Plans lodged for 500 new homes in Woden

The long-awaited plans involve constructing six buildings, up to 10 storeys each, on the corner of Melrose and Hindmarsh Drives in Lyons.

Developer Phillip Domazet purchased the 23,000-square-metre block of land from the ACT government following an auction in 2019. After negotiations, his company AJP Projects Pty Ltd paid $16.4 million for the site.

The former Strathgordon Court public housing complex in Lyons was sold with the potential for up to 492 units, 70 of which were required to be designated for affordable housing. The former public housing blocks were demolished in about 2020.

The application seeks approval to subdivide the land into six separately titled blocks for apartment buildings and one community titled block for internal roads, parking and common areas.

Six apartment buildings are proposed to be built, with 492 homes between them. The total cost of works is about $123,350,000.

The application states the project vision is to create a "unique residential development nestled within a dense and unifying landscape setting".

Artist's impressions appear to be early illustrations of the proposal and feature simple white concrete structures.

The application, prepared by Canberra Town Planning, states the site has challenges due to its location on a significant urban intersection.

"The site suffers to a great degree from a long-term 'place-less-ness', born mainly from a lack of significant visual connections/markers, intense vehicular proximity throughout the day, and an inconsistent planning context, varying from suburban to light industrial contexts," it states.

The new housing development will aim to establish homes of high-quality construction, the application states.

Mr Domazet was contacted for comment but had not responded at the time of publication.

Public comments on the development application close on January 31.