The University of Wollongong is moving forward with its ambitious $250 million seniors living development at the Innovation Campus in North Wollongong, despite facing significant criticism from staff members following recent job cuts at the institution.
Project Details and Funding Structure
The Health and Wellbeing Precinct, which has been designated as State Significant Development, will be developed in partnership with retirement village company Keyton. University contributions will total $20 million toward the overall project cost of $249.5 million, with the majority of funding coming from the external developer.
A university spokesman clarified that UOW is not funding the construction of the project itself. The university's contribution covers teaching and research spaces, along with infrastructure costs including green space, roads, footpaths, and drainage systems.
Staff Concerns and Financial Context
The project has generated substantial controversy among university staff, particularly after UOW eliminated approximately 200 positions this year in restructures that management attributed to financial difficulties.
National Tertiary Education Union UOW branch president Associate Professor Susan Engel expressed deep concerns about the timing and priorities. "Our management is forging ahead with this project while hundreds of staff at UOW have lost their jobs in the past year," she stated.
Engel noted that among staff, the development has been colloquially referred to as the "VC's retirement home" and appears to be "another legacy project" established by previous vice-chancellors that current management cannot extract themselves from.
Development Components and Timeline
The project will be constructed in two main stages at the Innovation Campus on Squires Way. Stage 1 will feature a seven-storey residential aged care facility with 180 beds, representing an increase from the originally planned 120 beds. This facility will include an attached childcare centre.
Stage 2 will consist of two seniors apartment buildings of eight and nine storeys designed for independent living, providing a total of 236 apartments on the southern side of the campus.
The concept plan for the development received approval from the Southern Regional Planning Panel in May 2024. While the approved plan listed costs at $173 million, university statements from as early as 2021 indicated the budget had already risen to $250 million.
The residential care facility will incorporate dedicated teaching, learning and research spaces designed as a "living lab" to promote collaboration between researchers, academics, students, healthcare providers, senior residents, and industry partners.
Planning documents indicate that commercial providers operating within the precinct will be required to commit to the project's educational and research goals, including providing student and graduate job opportunities and facilitating research access.
The development comes as UOW continues to recover from a significant financial setback - the $169 million payment required to exit a problematic public-private partnership involving the Koolabong student accommodation project.
