Ingleside: NSW Government scraps plans for 3000 new residents to move in

A proposal that would have led to 980 new homes — and 3000 more residents — in a rural part of Sydney’s northern beaches has been dumped. Find out why.

Plans to allow close to 1000 new homes — and 3000 more people — on the northern beaches have been scrapped by the NSW Government.

The controversial Ingleside Place Strategy, which included rezoning a large chunk of semirural land to allow for a housing estate, will not proceed, Planning Minister Anthony Roberts has announced.

Instead, Northern Beaches Council has been handed responsibility for future planning of the 180ha pocket of land, south of Mona Vale Rd and north of Powderworks Rd.

The council, which had been opposed to the government’s rezoning strategy for Ingleside due to bushfire evacuation, traffic, transport and cost of public infrastructure concerns, welcomed the announcement on Friday.

An image included in the draft Ingleside Place Strategy showing indicative medium density housing that would have been built in the redevelopment precinct. Picture: Cox Architecture

“This news will be very welcome by many in our community and it’s great to have more certainty now for the future of this area,” said Mayor Michael Regan.

Mr Regan also stressed that while the council would consider the Ingleside land in a new Local Environmental Plan being drawn up for the whole northern beaches area “we will not be considering any new housing development of the scale proposed by the government”.

The government originally wanted to rezone a wider area of Ingleside to fit in 3400 new homes.

But that proposal was scrapped in 2018 after serious concerns were raised by the NSW Rural Fire Service about the risks associated with bushfires sweeping into the area. There were fears that residents would not be able to evacuate quickly enough during a major bushfire and the suburb would be severely affected by ember attack.

Firefighters and residents battle flames as fire threatened homes around Powderworks Rd at Ingleside in January, 2001. There wee concerns the proposed redevelopment could hamper bushfire evacuations. Picture: John Grainger

There were also concerns after it was revealed that “small number of land acquisitions within the precinct” would be made to build community infrastructure such as road widening and water management.

Revised plans, released in mid-2021, included room for 980 new homes — ranging from apartments, townhouses and free standing home — shopping centre, parks, sports and public open space, It did not include a new school.

The new homes would have added to 130 existing dwellings in the precinct.

Mr Roberts said that the Planning Department had completed its investigation for Ingleside

and will not be proceeding with the strategy.

A map showing the "urban release" area included in the draft Ingleside Place Strategy. Picture: NSW Government

“We’ve been working closely with Northern Beaches Council, Rural Fire Service, Police and community, to get the planning right for this beautiful part of Sydney,” Mr Roberts said.

“This has taken some time, but important and extensive investigations were carried

out, widespread consultation conducted, and all feedback carefully considered.

“As a result, I have decided the best way forward is for Council to manage the future

of the area.”

Cities and Infrastructure Minister Rob Stokes, who is the MP for Pittwater, said the decision

would provide certainty to residents.

“We now have a thorough understanding of the opportunities and constraints of the

local environment, so I look forward to council finalising the planning framework for

Ingleside as quickly as possible.”

A map showing the area set aside for medium density housing in the draft Ingleside Place Strategy. Picture: NSW Government

In July last year the council voted to send a submission to the Planning Department calling on it to scrap the revised Ingleside Place Strategy in its current form.

One councillor, Liberal Rory Amon, described the plan as an “unmitigated disaster” waiting to happen.

Other community critics, including the Residents Against Inappropriate Development group, warned that the precinct would put lives at risk because of a lack of road escape routes in a bushfire.

An overview included in the draft Ingleside Place Strategy showing the five proposed 'character areas' within and near the redevelopment precinct. Picture: NSW Government

Cr Amon, who is a volunteer with the Rural Fire Service, told the council that existing residents “who will need to escape these fires when they come” would also be put at risk.

“They haven’t come since 1994 and they will come. And when they do come they will be a disaster and it they’ll be horrific.

“And the more people we pack in, the worse it will be.”

A busfire at Ingleside in January 2001. Picture: John Grainger

Mr Regan said on Friday that there would be no large scale new housing development “given we now have all the studies to demonstrate the significant bushfire risk, the environmental and Aboriginal heritage impacts and the need for costly infrastructure in order to make such a development feasible.”

Mayor Regan said the council would push for the government to transfer into Council ownership, at no cost, its land on which planning infrastructure is sited and ask the government to transfer surplus land for other public purposes such as sports fields, passive recreational spaces and biodiversity offsets.

“We now have an opportunity to repurpose some of this less environmentally sensitive land for broad community use.”

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