TriCare is pushing ahead with plans to expand its Hastings Point seniors living community in the NSW Tweed Shire, lodging a fresh proposal under the State Significant Development (SSD) planning pathway.
The privately-operated aged care and retirement living provider originally sought to modify a May 2007 development consent for 84 independent living units, 94 supported living units and a 67-bed high care facility on the coastal site, 124km from Brisbane and 819km from Sydney.
That application was refused by Tweed Shire Council in July 2021. TriCare has since opted to pursue a new SSD development consent to complete the project.
From old approvals to new demand
The May 2007 approval was secured by another provider before TriCare purchased the site. Over time, the project has received a number of modified consents for minor amendments.
Stage One – comprising 91 independent living units across three three-storey buildings with basement car parks – was completed and occupied in 2009.
A new Scoping Report by Planit Consultancy, submitted on behalf of TriCare, outlines a redesign that the company says better reflects today’s seniors living market. The updated proposal includes:
- 74 additional supported living units
- 44 residential aged care beds
- New communal facilities, including an indoor pool and bowls green
- Increased on-site car parking and improved site accessibility
“These measures facilitate an ability for seniors residents to comfortably stay in their homes for longer, which is reflected in contemporary market expectations for individual suites, private space, and facilities of greater proportions,” the report states.
Proposed staging
The revised plan sets out four new stages:
- Stage 2 – Building D: Dual supported/independent living and basement car park
- Stage 3 – Building E: Dual supported/independent living and basement car park
- Stage 4 – Building F: Residential aged care and basement car park
- Stage 5 – Building G: Dual supported/independent living and basement car park
