The planned five-storey development of Woolworths East Chatswood has received Council approval after a seven-year hitch. The building, to be constructed on 17 Smith Street, has been projected to cost $19.9 million and will have its own bottle shop, three retail tenancies and 205 car parking slots.
Woolworths initially asked Chatswood residents if they need a supermarket in this industrial district. The survey from 2014 received more than 3,500 respondents who supported the supermarket’s plans.
In 2017, Woolworths filed a development application (DA-2017/182) with Willoughby City Council, which received over 700 submissions. However, the majority of these submissions opposed the development, citing traffic problems and the impact on small businesses. There were also concerns over the loss of potential jobs for industrial or mechanical businesses that could set up shop on the said site.
Three years after the initial lodging, Woolworths submitted an addendum (DA-2017/182/B), which includes large spaces for its Click & Collect initiative, the supermarket’s online shopping option which was launched due to the pandemic.
In March 2021, Council determined that the development should proceed but the second application is still under assessment.
The company expects that the construction of Woolworths East Chatswood will be completed by mid-2022 and will provide hundreds of jobs for the locals.
