Bunnings Warehouse to move to Dubbo’s former RAAF base | Daily Liberal

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A $30 million Bunnings, which will be largest in the Central West if approved, is in the works for the RAAF base development. A development application for the hardware store is currently before Dubbo Regional Council. It’ll be 68 per cent bigger than the Bunnings currently on Sheraton Road. Dubbo mayor Ben Shields says not only will it be the largest in the Central West, the Bunnings warehouse will also hire an additional 60 staff. Developer Mark Stanford said the former RAAF base site was 100 acres, which meant big business was needed. ALSO MAKING NEWS: “There aren’t many businesses bigger than Bunnings,” he said. A 500-space car park will also be constructed. “The total spend in the entire project is over $60 million, so it’s a fair investment. The Bunnings building itself is over $30 million. There won’t be too many many private projects in 2021 that are over $30 million in the city,” Mr Stanford said. He said he hoped Bunnings would activate the RAAF base site and open the doorway for other businesses to consider coming to the city. “I think you’ll see we’ve got quite a few exciting announcements over the nest couple of months. This is the first of many DAs that’ll be lodged and we’re really going to see not only our site but the city of Dubbo kick along,” Mr Stanford said. “We’re excited for 2021. Last year was a tough year as everybody knows but I think the job creation and investment potential for the city will be really exciting.” If approved by council, work on the Bunnings is expected to start from July. As for the rest of the site, Mr Stanford said work was up to the last 20 per cent of the first construction phase. Work at the Cobra Street signalised intersection has already started. “That will go for the next six to eight weeks and then we’ll be all finished,” Mr Stanford said. Two-thirds of the site will be retail and commercial use, while the other third will be residential. There’ll also be 10.8 hectares of open space. Throughout the construction, Mr Stanford said the focus had been on using local businesses where possible. “We’ve got a big buy local policy. We try and use local contractors wherever possible. If you have a look around the site, I think last week I counted 29 utes on site, so that’s 29 tradies turning up to work every day,” he said. The Bunnings development application needs to be approved by council before work can begin. “I believe the zoning is already appropriate. There are a number of processes that this has to go through before final approval but for a major company to see Dubbo as a place to continue and expand on their already significant investment is a good thing,” Cr Shields said. Bunnings regional operations manager Robyn Hudson said the new Bunnings will offer customers “an even wider range of home and lifestyle products”. “We look forward to working with the relevant authorities throughout the development application process and will keep the community updated as things progress.” Spanning more than 17,500 square metres, the new Bunnings will include the main warehouse, outdoor nursery, timber trade sales area, café, and a playground. The new store would also feature a 1,600 square metre specialised bulk trade offer.

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A $30 million Bunnings, which will be largest in the Central West if approved, is in the works for the RAAF base development.

A development application for the hardware store is currently before Dubbo Regional Council. It’ll be 68 per cent bigger than the Bunnings currently on Sheraton Road.

Dubbo mayor Ben Shields says not only will it be the largest in the Central West, the Bunnings warehouse will also hire an additional 60 staff.

Developer Mark Stanford said the former RAAF base site was 100 acres, which meant big business was needed.

“There aren’t many businesses bigger than Bunnings,” he said.

A 500-space car park will also be constructed.

“The total spend in the entire project is over $60 million, so it’s a fair investment. The Bunnings building itself is over $30 million. There won’t be too many many private projects in 2021 that are over $30 million in the city,” Mr Stanford said.

He said he hoped Bunnings would activate the RAAF base site and open the doorway for other businesses to consider coming to the city.

“I think you’ll see we’ve got quite a few exciting announcements over the nest couple of months. This is the first of many DAs that’ll be lodged and we’re really going to see not only our site but the city of Dubbo kick along,” Mr Stanford said.

“We’re excited for 2021. Last year was a tough year as everybody knows but I think the job creation and investment potential for the city will be really exciting.”

If approved by council, work on the Bunnings is expected to start from July.

As for the rest of the site, Mr Stanford said work was up to the last 20 per cent of the first construction phase.

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Work at the Cobra Street signalised intersection has already started.

“That will go for the next six to eight weeks and then we’ll be all finished,” Mr Stanford said.

Two-thirds of the site will be retail and commercial use, while the other third will be residential. There’ll also be 10.8 hectares of open space.

Throughout the construction, Mr Stanford said the focus had been on using local businesses where possible.

“We’ve got a big buy local policy. We try and use local contractors wherever possible. If you have a look around the site, I think last week I counted 29 utes on site, so that’s 29 tradies turning up to work every day,” he said.

The Bunnings development application needs to be approved by council before work can begin.

“I believe the zoning is already appropriate. There are a number of processes that this has to go through before final approval but for a major company to see Dubbo as a place to continue and expand on their already significant investment is a good thing,” Cr Shields said.

Bunnings regional operations manager Robyn Hudson said the new Bunnings will offer customers “an even wider range of home and lifestyle products”.

“We look forward to working with the relevant authorities throughout the development application process and will keep the community updated as things progress.”

Spanning more than 17,500 square metres, the new Bunnings will include the main warehouse, outdoor nursery, timber trade sales area, café, and a playground. The new store would also feature a 1,600 square metre specialised bulk trade offer.