Hedland forever” according to Mayor Peter Carter. The Regional Joint Development Assessment Panel on Thursday unanimously approved plans for the major development on a 1.3 ha site on Colebatch Way after nearly three hours of debate. It marks proponent Azzura Lifestyle Living’s first step in a three-step plan for ‘Azzura Square’ which will see two other large developments go up on surrounding sites. The residential apartment building will feature 55 one-bedroom and 53 two-bedroom units, with hospitality and retail outlets on the ground floor. There will be an open space with a playground and a rooftop communal area with a pool and bar. Speaking during the meeting, Mayor Carter said he was very excited for the project and “supported it 100 per cent”. “It is desperately needed and I am really looking forward to this project starting because it will give the whole town a major, major lift,” he said. Mr Carter said the development would “change the face of Hedland forever”. “The height thing, it could be nine storeys, 10 storeys, 20 storeys really — this is what we need for our town,” he said. Deputy Mayor Tim Turner said the development made a statement for a “transformative vision for South Hedland” and would be a catalyst for other investment. Azzura Corporation project director James Vallis told the panel they would be looking to sign construction contracts over the next 2-3 weeks. “We are looking to move as quick as we can, so once we start on 1A, we will have an application going in for 1B,” he said. Mr Vallis said they had been meeting with the major mining companies to help determine the design of the second residential development. “We are limiting the heights to the same height as stage 1A,” he said. “It’s driven by what the market place is looking for and what the companies are looking for....it will be somewhere between 80 residential up to a maximum of about 200.” Deputy presiding panel member Kanella Hope attempted to defer the item, supported by presiding member Tony Arias, to get more information on the specifics of the development. They raised concerns over the size of the apartment balconies, storage, building height and the development’s 315 bay parking shortfall. Ms Hope said there was “a lot of uncertainty in this application” and it seemed to “require some quite considerable work”. Ms Hope said she was “feeling enormous pressure...to approve something that is not quite over the line.” However, Urbis senior planning consultant Rebecca Travaglione said the parking shortfall was just “on paper” and there were “more than enough car parking bays for the residents”. Town of Port Hedland officers backed this, telling the panel they were “confident” based on other examples in the area that the parking shortfall would not result in overflow parking in the surrounding areas.