Movement For Box Hill
The new owner of Box Hill City Centre has submitted an application to Hills Shire Council to modify approved plans for a childcare facility at the site at 29-31 Terry Rd Box Hill from a capacity of 80 children to 100 children. It is currently under evaluation.
The application was lodged last month by Polyhedric Developments PTY Ltd, headed by lawyer Geoffrey David Stein, which bought the 4.3ha Box Hill City Centre site in September last year for $50.6 million.
The master planned $600m development dream for the Box Hill site stumbled to a stop when TopPlace Group developer Jean Nassif went into voluntary administration and his company wound up.
The development has approval for a 22,843 sqm shopping centre and 660 apartments. Coles supermarket will anchor the site.
Hills Shire Mayor Michelle Byrne has welcomed movement at the site saying the growing Box Hill community deserves much more.
“This is an important step toward finally delivering a village centre for Box Hill— somewhere residents can catch up with friends over coffee or lunch, do their grocery shopping, or access essential services like childcare close to home.
“But a village centre isn’t the only thing Box Hill has been waiting for. There is a $207 million infrastructure deficit in Box Hill—and it’s growing by the day.
“Box Hill was planned by the NSW Government as part of its Northwest Priority Growth Area.
“Yet despite this, it remains the suburb the state forgot. Roads, sporting fields, parks, and playgrounds, and schools are all missing or under pressure, and if the funding gap isn’t addressed, residents will continue to miss out.”
She has been leading Hills Shire Council’s campaign for better infrastructure, road improvements, more schools and playing fields in the area by launching the on-line petition, Fight For a Fairer Hills Future.
So far more than 11,200 people have signed the petition, It needs 20,000 signatures for the issue to be tabled in Sate Parliament.
The NSW Government has recently announced a major upgrade to Rouse Hill High School and the fast-tracking of Box Hill High School by two years so it opens for Year 7 students in 2026.
The multi-million dollar upgrade at Rouse Hill High will open in early 2027.
Dr Michelle Byrne said: “This is a step in the right direction – but it’s like trying to stop a tsunami with a sandbag. We already have the most overcrowded schools in the state – and these projects won’t even accommodate the existing students in Box Hill and Rouse Hill, let alone the tens of thousands expected in the coming years and beyond.”
“When the Box Hill Precinct was first rezoned, it was expected to accommodate 9,600 homes and 28,000 people. Now, due to additional housing pushed by successive NSW Governments, we’re looking at 50,000 residents in the next decade.”
“Both the Federal and State Governments have declared housing a national priority. Box Hill should be the first place they invest to unlock housing potential and restore fairness for existing residents.”
The Fight for a Fairer Hills Future campaign, calling on the NSW Government to commit to 40 new sports fields, 45 road upgrades, and 14 new schools to support the Hills’ area’s rapid growth.
You can sign the petition at: www.fairerhillsfuture.com.au
