Concept proposals for two Darling Harbour developments – one for Cockle Bay Wharf and another for Harbourside Shopping Centre – have raised concerns from the City of Sydney’s senior planners.
The concept proposal for the Cockle Bay Wharf redevelopment, put forward by Darling Park, GPT Wholesale Office Fund, Brookfield and AMP Capital Wholesale Office Fund, comprises a building envelope for a tower of up to 235 metres in height, 12,000 square metres of public domain space, a maximum area of 85,000 square metres for commercial development and 15,000 square metres of retail space.
Developer Mirvac’s redevelopment of Harbourside Shopping Centre concept proposal includes a building envelope for a tower reaching up to 166.35 metres above sea level and a maximum gross floor area of 87,000 square metres for residential and non-residential uses.
The Cockle Bay Wharf redevelopment will sit at the eastern end of the heritage-listed Pyrmont Bridge and Harbourside Shopping Centre is sited at the western end.
FJMT, JBA and Right Angle Studio have prepared the building envelope for the Cockle Bay Wharf redevelopment and FJMT, JBA, Jerde and Aspect Studios have prepared the building envelope for the Harbourside Shopping Centre redevelopment.
However, the design of both redevelopments is subject to a design excellence competition.
Both proposals have raised concerns from the City of Sydney’s senior planners, who “question[ed] the appropriateness of a very tall tower on the foreshore” in reference to the Cockle Bay Wharf redevelopment and said the Harbourside Shopping Centre proposal “lack[ed] context and certainty.”
In his response to the Secretary’s Environmental Assessment Requirements, which predate the exhibition of the proposals, City of Sydney senior planner Russell Hand said, “The proposal to introduce a tall residential tower [at Harbourside Shopping Centre] is strongly opposed by the City.
“Darling Harbour is a precinct for the people, which is owned and operated by a public authority. Permanent ownership of public land through strata-titled apartments is not consistent with the intent and purposes of Darling Harbour. The scale and siting of the tower is not suitable to the site.”
Christopher Ashworth, also a senior planner at the City of Sydney, expressed similar reservations about the Cockle Bay Wharf redevelopment. He said the proposed building “appears to be far in excess of the existing buildings in the immediate context and far in excess of the maximum permissible height of the adjoining sites, which is predominantly 80 metres.”
The City of Sydney’s reservations could hamper the progress of the applications.
Darling Harbour has been identified as a State Significant Development (SSD), meaning applications are assessed by the Department of Planning and Environment, rather than the local council(s). However, if the local council does not support an SSD proposal, or if the department has received more than 25 public objections, the department’s recommendation is referred to the independent Planning and Assessment Commission (PAC) for determination.
Both the Cockle Bay Wharf redevelopment and Harbourside Shopping Centre proposals are on public exhibition until 14 February 2017.
