Former Council chief Rod Oxley makes a lot of sense when he appeals to Wollongong Council to buy the vacant plot of land at the intersection of Crown and Corrimal streets. It is unusual for there to be vacant land measuring a whopping 12,000 sqm in the heart of an Australian city.
When Dwyer's moved their auto franchise to a new site it started a battle between two shopping centre developers. One was interested in expanding the Gateway shopping precinct at the top of the Mall and the other was proposing a totally new shopping option with it's " Gravity " proposal at the other end of Crown street. Gravity is now history - and the Gateway expansion is under construction.
Rod Oxley is proposing a conference venue for this site. That is certainly a possibility, but the biggest gain would be to get this parcel of land into public ownership while the options are considered. The worst outcome would be for it to be broken up into individual titles and lost as the site for whatever Wollongong needs the most.
The most glaring need at the present time - is parking to service the concentration of entertainment venues in that part of the city. We have the new sporting stadium about to open with an expanded grandstand and a new roof, plus the nearby entertainment centres - and when any of these hold an event there is total chaos because of the lack of adequate parking.
The free Shuttle bus option opened up a new dimension when it began service. It would certainly link a major parking station on the old Dwyer's site with the shops at the top of the Mall and the CBD generally, plus providing a service for those visiting the hospital.
The GFC has driven the price of property to the lowest we can expect for many decades and buying that 12,000 sqm parcel now would be a good investment for the city. It would surely be a pessimist who expects future city sites to decrease in value - given the fact that as cities expand their core space expands exponentially.in value.
Opportunity is knocking !
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