CAMERON PARK will soon have its first hotel after Lake Macquarie council approved plans for the venue.
The council determined Roche Group's development application for the suburban pub earlier this week.
Roche Group - the developer of the Cameron Grove residential estate - has long had plans to build a Harrigan's Irish Pub adjacent to Cameron Park Plaza and lodged revised plans in July.
A development application for the hotel was initially approved by the council in 2008 with amended plans then approved in 2016.
The latest modification included alterations to the pub's internal layout and architectural design, and adjustments to the landscaping, car park and site access.
"We really re-thought the design in terms of the pub's aesthetic to create a more modern feel but still including some traditional elements such as gables and conventional roof forms," Roche Group's general manager of development Wes Van Der Gardner said after lodging the revised plans.
"This will be the fourth Harrigan's pub in our portfolio.
"We've got the Hunter Valley Gardens Harrigan's, which we renovated about 18 months ago, and we've also undertaken some renovations during [COVID-19] to our pubs up on the Mid North Coast and in south-east Queensland.
"We've just taken the best out of all of those and consolidated that into our new pub at Cameron Grove."
Roche Group indicated in July that work on the hotel would start in early 2021.
Mr Van Der Gardner said the venue be a "real focal point" for the ever-growing Cameron Park community.
"There is a real shift towards pubs being a focal point for communities," he said.
"Having some indoor/outdoor kids play areas with that family-focus at the heart of it and also the entertainment options in terms of the terrace areas being semi-indoor, semi-outdoor.
"There's something for everyone and the local community there that have bought into our estate are very keen for this to open."
The hotel will be the suburb's first and built in the retail and commercial precinct off George Booth Drive.
McDonald's and KFC fast-food outlets opened at the site in recent months and the Woolworths-anchored Cameron Park Plaza opened earlier this year.
