Joondalup Resort owners propose hotel and 13 and 11-storey apartment blocks at their Connolly site

A hotel and two high-rise apartment blocks of 13 and 11 storeys have been proposed near Joondalup Resort and Golf Course in Connolly, sparking debate among residents. The City of Joondalup has received a development plan for 45 Country Club Boulevard from Element Advisory WA on behalf of resort owner Joondalup Hotel Investments. A report accompanying the plan said the development’s project team had “undertaken comprehensive pre-lodgement consultation” with city officers and the City of Joondalup Design Review Panel. “The proposed local development plan was presented to the Design Review Panel twice during the pre-lodgement stage,” the report said. Residents have taken to Facebook to express their support and disapproval of the plan, with some citing height, traffic and effect on property values as issues. “This will impact directly a lot of people by having six and 14 storeys of high-density housing nearby,” one resident said. The report on the plan said the development was consistent with the city’s local planning scheme 3 and its local planning strategy which sought to accommodate high quality, higher density development in appropriate locations and to diversify the housing stock in the city to cater for a range of housing needs. “The provisions contained within the LDP will facilitate an exciting residential component to the existing facilities at Joondalup Resort. “The residential development will be high quality commensurate with the unique location, providing future residents with direct access to natural and physical amenities which are not available in a typical grouped or multiple dwelling development. The hotel site would be next to the resort and the two apartment blocks near the resort’s carpark. “The residential development is proposed to be located on underutilised sections of the site which are located a significant distance from adjoining residential development, therefore minimising the bulk and scale when viewed from these properties,” the report said. The Connolly Residents’ Association will look at the plan at its AGM on February 3. “We will discuss the recent news of the proposed Joondalup Resort development and look at all the proposed planning documentation that has been made available,” the association said. The city said the advertising of the proposal did not indicate any formal position on the proposed plan. It will assess the proposal after advertising it and make a recommendation to the WAPC. Residents have until February 18 to comment.