Mulpha Australia, the parent developer of Norwest Business Park, has received unanimous approval from The Hills Shire Council to redevelop the Marketown Shopping Centre site, situated at 4-6 Century Circuit, Norwest, adjacent to Norwest Boulevarde and the Norwest Metro Station.
The Norwest Marketown Planning Proposal aims to facilitate the long-planned transformation of 46,455m2 of land currently comprising Norwest Marketown Shopping Centre and adjoining lands including the Carlile Swimming Centre. The development will take over 15 years to deliver, ultimately building homes for over 850 families, workspace for over 3,000 workers and providing a vibrant place for shopping, dining, recreation, and entertainment, attracting locals and visitors to the new urban centre for Norwest.
In redeveloping Norwest Marketown, Mulpha’s vision is to create a dynamic and vibrant urban centre at the heart of Norwest, comprising a rich mix of retail, commercial, residential, hotel accommodation and community spaces that are interwoven with activated pedestrian walkways, expansive green spaces, and civic public places.
Norwest Marketown set to become the beating heart of the community, a place residents, workers and visitors want to visit daily
Mulpha’s Head of Development, Tim Spencer said: “We want to make Norwest Marketown Shopping Centre not only the centre of Norwest, but also the beating heart of the community, a place residents, workers and visitors want to visit daily.
“This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a welcoming, vibrant, connected centre for Norwest – to go places, connect with people, eat and drink, shop, do business and enjoy life. Community, connectivity, creativity and sustainability are at the heart of our vision for Norwest.
“We are excited about delivering 6,000m2 of waterfront parkland with direct frontage to Norwest Lake. The park connects to, and enhances, the foreshore walk around the lake, and, with an ideal northern orientation and fall towards the lake, will be an attractive place to gather all year round.
“We have introduced the potential for a diversity of apartment types with sizes that are suitable for individuals as well as families, while ensuring density is concentrated in taller towers close to Norwest Metro Station. This ensures generous public spaces, connections and pathways, to make it a great community meeting place and transit hub.”
Redevelopment of Norwest Marketown site with view over Norwest Lake
Mulpha’s proposal includes reserving more than 50% of the overall site for dedication as publicly accessible space (including approximately 6,000m2 of waterfront parkland with direct frontage to Norwest Lake) and more than half of the balance of the site dedicated to commercial and workplace-related uses, consistent with and to further enhance the employment focus of Norwest.
Education and collaboration facilities are also a primary focus of the redevelopment proposal, with plans to include a Community Facility and Library, Education and Innovation Hub to provide a contemporary, flexible and collaborative workspace for students, business and the local community.
“We look forward to collaborating with Council to ensure we achieve a great urban planning outcome for Norwest that will make it a highly sought after place to live, work and play,” said Spencer.
Norwest Marketown will elevate Norwest’s position as a key central business district to the rest of Sydney and be the gateway to the thriving Norwest community. Mulpha’s proposal supports the vision and core planning principals of Council’s Norwest Strategic Centre Precinct Plan which forecasts significant growth for the Norwest Strategic Centre with 22,800 dwellings and 64,200 jobs by 2041.
The commercial office ‘landmark’tower – 31 storeys high
Mulpha’s commitment to sustainability was acknowledged by the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) which has supported Mulpha’s ambitious new sustainable residential development Norwest Quarter in the Hills with an $80 million green loan to cut energy costs by as much as 50%. The CEFC position is being matched by an $80 million green loan from ANZ.
Construction is underway on the first stage of the zero-carbon 8-tower residential development, which will be one of the most ambitious in Australia in terms of sustainable practices, initiatives and design considerations.
Mulpha recently delivered its first commercial building, The Bond, in Norwest, a landmark cross-laminated timber commercial building and health and medical centre providing vital health infrastructure to The Hills.
Prior to completion, Mulpha sold 100% of the 64 strata suites, ranging from 50m2 – 840m2, to a mix of owner-occupiers and investors in the healthcare sector, testament to the strength of the emerging suburban office market post-COVID.
Already one of Australia’s largest master-planned business parks with up to 800 organisations employing over 30,000 people, Norwest is poised for rapid growth over the coming decades as it takes its place as a key link in Sydney’s economic growth corridor.
