Catholic Healthcare has reached a major planning milestone with Randwick City Council for a new seniors living precinct at 481–499 Malabar Road, Maroubra.
The project, designed by GroupGSA, will transform the former Maroubra RSL Memorial Bowling Club site into an integrated retirement and aged care community.
The approved scheme comprises four buildings across a 1.085-hectare site, delivering 55 independent and assisted living apartments and a 44-bed residential aged care home.
Shared community and wellness facilities, a rooftop courtyard and a street-facing café complete the programme, with 58 per cent of the site dedicated to landscaped areas and open space.
Catholic Healthcare acquired the site in 2016 for $28.5 million.
The current approval follows an earlier consent granted by the NSW Land and Environment Court in 2019 and subsequent rezoning.
GroupGSA has been working with Catholic Healthcare since 2017 to develop a response that addresses Maroubra’s fine-grain residential context while managing site constraints, including overland flow and flooding.
The proposed development is conceived as being uniquely Maroubra, with the architecture and facade treatment responding to both the existing built environment and the local natural landscape.
The revised masterplan refines the previously approved proposal to deliver what GroupGSA Principal Alister Eden describes as a more considered and contemporary offer.
The built form ranges from two to five storeys and responds to the coastal setting through a carefully curated material palette.
Highly articulated facades in brick and render reference the surrounding urban fabric, while neutral-toned brick, soft timber cladding and bronze-coloured metal draw on the sandstone striations of the coastal rock formations along the bay.
The intent, according to Eden, was to soften the earlier scheme, making it feel more homely within what is predominantly a residential neighbourhood.
A publicly accessible through-site link will extend Rossiter Avenue, improving pedestrian connectivity between Malabar Road and Mons Avenue and introducing new public domain and shared green space into the neighbourhood.
The project’s location within walking distance of the beach, local shops and public transport reinforces the development’s emphasis on connection to place.
The residential aged care facility is located to the south-west of the site and is organised around 16-bed clusters, each supported by communal lounge, dining and service spaces.
Upper-level gardens, including a dedicated protected dementia garden, provide access to outdoor space for all residents.
At ground level, a centralised health and wellness village hub anchors the precinct.
Allied health services, a pool, library, cinema, fitness facilities, hair salon and chapel are designed to serve both residents and the broader community.
The scale of the residential aged care component has been reduced from the earlier scheme, while a new assisted living offering introduces a hybrid model that bridges independent living and higher care.
The independent living component has been recalibrated to include 34 two-bedroom and 21 three-bedroom dwellings, reflecting both market demand and the project’s premium coastal setting.
Apartments are generously proportioned with high-quality finishes and larger-than-typical balconies, terraces and roof gardens.
Passive design principles underpin the scheme: full-height glazing maximises daylight, while natural cross-ventilation and passive cooling via coastal breezes reduce reliance on mechanical systems and optimise outlooks from key living areas.
The three-bedroom apartments are specifically designed to accommodate downsizers from larger homes, with additional rooms conceived as separate living quarters, hobby spaces and guest accommodation, recognising that residents are transitioning from substantial properties and expect equivalent spatial generosity.
The design also reflects a broader ambition around social connection.
A through-site link adjacent to a local school creates an environment where residents remain embedded in the everyday life of the suburb, seeing activity in the street and engaging with the surrounding community rather than retreating from it.
The Maroubra project forms part of Catholic Healthcare’s wider programme of connected communities across New South Wales.
The organisation has committed more than $600 million over the next five years, with developments currently underway at Wahroonga, Blacktown and Forbes.
An additional site is also planned for Lewisham, southwest of the Sydney CBD.
The Malabar Road development represents the continued maturation of the seniors living sector in Australia, where proximity to amenity, quality of design and the continuum of care options are increasingly central to both operator strategy and resident decision-making.
