The original development application for the site, put forward by Sean Howard’s Arton Group in 2015, initially proposed a $34 million project featuring 230 residential units.
But new plans for the site include eight, four-storey buildings comprising 223 units, a lagoon pool, tennis court, bowling green and clubhouse on the 28,000 square-metre site near Brickworks Park (10 kilometres west of the Newcastle CBD).
It includes a mix of three one-bedroom units, 128 two-bedroom units and 92 three-bedroom units.
The application follows a string of retirement and aged care developments approved by Hunter councils in recent years – with more than $744 million worth of seniors living projects approved since the start of the 2014-2015 financial year for the Lake Macquarie area alone.
The council is currently assessing another six DAs and three DA amendments worth a combined $184 million. Two DAs for multi-storey seniors living projects at Salamander Bay (55 kilometres north of Newcastle) have also been lodged in recent months.
Arton Group also operates another village in Wallsend (pictured), as well as the Cumberland View village and aged care facilities in Wheelers Hill, VIC (25 kilometres west of Melbourne CBD).
Mr Howard was a co-founder of OzEmail, which former PM Malcolm Turnbull was an early investor in. The company sold for $520 million in 1999.
