A seven-hectare site in Sydney’s west will be transformed into what is being called one of the largest inter-generational precincts in the Southern Hemisphere, which will be home to nearly 1,000 older Australians and key workers.
On 18 March, Fresh Hope Care - a subsidiary of the Churches of Christ - was successful in getting rezoning approval for its 7.3-hectare site at Pendle Hill.
Existing uses on the site include a 190-bed residential aged care facility, 86 independent living units, a place of public worship (Pathways Community Church) and six single-storey residential dwellings along Pendle Way.
The rezoning will allow Fresh Hope Care to seek construction approval to build a 240-bed residential aged care facility in Sydney, 650 independent living units and affordable key worker housing, which will cater for 930 permanent residents across 16 buildings.
Fresh Hope Care's redevelopment proposal
According to online planning documents, the tallest new building will be eight storeys in height while around 5.1 hectares and open space and areas will be provided, including ornamental gardens and children’s playgrounds.
In addition, two heritage buildings will be retained and celebrated in the site’s redevelopment.
The most significant of these is Dunmore House, a large Victorian Italianate residence built in 1885 by Sir William McMillan, Treasurer to Henry Parkes and an important figure in the Federation of Australia.
The house was also inhabited by Edward Pearce (former Mayor of Parramatta, 1900-1904) and George A. Bond (founder of Bonds clothing brand), prior to its use as a boys’ home and orphanage (1934-1980), and from that time, as an aged care facility.
“The house is one of few remaining examples in the Cumberland region of the large ‘boom style’ residences erected in the prosperous years of the late 19th century, and its subdivision is evidence of a period of speculation and haphazard urban development,” the site’s planning proposal states.
“It retains much of its original fabric and detailing, and remains a notable local landmark in local views, this role considerably enhanced by the spacious grounds and mature early trees, which remain as a setting for the house.”
It is intended that Dunmore House will be set aside as a publicly accessible community facility.
The second heritage building is Ashwood House, which was built in 1938 and is a large interwar Georgian Free Classical building.
In a social media post, Fresh Hope Care’s development management company said the Pendle Hill project would be "transformative" and "create one of the largest intergenerational campuses in the Southern Hemisphere, centred around improving the lives of older Australians.”
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