COLES PROJECT A MILESTONE FOR CASUARINA EVOLUTION

THE $1.5 billion Casuarina Beach township on the Tweed Coast has reached another milestone with the start of construction on the long-awaited Coles retail hub within the Casuarina Town Centre

The start of works on the Coles Casuarina retail centre has been welcomed by developer Consolidated Properties and capital partner CVS Lane Capital Partners as a fantastic outcome for Casuarina Beach residents and the surrounding Tweed Coast community.

"The Coles-anchored Casuarina retail centre is the final piece in the jigsaw at Casuarina Beach," says Don O'Rorke, the chairman of Consolidated Properties which is developing the town centre in partnership with CVS Lane Capital Partners.

"We always envisaged a retail and commercial heart for the community and we're delighted that at last we are delivering on that promise. It has taken almost a decade of work to reach this point."

The $25 million neighbourhood centre retail hub will include a 2500sqm full-line Coles supermarket together with 12 specialty stores covering a further 1300sqm and parking for 237 vehicles.

Construction of the retail centre, which is to be undertaken by Hutchinson Builders, is expected to take about a year, with opening due around March 2016.

The centre will include a cafe, bakery, doctor's surgery, bottle shop, butcher, travel agent, newsagent, hair and beauty salon, takeaway food and a DVD kiosk.

The project will create around 300 jobs, with an estimated 225 workers to be employed during the construction phase and another 70 ongoing positions once the centre opens.

"The lengthy planning and approvals process has allowed us to get everything right in terms of design and product mix," says O'Rorke.

He says advanced negotiations are in progress for several of the specialty tenancies.

"The Tweed Coast's population is growing faster than any other NSW coastal region outside the metropolitan centres so a retail offering like this is absolutely unique," he said.

"It's an outstanding opportunity for retail operators to service a large and growing catchment, and we're confident of being 100 per cent leased when we open to the public next year."

The centre is being built on a corner site with frontage to the Coast Road and a newly opened section of Casuarina Way which links the north and central residential villages of Casuarina Beach, and also provides a direct connection to the adjoining $1 billion Salt Village community.

The shopping centre is at the hub of several major Casuarina Beach residential projects either already surrounding it or set to be built, including the $14 million Beach Life beachside homes precinct and the $15 million beachfront residential land subdivision The Pocket.

Casuarina Beach is also home to the award-winning Osteria and Spice Den restaurants, The Cabarita Ocean Health Retreat, numerous resorts, a major commercial gymnasium and recreational centre, conference facilities and Surfing Australia's High Performance Centre for elite surfers.