Scentre Group’s State Significant plans for seven towers, some reaching 39-storeys, and up to 1,600 apartments will cause traffic gridlock at Brookvale’s major intersections, according to traffic modelling undertaken for the Brookvale Precinct Planning Proposal.
Even with Scentre Group’s commitment of a $50m infrastructure spend, which includes upgraded transport facilities, new pedestrian and cycling connections, public domain improvements and, most importantly, road network upgrades, Brookvale’s main road will “fail” under projections provided to Council (shown in red in a table below).
But Director of Integrated Mixed Use for Scentre Group, Stewart White says they’ll do what it takes to make the site work.
“We have a significant opportunity to use underutilised land surrounding Westfield Warringah Mall to deliver a vibrant, connected and walkable town centre for our community,” Mr White said.
“We’re investing to deliver much needed housing supply and new places for our community to live, work, connect and spend their time.
“We have engaged with community groups, stakeholders and government throughout the development of the Concept Plan, including on important issues such as traffic, transport and building heights.”
Wait, what’s happening at Brookvale?
Before we dive deep into traffic, a little refresher on what’s happening, or proposed to happen, in Brookvale.
Council has redeveloped its 2023 Brookvale Structure Plan, which is now called the Brookvale Precinct Planning Proposal, forecasting 2,900 dwellings in up to 25-storey buildings across Brookvale. This number includes 850 dwellings at the Mall site, which is owned by the Scentre Group and has already been determined as a State Significant Development, bypassing Council approvals.
Scentre Group’s plans for the Mall site are for almost double Council’s number, to 1,300 apartments by 2046, with an additional 300 beyond 2046. They are proposing buildings up to 39 storeys high, not 25.
Then there is the State’s Low and Mid Rise (LMR) Housing Policy, which will allow for another 800 dwellings across Brookvale.
Traffic modelling has been undertaken for Council to understand what needs to be done to Brookvale’s roads so they can handle this increase in population over the next two decades.
The report found that the recommended scenario would be for twenty local road upgrades to accommodate 2,900 increased dwellings across Brookvale, including a cap of 850 dwelling at Warringah Mall, plus the 800 dwellings coming from LMR. So, around 3,700 dwellings in total. The road upgrades would be funded through developer contributions (developers paying a levy to Council for their development).
Importantly, the report found that any number above 3,700 would require additional infrastructure. Mainly at the Warringah Road and Pittwater Road intersection, which are State-owned roads. This upgrade, which would need to be coordinated by Transport for NSW (TfNSW), would look something like an overpass. To note, this intersection already currently fails during peak hour traffic (TOSF which means drivers are stuck in traffic for 70 seconds or more).
“Transport is working collaboratively with Council and [Scentre Group] to investigate and assess options for additional development on the Warringah Mall site, as well as, road upgrades that will be required in the broader area, as a result of new development more generally,” a TfNSW spokesperson told Manly Observer.
In the same traffic report, modelling was done to see how many dwellings could be at the Mall site before the roads failed. Essentially, they added dwellings to the model until it became gridlock.
The report found that the roads around the Mall start to fail around 1,300 to 1,400 dwellings. The report says traffic became so jammed that car trips were never completed.
This doesn’t necessarily mean the roads could take on Scentre Group’s planned 1,300 dwellings. It’s similar to a bridge stress test. When 1,300 tonnes is placed on a bridge and cracks start to appear, saying the bridge is safe to take on 1,300 tonnes isn’t correct.
Scentre Group has said it is working closely with Northern Beaches Council and the NSW government to deliver what is required for their vision to come to life.
“Any road infrastructure upgrades required as a direct consequence of amendments to the existing planning controls for the Warringah Mall Shopping Centre site, and the resulting future mixed-use development, would be funded by [Scentre Group],” a TfNSW spokesperson added.
“This may include works such as the provision of new access points, upgrades to existing access arrangements, and other site-specific transport infrastructure improvements.”
The vision
Plans to create a Brookvale town centre have been in the works since 2023, when Scentre Group engaged with Council over the original 2023 Brookvale Structure Plan, which Manly Observer has been reporting on.
The result is a State Significant Development Application (SSDA) which they’re preparing to lodge in the coming months. The concept plan is to develop seven towers ranging from 12 to 39 storeys across 3.9 hectres of the Mall site. This is around the existing shopping centre site, and does not affect the shopping mall itself. Those towers will include 1,300 apartments (with a potential additional 300 later on), five per cent, or 80, will be allocated as affordable housing, retail, community facilities, outdoor green space parks and 1,600 new car parking spaces. While there will be basement car parking, there will also be above-ground parking due to the stormwater drainage culverts under the site. One reason for the heights of the towers.
The SSDA, which will be assessed by NSW Planning, not Council, includes the above concept plan, which would take at least 20 years to complete, a rezoning application for the site and details about Stage 1.
Stage 1 will include the development of a 36-storey building on the north east corner of the block (Pittwater Road and Cross Street). The tower will include 310 apartments, including affordable housing, four levels allocated to community facilities and a library, six levels allocated to retail, food and beverage, and levels for 370 car parking spaces.
Stage 1 will also include the first public park of the development.
The housing argument
Scentre Group argues that the scale of the development is to maximise community space. If they provided the same number of dwellings within 25-storey buildings (as per Council’s new Brookvale Precinct Planning Proposal building height maximums), there would be less open public space.
While they acknowledge some might be concerned about the height of the towers, there will also be other people who are more concerned about the lack of diverse and affordable housing options on the Northern Beaches.
Not everyone is convinced though, with Member for Manly, James Griffin criticising the “extreme” height and scale of the plans.
“The size of the site should negate the need for such extremely tall towers, Mr Griffin said.
“We’re not Bondi Junction or Chatswood, and nor do we want to be.
“It’s also incredibly hard to support more density when this government has produced no plan for our public transport or investment to keep up with the new housing targets.”
As the NSW Election approached (March 2027), NSW Liberals and Nationals have proposed an alternative to the NSW government’s LMR policy – one that would see Council’s developing their own LGA-specific plans for increasing housing in their area.
When can we have our say?
As part of the SSD, Scentre Group recently held community consultations which included a survey, face-to-face sessions, and a webinar (which is recorded and available to view on their site here).
Curl Curl Ward Councillors, Kristyn Glanville, Nick Beaugeard, and Joeline Hackman are holding a Brookvale Development Community Forum which will include discussions on the Mall plans as well as explaining Council’s Brookvale plan. You can find more information here.
The (Mall) SSD application is still being prepared and once it is formally submitted it will go on exhibition, which we will let our readers know about.
Read our earlier coverage:
Towering ambitions for Brookvale: plans for skyscrapers up to 39 storeys revealed
Bigger, bolder bid for Brookie buildings as two 39 storey towers proposed
