Thirteen home sites in the first new housing estate released in Sutherland Shire since developments at Greenhills Beach go on sale on Saturday.
The 133-lot estate, called The Ridgeway, is on New Illawarra Road, Barden Ridge, opposite The Ridge Sports Complex.
It adjoins Barden Ridge Oval and is close to Lucas Heights Community School.
Chinese-based company, Dahua Group, which entered the Australian market in 2014, is developing the 14 hectare “boutique estate”.
The company said a large portion of native bushland on the site, which includes a small forest of native Turpentine trees, would be retained.
Dahua Group bought the land from the Gandangara Aboriginal Land Council through a tender process, which was finalised this year.
The 13 lots in stage one range in size from 550 square metres and are priced from $800,000.
Selling agent Chistopher Lowry, managing director of Urban Land Housing, said it was originally intended sales would start in 2018.
However, due to demand from existing residents in the area “wishing to upgrade”, the release of the first stage had been brought forward.
Mr Lowry said the remaining lots would be released throughout 2018.
Dahua Group sales director Lili Shang said blocks were expected to sell quickly because of the scarcity of new housing land in the shire.
The site is zoned E4-Environmental Living which allows low-impact residential development.
It has a 515-metre frontage to New Illawarra Road and a 400-metre frontage to bushland leading to Woronora River.
Gandangara Aboriginal Land Council chief executive officer Paul Newman said in 2016 the land was being sold to help finance business activities, including community housing and cultural and heritage programs.
“We also operate a community transport service to support older members of the local Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal communities and we are the only land council who operates a privately-owned medical centre in Australia,” he said.
“The proceeds from the sale of the Barden Ridge property will support these services.”
The land council retained an adjoining 20 hectares.
Proposed new home sites at West Menai, adjoining The Ridge Sports Complex, have not yet been released.
In 2015, then Planning Minister Rob Stokes announced the rezoning of 23 hectares of bushland, which was also owned by the Gandangara Aboriginal Land Council.
The move was expected to deliver 320 new homes – about 10 per cent of the original proposal for the Heathcote Ridge development.
The land council had sought the rezoning of 236 hectares of residential land to accommodate 2700 homes, 70 hectares of employment land and 514 hectares of conservation land.
