Barrenjoey Rd, Palm Beach: Plans for luxury flats, to replace iconic fish and chips shop, knocked back
Locals are celebrating after planning officials knocked back plans for a ritzy $13.5m block of units in the heart of Palm Beach.
Manly
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Plans for a swanky $13.5 million apartment block in the heart of Palm Beach have been knocked back by planning officials because it was too high and too big.
Locals had been arguing that the three-storey “shop-top” development on Barrenjoey Rd would have dwarfed neighbouring properties and destroyed the area’s “seaside atmosphere”.
The original development application for the block of five units, being pushed by tech entrepreneur Robin Khuda — Australia’s 207th richest man — received close to 100 public submissions opposing the development.
A reworked DA, which was rejected late last month, attracted about 70 submissions.
Mr Khuda, the founder of data centres operator AirTrunk, bought the now demolished old Palm Beach Fish and Chips shop, considered an iconic local eatery, for $6 million.
He has amassed a fortune of $600 million according to The Australian newspaper’s latest Richest 250 List.
Original consent was granted by the former Pittwater Council in November 2014 for a three-storey shop top housing development with a maximum height of 10.3m with a flat roof.
But a new DA, with shops underneath and a basement car park, was lodged with Northern Beaches Council in August last year.
It was referred to the independent Northern Beaches Local Planning Panel after it received so many submissions opposing the building and because it was above the local zoned height limit.
The new block, if it had been approved, would have been next door to the 98-year-old Barrenjoey House in the small retail strip opposite the Pittwater ferry wharf.
In its assessment report to the panel, the council recommended it approve the project.
But at its February 15 meeting the planning panel deferred making a decision to give the developer an chance to submit amended plans that would reduce the overall height, bulk and scale of the building, including removal of the “mansard” roof — two slopes on all sides with the lower slope steeper than the upper one.
The panel also wanted the architect to “reduce the overly strong vertical influence of the balcony columns”.
In late April, the developer was advised that the changes to the plans put forward to the panel were not satisfactory and the amended DA was rejected.
President of the Palm Beach & Whale Beach Association, Richard West, celebrated the decision and said the block would have been totally out of context with the local character and a gross overdevelopment of the site.
Mr West said on Tuesday there were certain planning rules that had to be complied with.
“But that one was way over bulk and way over size. If it’s compliant, then we’re not going to complain.
“So it’s concerning that the council thought that it was OK to go ahead.”
In its report to the panel, the council stated that the height breach was acceptable “given the existing consent (by Pittwater Council) on the land for a similar scale of development”.
“The proposed development is a superior outcome in regard to the urban design and public domain interface, responding to the Palm Beach seaside village character and interrelationship with the adjoining heritage item Barrenjoey House when compared to the existing consent.”
Efforts have been made to contact Mr Khuda.
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