Building height, parking and public safety are among the concerns raised in hundreds of objections to a proposed tower development at Wickham.
The Urban Property Group proposal on the former Bowline site at 10 Dangar Street includes 245 homes, 42 of which would be affordable housing, 99 co-living units and 171 hotel rooms.
The state-significant development would include 215 car parking spaces, retail, a restaurant and bar, recreation areas, and a communal rooftop for residential apartments.
There were 326 submissions lodged during the public exhibition period from May 13 to June 9, including 310 objections, eight in support and eight comments.
Many of the objections cited the building height and design as a major factor.
Heather Moseley, of Wickham, wrote that 43 levels was irresponsible.
"The height of this is completely out of sync with the rest of Wickham," she said.
Wickham's Robert Payne submitted the proposed building height was inconsistent with the existing and emerging character of the suburb.
"The overall scale of the development is excessive for the site and will dominate the streetscape, creating an imposing visual impact and reducing the human scale of the area," he said.
Multiple people cited parking and traffic woes in the area.
One objector, who said they were a local resident, said there were already issues with parking availability for locals, visitors and customers trying to access shops.
"This development will create additional parking issues with insufficient availability of parking," they wrote.
Wickham's Rebecca Phillips said her family bought an apartment in the area on the understanding that the development was going to be about 12 storeys high.
"However putting our own financial concerns aside the area cannot handle any more traffic, crime or parking woes until the current mess is sorted," she wrote.
One submission writer, who said they were a school teacher living in Mayfield, said they were concerned about effects on public safety and the environment at Newcastle Interchange.
Supporters of the development said they hoped it would improve housing affordability in the area, that it proved that Newcastle was moving towards the future, and that the city needed high-density development close to transport in the CBD.
"We should all be supporting infill housing in a housing crisis," one submission writer from Valentine said.
"This site is incredibly well positioned for such a development given its proximity to the busiest and best served train station in NSW outside of Sydney."
The site has sat as an open excavation since the previous development went into receivership in 2024.
Urban Property Group's head of planning Chris Ferreira said the company would consider every submission carefully.
"We recognise the concerns raised by the community and will respond to each of them through the Department's formal assessment process," he said.
"Located beside the region's busiest transport interchange, close to jobs and services, this is exactly the kind of well-connected site where new housing can help address pressure on housing choice and affordability."
He said the proposal would bring a long-vacant site back to life. He said 29 per cent of the site would be publicly accessible open space.
"Urban remains committed to delivering a high-quality outcome for Newcastle that genuinely responds to the feedback received," he said.
