The University of Newcastle has revealed the design of the proposed city campus student accommodation building ahead of an upcoming community engagement project.
The nine-storey building, to be located on the corner of Worth Place and Civic Lane, will be home to more than 450 students and will feature outdoor communal spaces and ground floor retail options.
The project is part of the second stage of the university's plans for the Honeysuckle precinct after it bought the two-hectare site from the state government in 2018.
These include site preparations and the relocation of approximately 45 existing parking spaces to ensure there is no impact on overall parking capacity.
A State Significant Development Application is expected to be lodged in coming months.
The building is scheduled for completion in 2026.
The university's approved master plan for the precinct, includes three buildings on Honeysuckle Drive and four on Civic Lane.
It also owns a building on Hunter Street which will be demolished to open a pedestrian link from the Honeysuckle campus to the NUspace building.
Vice chancellor Alex Zelinsky said input from residents and business owners was essential to ensure the student accommodation development helped address the growing demand for student accommodation in Newcastle.
"We want to make sure this project is designed to provide contemporary, supportive, and comfortable student housing; help address the increasing need for student accommodation in the region; and support our local businesses and community to thrive," Professor Zelinsky said.
"We are committed to expanding housing options, increasing capacity and alleviating rental pressures, and we look forward to collaborating with the community to enhance the student experience and deliver a high-quality, welcoming facility for our region."
The university had also engaged with key local Indigenous stakeholders to provide input into the designs to ensure that the building is culturally safe for future students and community.
"Continuing to respect and celebrate the Aboriginal community's extensive cultural heritage and connection to this land is a top priority for the university from start to finish on this project," he said.
"We're pleased with the interest received so far and look forward to strengthening our partnership with Indigenous communities in our regions and beyond."
The university currently has more than 1700 on-campus accommodation beds across its Callaghan and Ourimbah campuses and provides initiatives to support students to find somewhere to live including a homestay program facilitated by Australian Homestay Network.
Community information sessions for the project will be held from next Wednesday February 7.
For more information or to register your attendance to the community engagement session for the City Campus Student Accommodation project please visit the University of Newcastle's website.
