Crowne Plaza signed for proposed 43-storey Wickham tower awaiting approval

Newy 87.8 FM – IHG Hotels & Resorts has signed Crowne Plaza Newcastle, a 171-room hotel planned within Urban Property Group's proposed 43-storey mixed-use tower at 10 Dangar Street, Wickham, adjacent to Newcastle Interchange.

The hotel is expected to open in late 2029, IHG announced on Friday 18 September 2026, but the development itself has not been approved. The NSW Planning Portal lists the project as a State Significant Development, case SSD-89869959, currently at the Response to Submissions stage, before assessment, recommendation and determination.

The portal's submissions register shows 327 submissions, with formal objections citing scale, parking adequacy, built form incompatible with the Wickham street context, and public-domain grounds.

IHG says the hotel would include all-day dining, a lobby bar, more than 550 square metres of meetings and events space including a 425-square-metre ballroom, a pool and landscaped public spaces. IHG says the tower would also include 219 residential apartments, while the Planning Portal describes approximately 200 dwellings, including 42 affordable housing dwellings, plus 99 co-living units, parking, ground-floor retail and a plaza.

The signing marks Crowne Plaza's return to Newcastle. IHG's Managing Director Australasia and Pacific, Matt Tripolone, said IHG is "excited to return Crowne Plaza to Newcastle".

The announcement expands IHG's partnership with Urban Property Group to three NSW hotels, alongside Crowne Plaza Parramatta and Hotel Indigo Gosford, a 152-room hotel expected in mid-2030.

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