Revealed: Developments planned, approved in Cremorne

Residents in a north shore suburb are rallying against a spike in development activity they fear is decimating the heritage character of the area. See what’s planned:

A spike in new developments in Cremorne is sparking concerns over the changing face of the historic suburb and fears it is becoming “less and less attractive” for residents.

Boarding homes, unit buildings and aged care homes are among the multistorey developments planned in Cremorne’s residential streets as construction activity shows no signs of slowing down.

Concerns over the development boom in the area was aired at the community precinct meeting earlier this month where residents spoke about an increase in Federation-era homes being bulldozed to make way for the projects.

A concept plan of the development at 124 Benelong Rd.

The meeting culminated with a call for North Sydney Council to carry out an “urgent review” of heritage conservation to protect more homes from the wrecking bell.

Precinct member Cathy Clarke, who has lived in Cremorne for 30 years, partly attributed the rise in development activity to R3 zoning changes introduced in mid-2021 allowing for four storey buildings in parts of the suburb.

“It’s an attractive area for development because it has good transport, it’s handy for the city and it’s close to schools and there is the demand for it,” she said.

A concept plan of the development at 115 Holt St.

“The problem is every bit of land is being taken up by units – people like low-rise houses with a garden to bring up the family but you’re blocking all that out.”

Ms Clarke said North Sydney had already exceeded the number of dwellings it needed to provide under state government housing targets and therefore the suburb had “already done its bit”.

“I don't think Cremorne is different – you look at every Sydney suburb and everyone is up in arms. The cost is the character of the neighbourhood,” she said.

A photo of one of the homes that would be demolished for the development at 131-139 Holt St.

“Most residents have chosen to live here because of the character and it’s being irrevocably changed.”

The list of current development proposals in the suburb include plans for a 20-room boarding house at 124 Benelong Rd which has already generated 81 submissions from residents.

Other proposals include a five storey mixed use development at 131-139 Holt St and a 16-unit apartment complex on the site of three homes further down the street at 115 Holt St.

A concept plan of the development at 131-139 Holt St.

A 31 room boarding house development was also approved at 233-237 Military Rd in the Land and Environment Court last week after initially being rejected by North Sydney Council.

A five storey shop-top housing development is also planned at 75 Parraween St directly next to the historic Orpheum Theatre on Military Rd.

The precinct meeting noted many of the recent developments stated rationale for the projects was to align with the “emerging character” of Cremorne.

Historic buildings in the area include the Hayden Orpheum.

But the precinct said it had “different ideas” of the desired character for Cremorne and called for the council to conduct an urgent heritage review which could trigger stronger planning controls “to protect the existing character of our area”.

North Sydney Council said this year’s amendments to the R3 zoning come with the condition that developments can only be approved if they comply with existing planning controls including height limits, setbacks and other envelope controls.

“Before the amendment was introduced, ‘existing use rights’ legislation essentially loosened all controls if an older-style flat building existed within an R3 zone. The amendment has addressed this problem by ensuring that residential apartment buildings comply with the existing (planning controls),” a spokesman said.

A concept plan of 131-139 Holt St.

Local homeowner George Dimaris said residents were not opposed to development, but believed it should align with the local character.

“Development is not necessarily a bad thing but I think it has to fit with the character of the place and enhance the suburb rather than just being purely for profit,” he said.

“There are really old buildings in Cremorne, bungalows, places that have character and people are putting a lot of work into preserving them and bringing them to modern standards but others just want them raised to the ground.”