![Location of the proposed development. Picture supplied Location of the proposed development. Picture supplied](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/200569959/a2c0083c-d2f1-41e1-9f29-a85f30502ed2.png/r0_103_843_579_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
An apartment block could soon rise over one of Wagga's main streets, according to plans lodged with Wagga City Council.
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A development application for a five-storey building in the heritage-listed area outlines a $7.9 million plan to demolish the existing building at 115 Fitzmaurice Street and rebuild.
The new development in the former Wagga Restoration Centre site will include space for two businesses on the ground floor and 16 apartments - four on each floor.
The design includes a carpark at the rear, fronting onto Cadell Place.
Architects Ring and Associates, who have been commissioned for the development, lodged the development application in May.
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It notes the site is located within the Fitzmaurice Heritage Precinct, but the existing building at number 115 is not individually listed, and there are a number of nearby buildings "unsympathetic" to the heritage area's character.
Architect Matthew Prestipino, who worked on the design, said he hopes it will address Wagga's growing need for affordable housing, while preserving the character of the area.
"In some city centres like Sydney, you see the approach is to ignore context. They're just high density, purely for monetary value and gain," he said.
"This area doesn't allow for such high density, but it's allowed us to formulate a project that has heritage value, and is also able to add much needed density into the area."
The one and two-bedroom apartments will range from 50 to 100 square metres, filling a specific need for smaller, low-cost housing in Wagga.
![The 'unsympathetic design' of 115 Fitzmaurice St Wagga in 2022. Picture by Google Maps The 'unsympathetic design' of 115 Fitzmaurice St Wagga in 2022. Picture by Google Maps](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/200569959/b78f9e95-01ed-447b-941c-f0523b06e6d8.png/r0_0_1011_568_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Mr Prestipino said the site's owner had expressed a desire to create more affordable housing in Wagga as part of the project brief, but stopped short of saying the building would directly contribute to affordable housing in the area.
"This isn't a luxury, high-end home situation," he said.
"We've been talking with the client - he's a local, and understands that need for more affordable stuff.
"We've yet to interrogate the scope of that, but there'll be some of that ... a mix of different dwelling types."
Subject to council approvals, Ring and Associates hope the demolition of the existing structure, and construction of the new building can be completed in 2024.
One challenge they may face is the proposed height of the building. At 17.6m, it would be one of the taller buildings in Wagga, and higher than the maximum 16m in the heritage precinct.
Higher buildings, like the doomed Riverside apartment have been proposed for the area, but none so far have fronted onto Fitzmaurice Street itself.
Mr Prestipino said despite this, he didn't anticipate too much controversy over the project.
"We hope the council agree the proposal understands, and is sympathetic to the heritage nature of Fitzmaurice Street, but is also able to identify in 20 or 30 years, they will be glad that something like this was constructed," he said.
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