Box Hill development is now a story about apartments and schools, not paddocks. In fact, I count 9 live projects in and right next to the suburb, with roughly 1,960 apartments, homes and lots. In particular, 6 of them sit on a single road, Terry Road. Then, on 20 February 2026, the planning panel approved a bigger version of the stalled Box Hill Town Centre with 665 apartments. Also, 2 permanent public schools are rising on Terry Road for Term 1 2028. But council still says the precinct is $207 million short on basic local infrastructure.
Written by Daniel Whitfield, founder of Australia Develops. An accountant by background who has bought land and built a home himself, he researches property development and planning across Australia using council reports, planning records and government data.
Where is Box Hill?
Box Hill is in The Hills Shire, postcode 2765, about 48 km north-west of the Sydney CBD and roughly 5 km from Rouse Hill Town Centre. It has no train station of its own, so locals use Rouse Hill or Tallawong on the Metro North West Line, or Riverstone on the T1 line. Also, don’t mix it up with Box Hill in Melbourne’s east.
Box Hill Development 2026 — The Pipeline
For this list, I checked the Sydney Central City Planning Panel register and the NSW Planning Portal. I also read The Hills Shire Council’s exhibition pages and this year’s sale campaigns. As a result, the list below only includes projects with a real address and a real application number, as of today. For scale, the state initially rezoned the land for Box Hill development in 2013 for 9,600 dwellings. Now, council’s latest projection is 16,030 dwellings and about 48,956 people.
Where the 9 Box Hill projects stand now
| # | Project / address | Developer / applicant | Scale | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Box Hill Town Centre, 29-31 Terry Road | Polyhendric Pty Ltd (owner); originally Toplace | 665 apartments, 23,867 m² GFA | Modification approved 20 Feb 2026; site stalled since 2023 |
| 2 | Apartments, 34 and 36 Terry Road | UPG 122 Pty Ltd | 637 units, $163.1m | Refused 2023; approved by Land and Environment Court 27 May 2024 |
| 3 | Apartments, 13 Terry Road | WSDC Box Hill Primitus Development | 148 units incl. 24 affordable | Refused Jun 2025; approved by Court 19 Sep 2025 |
| 4 | Apartments, 6 Alan Street | Private applicant | 178 units, $36.1m | Approved 17 Nov 2023 |
| 5 | Rezoning of 48 Terry Road | The Hills Shire Council (planning proposal) | 58 to 61 medium density homes | Exhibited 2025; awaiting finalisation |
| 6 | Greenfield site, 16 Terry Road | Receivers (Teneo) selling | 17.28 ha, about 240 lots | Sale campaign closed 12 Aug 2026 |
| 7 | Box Hill House and McCall Gardens, 10-32 Terry Road | McCall Gardens (Colliers as applicant) | Disability support centre and heritage works | Approved; modification under assessment |
| 8 | Subdivision, 8-10 Hynds Road | Group Development Services | 38 lots plus 1 residue lot | Under assessment |
| 9 | Stockland Gables town centre, 4 Lakefront Crescent, Gables | Stockland | $95m, 9,400 m² of shops | Open |
Where the Box Hill Development Projects Sit
First, Terry Road is the spine. It runs north from Windsor Road, while the town centre site sits on the east side at the Mason Road corner. Next, the apartment approvals at 13, 34 and 36 Terry Road cluster around it. Box Hill House also faces it across the road. Then, a little further north, come the new schools at 50-52 Terry Road. Hynds Road and Alan Street, however, are in the newer estates off the main roads. Finally, the Stockland town centre is to the north in Gables, which split from Box Hill as its own suburb in July 2020.
PROJECT 1 — 665 apartments and a shopping centre at 29-31 Terry Road
Status: Modification approved (Sydney Central City Planning Panel, 19 February 2026, determination dated 20 February 2026); construction still stalled
Address: 29-31 Terry Road, Box Hill NSW 2765, on the corner of Mason Road. The council number is 945/2016/JP/G, while the panel reference is PPSSCC-681. LJB Planning lodged it, and the listed owner is now Polyhendric Pty Ltd.
For now, this is the site everyone in Box Hill knows. It’s the 4.3 ha town centre that Jean Nassif’s Toplace started, then left as a hole when the group collapsed in 2023. After that, receivers from FTI Consulting put it on the market. By then, the approval already allowed 660 apartments and a 22,843 m² shopping centre, and Coles had also committed to a lease. In fact, the builder had already finished excavation, 2 basement levels and the slab for the anchor tenant.
What the February 2026 approval changed
The 2026 change is modest but telling. According to the panel record, it now lifts the apartments to 665 (up 5). The floor area, in turn, rises to 23,867 m² (up 1,754 m²). In addition, parking goes from 1,366 to 1,389 spaces. The panel accepted a maximum height of 34.86 m against a 24 m standard, because the excess is mostly roof access stairwells. It also received no public submissions.
Someone is clearly still investing in this piece of Box Hill development, since nobody pays planners to tweak a dead project. Still, I couldn’t find a public construction start date, a confirmed builder or a confirmed supermarket tenant for 2026. So treat this part of Box Hill development as approved, not imminent. Toplace’s failure is also why I’d read my guide to checking a builder’s licence and disciplinary record before signing anything off the plan here.
PROJECT 2 — 637 units at 34 and 36 Terry Road
Status: Refused by the panel (13 February 2023); then approved by the Land and Environment Court on appeal (27 May 2024), deferred commencement
Address: 34 and 36 Terry Road, Box Hill NSW 2765, on the western side opposite the town centre. The applicant is UPG 122 Pty Ltd. It’s DA 1625/2022/JP, with panel reference PPSSCC-355. It also has a capital investment value of $163,139,465.
Why the panel first refused 34 Terry Road
Currently, this is the biggest single apartment approval in the suburb. However, the panel refused it unanimously, and its reasons were specific. First, it wasn’t satisfied with the requests to exceed the height and floor space limits, and it called the result too big in bulk, scale and massing. It also objected because the plan dropped “Shand Street”, a link road shown in the Box Hill DCP. In fact, Transport for NSW objected to that too. Finally, it said the scheme didn’t provide the shops and services the zone expects on a transition site next to the town centre.
The applicant then appealed, and the court granted a deferred commencement consent on 27 May 2024. In other words, the applicant must meet certain conditions before the consent becomes active. Still, I couldn’t find the amended design or a construction start. Previously, a 2017 plan on 34 Terry Road for 360 apartments was withdrawn.
PROJECT 3 — 148 units, including 24 affordable, at 13 Terry Road
Status: Refused by the panel (13 June 2025); then approved by the court (19 September 2025)
Address: 13 Terry Road, Box Hill NSW 2765, a short walk south of the town centre site. The applicant is Utech for WSDC Box Hill Primitus Development Pty Ltd. It’s DA 856/2025/JP, with panel reference PPSSCC-629. The building initially won approval under DA 846/2016/JP. This amendment then adds levels and lifts it to 148 units, including 24 affordable homes.
So why the refusal? First, the panel said the applicant hadn’t shown enough evidence that the sewer could handle the extra homes. It also hadn’t supplied information council asked for. Yet the panel even said it supports more housing and affordable housing in principle. After that, the applicant went to court, which approved the scheme on 19 September 2025.
In fact, that sewer point matters for Box Hill development well beyond 1 block. Box Hill’s density keeps rising above the original plan, so pipes and drainage are under pressure too.
PROJECT 4 — 178 units at 6 Alan Street
Status: Approved (Sydney Central City Planning Panel, 17 November 2023)
Address: 6 Alan Street, Box Hill NSW 2765. It’s DA 1207/2023/JP, with panel reference PPSSCC-426. The panel record describes a residential flat building of 178 units. It sits on proposed Lot 1 of a subdivision previously approved under DA 132/2023/ZB. In addition, the capital investment value comes to $36,139,439.
Unlike the 2 Terry Road blocks above, however, this one went through without a fight. It’s a good example of mid-size Box Hill development, with apartment buildings now filling the suburb’s R4 pockets. I couldn’t find a public construction start or a builder, so check the site itself before relying on a completion date.
PROJECT 5 — Rezoning the old school land at 48 Terry Road
Status: Exhibited 14 March to 11 April 2025; at Gateway implementation, not yet finalised
Address: 48 Terry Road, Box Hill NSW 2765. The planning proposal is PP-2023-1849, and The Hills Shire Council is running it. The Gateway approval then came on 9 August 2024.
Until now, this land carried an SP2 Infrastructure (School) zone. However, the permanent Box Hill schools are now being built just along the road at 50-52 Terry Road. So the proposal would rezone number 48 to R3 Medium Density Residential, with a 14 m height limit and a minimum of 18 dwellings per hectare. It would also take the land off the acquisition map. As a result, the site would hold about 58 to 61 townhouse-style homes.
The Planning Portal page doesn’t show a published decision yet. It’s small, but it’s a neat sign of how the precinct is being tidied up as the original plan gets overtaken.
PROJECT 6 — A 17.28 ha greenfield site for sale at 16 Terry Road
Status: Receivers’ sale campaign (expressions of interest closed 12 August 2026); buyer not yet announced
Address: 16 Terry Road, Box Hill NSW 2765. Then in July 2026, Knight Frank’s Mark Litwin and Jeff Moxham began marketing it for receivers and managers Andy Scott and Daniel Walley of Teneo. However, the reporting didn’t name the owner.
For now, the pitch is about 240 residential lots, from roughly 250 m² to 604 m². In fact, the agents say the zoning already allows houses, townhouses and apartments. But a buyer would still need subdivision consent before any lots get registered. So I’d be careful with anyone selling paper lots here early, as my guide to unregistered land explains. Next, watch for the sale result and a subdivision DA.
PROJECT 7 — Box Hill House and McCall Gardens at 10-32 Terry Road
Status: Approved (DA 1880/2023/JP); modification 1880/2023/JP/B exhibited 17 December 2025 to 9 February 2026
Address: Box Hill House and McCall Gardens, 10-32 Terry Road, Box Hill NSW 2765. Colliers International (NSW) is the applicant, while council decides it.
Above all, this is the heritage heart of Terry Road. The approved project redevelops the community facility, restores Box Hill House and Nelson Hall, and also adds to Ross House. In addition, it builds a new Disability Support Centre. According to council’s exhibition page, the modification changes details such as fencing, driveways, waste, the Nelson Hall façade and stormwater. Because of the Heritage Act, it’s integrated development.
Still, the surrounding farmland is the bigger housing story. For example, in December 2022 the McCall Community Gardens Foundation sold 30.9 ha to WST Property Group for a reported $200 million. But it kept about 4.7 ha around Box Hill House. Initially, the plan was about 650 lots, with up to 1,150 dwellings possible. I couldn’t match a lodged subdivision DA to that land, so I haven’t counted those homes in my total.
PROJECT 8 — 38 lots at 8-10 Hynds Road
Status: Under assessment by The Hills Shire Council (exhibited 26 August to 19 September 2025)
Address: 8-10 Hynds Road, Box Hill NSW 2765. It’s DA 211/2026/ZB, lodged by Group Development Services Pty Ltd. The plan creates 38 residential lots and 1 residue lot, as well as new roads, demolition, tree removal and contamination clean-up.
It also needs 2 extra sign-offs. The first is a controlled activity approval under the Water Management Act, because of a watercourse. The second is a bush fire safety authority from the Rural Fire Service. In fact, that combination is common on Box Hill’s creek-side and bushland blocks. So it’s worth checking the flood and bushfire maps before you buy a lot like this.
PROJECT 9 — Stockland’s $95m Gables town centre at 4 Lakefront Crescent
Status: Open (reported 1 October 2025)
Address: 4 Lakefront Crescent, Gables NSW 2765. Technically, this is now the next suburb north. But Gables was part of the Box Hill North precinct, and for most Box Hill families it’s now the nearest full supermarket.
Stockland bought The Gables from Celestino in March 2020 for $415 million. It now plans about 4,100 homes there for roughly 13,000 residents. Its $95 million centre has 9,400 m² of lettable space. That includes a 3,800 m² Woolworths and about 30 retailers and services, such as childcare, a medical centre, a pharmacy and a gym. There’s also a function centre and a restaurant facing a future lake. So while the Terry Road centre waits, this is where most of Box Hill does its weekly shop.
The Infrastructure Behind the Box Hill Development
Schools (funded, under construction). Box Hill Public School and Box Hill High School currently run from temporary buildings on George Street, with the high school entrance via Merens Street. Now, Richard Crookes Constructions is building the permanent campus at 50-52 Terry Road. It opens on Day 1, Term 1 2028. The School Infrastructure NSW page lists 1,000 primary places as well as capacity for 2,000 high school students. In addition, the 27 March 2026 release adds a preschool for up to 120 children a week. It’s the first new high school in The Hills since 2009.
Next door in Gables, a new primary school and preschool at 1 Pennant Way are due for Day 1, Term 1 2027. Eventually, they’ll take about 1,000 students. In fact, School Infrastructure says the preschool building is already complete.
Annangrove Road and other Box Hill development road upgrades
Roads (partly funded). In August 2026, council awarded a $51 million contract to upgrade 1.9 km of Annangrove Road between Windsor Road and Edwards Road. As a result, it goes from a rural road to 4 lanes with a median. Work starts in late 2026 and should finish in 2029, while the NSW Government is putting in $31.4 million. In addition, Transport for NSW bought the last parcel for the Annangrove Road, Withers Road and The Water Lane intersection in April 2026. That upgrade is now out to tender.
Also, the August 2025 Special Infrastructure Contributions round gave Box Hill $11.7 million. In short, that’s $5.6 million to build The Water Lane road and $2.6 million to design the Terry Road upgrade. The rest, $3.5 million, also goes to Fire and Rescue NSW to buy land for a fire station. You can check the amounts on the NSW grant recipients list. Previously, in April 2025, the Federal Government committed $220 million to widen Windsor Road further out at Rouse Hill.
Parks, sport and council’s $207 million gap
Parks and sport. First, Brindle Parkway Reserve opened on 15 June 2024 with 2 playing fields. Next, The Water Lane Reserve, with 2 AFL and athletics ovals and 200 car spaces, is due in December 2026. Then Anthony Skarratt Reserve Stage 1 at 8 Nelson Road brings a community centre, a satellite library and 187 car spaces. Council’s February 2026 update targeted May 2026, but I couldn’t find an opening announcement.
The gap. According to council’s Box Hill page, the precinct grew from 9,600 planned dwellings to 16,030, but the infrastructure plan didn’t keep up. As a result, council says it’s $207 million short for 16 playing fields, 7 parks, 14 traffic signals, 10 roundabouts and 13 km of roads. Its petition got 20,697 signatures, so Parliament debated it on 18 September 2025. On water, Sydney Water has also run pressure main works for Box Hill as part of a $90 million north-west upgrade. Even so, the 13 Terry Road refusal shows sewer capacity still gets tested block by block.
What’s Next to Watch in Box Hill Development
These are the next Box Hill development milestones I’m tracking. Each one also moves Box Hill closer to feeling like a finished suburb.
- The Water Lane Reserve opening. Council is currently aiming for December 2026, giving families 2 more sporting ovals.
- Annangrove Road works. The contractor should arrive on site in late 2026, and then 4 lanes are due by 2029.
- Gables Public School. The next step is opening day, Term 1 2027, for about 1,000 students.
- The Terry Road town centre. Watch for a builder, a construction certificate or a confirmed supermarket now that the February 2026 approval is in hand.
- 16 Terry Road. Here, watch for the sale result, then a subdivision DA for about 240 lots.
- 48 Terry Road. The next step is the LEP amendment that turns the old school zoning into homes.
- Terry Road upgrade. Design money is in place, so construction funding is the next milestone to look for.
- Box Hill PS and HS. The permanent campus is still on track for Day 1, Term 1 2028.
Box Hill has no station, so Box Hill development isn’t part of the TOD rezoning program. Instead, its density comes from the original growth centre zoning and from individual approvals like the ones above.
Project Status and Delivery Timing
| Project | Homes | Stage | Decision maker | Expected timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Box Hill Town Centre, 29-31 Terry Rd | 665 apartments | Approved, stalled | Sydney Central City Planning Panel | No restart date published yet |
| 34 and 36 Terry Rd | 637 units | Court-approved (deferred commencement) | Land and Environment Court | No start date published |
| 13 Terry Rd | 148 units (24 affordable) | Court-approved | Land and Environment Court | Not published yet |
| 6 Alan St | 178 units | Approved | Sydney Central City Planning Panel | Not published yet |
| 48 Terry Rd rezoning | 58 to 61 | Post-exhibition | Council / DPHI | Decision still pending |
| 16 Terry Rd | About 240 lots | For sale | Receivers, then council | Buyer not yet announced |
| Box Hill House, 10-32 Terry Rd | Not housing | Modification under assessment | The Hills Shire Council | Not published yet |
| 8-10 Hynds Rd | 38 lots | Under assessment | The Hills Shire Council | Decision still pending |
| Gables town centre | Retail | Open | Built by Stockland | Trading since 2025 |
My Take on Box Hill Development
In short, Box Hill development has moved faster than its services. In fact, the housing is real, with 6,238 dwellings already completed by early 2024 and more than 11,000 approved. But for a decade, families have driven to Rouse Hill or Gables for groceries, and the schools are only now arriving. The good news is that 2026 to 2028 is when the catch-up lands: 2 ovals this year, then 3 public schools and Annangrove Road by 2029.
Above all, I’d watch the Terry Road town centre. While it stays a hole, the suburb has no real heart. Of course, the 2026 approval shows someone is working on it. Still, until a builder is named, I wouldn’t pay a premium just to be next to it. Compared with the southern growth areas in my Leppington pipeline, Box Hill is further along on homes but behind on roads. Its neighbour to the west, however, is moving differently again, as my Riverstone development roundup shows.
Questions Locals Are Asking About Box Hill Development
When will the Box Hill Town Centre on Terry Road open?
For now, there’s no published date. The panel approved a modified plan with 665 apartments on 20 February 2026. However, I couldn’t find a builder, a start date or a confirmed supermarket since Toplace’s collapse in 2023.
Which school will my kids go to before 2028?
Box Hill Public School and Box Hill High School are currently running from temporary buildings on George Street. Both then move to the permanent Terry Road campus on Day 1, Term 1 2028, according to School Infrastructure NSW.
Is Box Hill getting a train station?
No station appears in any funded plan, so buses do the work. For now, the nearest stations are Rouse Hill and Tallawong on the Metro North West Line, and Riverstone on the T1 line. Council’s plan instead proposes 20 bus stops and new 4-lane roads such as Mason Road and Terry Road.
Why does council say Box Hill is underfunded?
Because the dwelling forecast grew by about 75% after the 2013 plan, while land and building costs also rose. As a result, council says that left a $207 million gap. So far, the $11.7 million granted in August 2025 covers only part of it.
This article is general information based on NSW Planning Portal and Sydney Central City Planning Panel records, The Hills Shire Council pages, School Infrastructure NSW and NSW Government releases, and published sale reports available at publication. It isn’t financial advice. Approvals and timelines can change, so check current details with the consent authority and the developer before you buy.
