In August 2022, it was revealed that the University of New South Wales (UNSW) had signed a 99-year lease on a car park adjacent to the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) and UNSW Anzac Parade light rail to private student accommodation provider Iglu, to fulfil a proposed development for a 1000-bed student housing site.
Intended to be “Australia’s largest new integrated student accommodation, leisure and lifestyle precinct” housing 900 students, the UNSW-Iglu plan was to involve 23 and 20-storey buildings. It was only after NIDA, Randwick Council and locals expressed their concerns that the proposed height was decreased to 15 and 16-storey buildings.
According to a 2024 Randwick City Council assessment report, 584 submissions were received with concerns of “height, bulk and scale, overshadowing, acoustic impacts, visual privacy and building separation, loss of parking and secondary parking impacts and service vehicle conflicts”.
Despite amendments to the height of the buildings and distance from NIDA, the council report recommended the development application be “refused”.
NIDA expressed its “strenuous objections” to the development in an open letter, stating that it poses an “existential risk to NIDA’s future” both in the short and long-term.
NIDA CEO Liz Hughes argued that there will be an estimated three to five years of disruptions with the development costing them “$11.4 million in the first 12 months, and tens of millions over the construction period.”
Tensions remain high as NIDA said it was “blindsided” and that tangible impacts will reverberate across crucial operations like loss of parking space, relocation and closures of rehearsals and performance spaces, and “unusable” music and sound studios, that in turn affect students and staff.
The $11.4 million figure was deemed close to a third of NIDA’s 2025 budget, given that the Institute is a not-for-profit, and that 45% of their self-generated revenue goes towards their budget.
Hughes also emphasised that “NIDA is not opposed to the entire development and we recognise the need for student housing however it can’t be at the expense of NIDA’s ability to operate.”
NIDA had initially objected in 2023, in addition to the amended development application on June 6, 2024.
They also claimed that UNSW is set to receive $168 million from the lease, and that the plan includes commercial and retail premises.
“It is NIDA’s view that the project can be designed to produce a reasonable housing outcome in a way that does not seriously prejudice NIDA and its operations.”
As such, NIDA’s open letter listed recommendations for UNSW to consider including a “24 metre setback of buildings from NIDA (minimum of 18m)”, removal of the closest building to NIDA, “confirm provision of readily available car parking for NIDA within the development in a formal agreement” and compensate NIDA for costs and loss in revenue.
The federal government, acting as mediator between UNSW and NIDA, has also cautioned UNSW that it may be contravening a long-term lease if it proceeds with its development plan.
This comes despite the 2022 National Housing Accord’s push for more student housing, in particular, aimed at attracting international students. UNSW, like many tertiary institutions, relies on international student fees.
The development plan remains currently “under assessment” by the Sydney Eastern City Planning Panel, an independent panel created by the state government to resolve large and controversial developments.
Honi Soit reached out to both UNSW and NIDA for comment.
A UNSW spokesperson said, “UNSW Sydney is committed to building student housing and is collaborating with Iglu to provide our students with accommodation options that are convenient to campus and everything the local community has to offer.”
They explained that UNSW and Iglu “consulted extensively with NIDA” over more than 40 direct engagements leading to “significant amendments made to the Development Application, including reductions in height and increased setbacks.”
The spokesperson continued by saying that UNSW will “continue to consult with NIDA and the broader community” and that “like many other universities” are “aware of the challenges imposed by the high cost of housing in Sydney and are currently exploring ways to provide support for students.”
At the time of publication, NIDA did not provide its comment.
