A new bulky goods store, including a JB Hi-Fi, has been approved for one of Devonport’s fastest-growing shopping precincts.
Councillors signed off on the Gadsby Street development, dubbed Stony Rise Central, at a council meeting on Monday.
The single-storey building will be split into three tenancies, selling items such as furniture and homewares.
The block has been vacant for years and is the latest addition to the growing Stony Rise retail hub.
Stony Rise Central will sit beside the established Harvey Norman Homemaker Centre and across the road from the $60 million Stony Rise Village.
The village, which is under construction, will be anchored by Woolworths’ largest supermarket in the north-west.
Councillor Damien Viney told the meeting it was good to see the long-vacant site put to use.
“It’s really, really good to see things moving in terms of development there,” he said.
“Obviously, with the supermarket complex also coming online, it just utilises that space better.”
Much of the debate focused on the intersection of Friend Street and Stony Rise Road, which locals say already struggles at peak times.
A council officer told the meeting the road network had been assessed and could cope, both now and once Woolworths opens.
“We’re satisfied that there’s capacity within the network,” the officer said.
The intersection will be upgraded with traffic lights as a condition of the supermarket development, before that project can be signed off.
Some councillors pushed for longer-term planning, pointing to forecasts of up to 38,000 people in the area by 2035.
Officers said a broader road network strategy would come before the council next month, including options to direct traffic back onto the Bass Highway.
The development drew one objection, from the company that manages the neighbouring Devonport Homemaker Centre, home to Harvey Norman.
In a written submission, the company questioned whether the access road, which crosses a section of residential land, was permitted and raised concerns about congestion building up inside the precinct.
“We respectfully request that council give careful consideration to these matters and that the application not be supported in its current form,” it said.
Councillors backed their officers’ assessment and approved the store unanimously.
