A FOUR star hotel proposal worth $35 million has been announced for the Riverhaven Motel site on the Shoalhaven River.

The proposal includes 54 hotel rooms, 22 two-bedroom and 22 three-bedroom apartments. It will also feature one three-bedroom and one four-bedroom penthouse suites.

Hotel parking will include 68 secure off-street car spots and 92 off-street car park spaces for the apartment section.

Shoalhaven Mayor Joanna Gash and local architect Colin Irwin announced the proposal on Friday morning.

Mr Irwin, who next year will celebrate 25 years in business locally, considers the hotel “a dream project”. 

“It’s been a while in the making to get it to this point, about two to three years,” he said.

“The owners have been thinking about it for a while and agreed now is the time.”

Mr Irwin said there was still a way to go before earthworks started but said the project had been favourably received by Shoalhaven City Council in a briefing.

 “There are a lot of people involved to get something like this off the ground,” he said.

“We’ve brought a developer and a hotel operator to the table and it is critical to have a developer interested. That’s a major hurdle.

“Everyone now is waiting for council’s response to the design.”

He said the artist impressions were at the raw concept stage with more refinements underway.

“It’s been very well received by council,” Mr Irwin said.

“We are just keen to see Nowra get the hotel it’s been waiting for.”

Mr Irwin said environmental design would be a key issue, particularly given the location.

Plans announced for $35m riverside project

“This is a very significant project and a lot of thought has gone into it. 

“It is going to set the benchmark and it is going to activate the town’s best asset, the waterfront,” Mr Irwin said.

Shoalhaven Mayor Joanna Gash said she was “over the moon at the proposal.”

“This has been in the pipeline for a while,” she said.

“I haven’t been able to disclose anything about it until now.

“It’s a fantastic proposal. For years, I’ve wanted something like this to happen on the river.

“I think it will blend in beautifully with the river precinct.

“Features including a cafe, restaurant and function area will help liven up that whole area,” Cr Gash said.

Raine & Horne Nowra owner Jarred Cochrane has opened a register for prospective purchasers for the 44 residential units and the two penthouses.

Raine & Horne Nowra’s commercial consultant Brian Kenny has a connection with the land, having auctioned it in Sydney in 2000.

“If the global financial crisis had not happened this could easily have been under way, but the GFC stopped a lot of development,” Mr Kenny said.

He has followed the previous proposals for the site and said he believed all along that it would be ready for redevelopment one day.