By Alesha Capone
An 84-hectare site on Sewell Road, Tarneit will be home to about 800 new residences.
Developer Stockland recently announced it had purchased the site, which includes Wyndham council heritage-listed ruins of a bluestone house, a weatherboard house and attached smithery, from Wattle Park Tarneit Pty Ltd for $82 million.
The Wattle Park site is approved for development under the Victorian Planning Authority’s Riverdale Precinct Structure Plan.
A council study found that prior to 1900, the site was leased as a farm by a man named Donald Sewell.
At the time, the land was owned by the Chirnsides, the family who built Werribee Mansion and Point Cook Homestead.
Stockland said that, in consultation with Wyndham council, it would “consider a range of options” for the heritage precinct.
Stockland’s general manager of residential for Victoria, Mike Davis, said about 26 hectares of land at the Wattle Park estate would be set aside as a “conservation space”.
Mr Davis said Stockland planned to commence development, marketing and sales of Wattle Park following settlement of its purchase, once the necessary planning permits were granted.
Initial site works are expected to start next year.
“This acquisition builds on our significant portfolio of popular communities in Melbourne’s west including Mount Atkinson and Grandview in Truganina, which are now home to more than 1300 residents,” Mr Davis said.
Stockland Communities chief executive Andrew Whitson said that
Wattle Park was “in a great location with good access to transport, schools, open space and recreation facilities”.
“With record-low interest rates continuing to underpin the residential market over the medium-term and customer preference for detached dwellings remaining strong across Melbourne’s greenfield areas, the acquisition of this site means we can get more new land to market to meet this demand,” he said.
