By Charlene Macaulay
A Werribee off-street carpark will shut down later this month to make way for the city’s tallest development to date.
The 77-space carpark on the corner of Synnot Street and Duncans Road will close to the public on March 18 for construction to begin on a $49.5 million, 12-storey Holiday Inn hotel, education precinct and carpark slated to open in 2020.
The high-rise development will include retail, cafe, lobby areas and car parking on the ground floor, car parking on levels one to five, an office and education centre on level six, more office space on level seven and a 150-room Holiday Inn hotel on levels nine to 11.
There will also be 362 parking spaces on-site, 167 of which will be public.
Wyndham mayor Mia Shaw said the development was the first of four carparks owned by Wyndham council that will be converted to high-rise complexes in coming years in a bid to position Werribee as the capital of Melbourne’s west.
The council has entered into a public-private partnership with Pelligra and the Burbank Group for the $250 million revamp of the sites. Pelligra will handle the Synnot Street and Duncans Road development.
“Wyndham is currently experiencing significant tourism growth, and the introduction of international flights to Avalon Airport will see these numbers continuing to rise,” Cr Shaw said.
“This hotel will add to the accommodation available for visitors to stay in, while also boosting our local economy.”
Independent analysis has found the council’s “catalyst” developments will boost Wyndham’s economy by $465 million once complete and will add 1600 new jobs through construction and ongoing employment opportunities.
The council has called on residents and workers to park in one of four nearby off-street parks during construction of the development, which is expected to take 18 months.
Drivers can park at one of the two off-street parks along Comben Drive, the Cherry Street carpark, a new carpark bounded by Watton, Werribee and Synnot streets, or in one of the on-street parking spaces.
