Barrenjoey Head: Public protest set to fight plan for overnight visitors at historic lighthouse

Plans to allow tourists to stay overnight at the Sydney lighthouse featured in the TV series ‘Home And Away’ will be targeted at a public protest rally.

Hundreds of Pittwater locals protested proposed changes to the Barrenjoey Lighthouse precinct at Palm Beach in 2013. A similar rally is planned for January 22 to halt NSW Government plans to allow paying tourists to stay overnight. Picture: Simon Cocksedge

Furious locals have organised a protest rally to fight plans to allow tourists to stay at the historic Sydney lighthouse seen in the TV drama series Home And Away.

Critics are calling on the NSW Government to drop a push to have overnight accommodation at the spectacular Barrenjoey Headland complex at Palm Beach.

The idea is part of bold new plans for Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park. — Australia’s second oldest — which include food trucks and coffee carts at the base of the headland.

But the community lobby group, the Palm Beach and Whale Beach Association, says the proposed commercialisation of the headland, especially converting the Assistant Lighthouse Keeper’s Cottage for overnight tourists, was “tantamount to vandalism”.

The association is organising the rally for Sunday, January 22, at 11am, in Governor Phillip Park at Palm Beach.

The historic Barrenjoey Head lighthouse complex above Palm Beach could host overnight paying tourists as part of a plan being looked at by the NSW Government. Picture: iStock

Hundreds of Pittwater locals attended a protest in 2013 against commercialising the Barrenjoey Headland. Picture: Simon Cocksedge.

A draft management plan for the 14,900-hecatre national park includes making more use of the heritage-listed sandstone buildings surrounding the 142-year-old lighthouse.

It suggests that the Assistant Lighthouse Keeper’s Cottage could be used for “short-stay visitor accommodation”. Tourist’s would also be able to stay over in The Boatman’s Cottage at the base of the headland.

The draft plan also raises the prospect of mobile food and drinks operators providing services to headland visitors.

National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) says in its plan that “adaptive reuse of historic heritage buildings and collections can help preserve heritage values and provide greater levels of public appreciation”.

The Barrenjoey Lighthouse precinct in 2013. Picture: Simon Cocksedge

Barrenjoey Lighthouse circa 1910. Courtesy: State Library of NSW

The lighthouse, which features in the closing credits and promotions for Channel 7’s TV series Home And Away, is a regular stop on tours of locations used for the popular soapy. In the show, it is known as the lighthouse on “Stewarts Point”.

“There are several buildings at Barrenjoey Head that have the potential to be adaptively re-used for visitor facilities and experiences such as visitor accommodation, interpretation and/or used as caretaker accommodation,” the draft plan stated.

Back in 2013 a similar proposal to commercialise the headland, including the introduction of a restaurant, conference centre, and kiosk, was defeated after community protests, supported by the then Pittwater Council.

A poster publicising a protest rally to be held at Palm Beach on January 22, 2023, to stop a NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service proposal to commercialise the Barrenjoey Headland. Picture: Supplied

More than 9000 signatures from residents and overseas’ visitors were added to a petition opposing the move.

Association president Richard West said on Wednesday the lighthouse site was not suitable for commercial development and should be left untouched.

Mr West said the group recently met with NPWS officials to directly express the opposition the community had for the proposal.

“The cottages are the oldest buildings in Pittwater and they should be preserved. We think a museum should be put up there,” he said.

Barrenjoey Lighthouse in 1902. Picture: State Library of NSW

“About 200,000 visitors go up there a year. It should be open to everybody, not to a selective few who can stay at short term accommodation.”

Mr West said NPWS could not explain how paying visitors would get to the accommodation and how goods and services would be provided.

“There is no road there and they would have to put up lighting and all sorts of things,” he said.

NPWS said it was is also planning to build new toilet facilities on the headland “to cater for the growing number of visitors”.

It is also looking at providing a walking track and viewing area on the eastern side of the headland to allow viewing of the resident seal colony.