Royal North Shore: vertical primary, high school plans prompts petition to parliament

A leading Sydney doctor has described plans to build a vertical school at one of the city’s busiest hospital as “devastatingly inappropriate” as a petition opposing the plan hits 500 signatures

More than 500 people have signed a petition opposing plans to build a 750-student primary and high school inside a new skyscraper at one of Sydney’s busiest hospitals.

A campaign to NSW Parliament has called for a rethink of a multimillion-dollar proposal for a 45 storey tower with 500 apartments, a medi-hotel, commercial offices and shops on 2.2ha of land at Royal North Shore Hospital.

The proposed building would also be home to a 750-pupil primary and high school with the State Government allocating the campus $3.7 million in this year’s budget to bankroll early planning works.

A concept plan of the project.

The campaign has raised concerns the project would take up valuable land at the hospital and could come at the expense of future development projects that would support the provision of healthcare services.

The school would be partly aimed at addressing the region’s population boom, fuelled by an extra 6600 new units planned in St Leonards and Crows Nest over the next 15 years.

Early proposals show the Department of Education is considering using “a mix” of indoor playgrounds and outdoor facilities for students to exercise and take in breaths of fresh air on their lunch breaks.

One proposal includes the use of the nearby Gore Hill Oval – a set-up that would involve students walking past the Ministry of Health headquarters, the current backdrop to the state’s daily morning COVID-19 press conferences.

The petition to parliament – led by local residents and medical staff – calls for the 2.2ha site to be set aside to the future growth of the hospital and patient-related health care.

A concept plan of the school drop-off area.

Dr Greg Purcell, who has worked as an anaesthetist at the hospital for 30 years, is among those who have questioned the feasibility of locating a school and skyscraper within the busy hospital campus.

He said impacts on students could include noise from ambulances, lack of open playing space, traffic congestion and congestion during school pick-up and drop-off periods.

“The hospital has been handing out postcards saying how good the project is for the campus but it’s devastatingly inappropriate for the site,” he said.

“There are no play areas, it would just have an oval and you’d have a situation where students are shuffled through a medical campus on their lunch breaks.

“(The skyscraper) is also 100m from a flight path – you wouldn’t be able to open a window inside the building because of the noise.”

A concept plan of the redevelopment

The Department of Planning, which is overseeing the redevelopment, said it was committed to ensuring that the Royal North Shore Hospital remains a world class health precinct.

“The concept published does not come at the expense of future clinical service delivery and provides capacity for the Northern Sydney Local Health District to significantly expand the hospital’s footprint to address population growth on the lower north shore and future health and innovation needs,” a spokeswoman said.

Early proposals show 75 per cent of units in the new tower would be made available for key workers such as hospital staff, police officers and paramedics. The remaining 25 per cent would be offered as “build to rent” housing.

The petition to parliament is aiming to collect 1000 signatures.

“Royal North Shore Hospital is the principal tertiary referral hospital for Northern Sydney Local Health District and also provides a comprehensive range of complex specialty services to patients from all across NSW including major trauma, severe burns, and spinal cord injuries,” the petition states.

The Department of Planning said further consultation on the proposal would continue in coming months.

“The Herbert Street Precinct plan as presented is a concept only and the NSW Government has undertaken early consultation with the community and local stakeholders,” the spokeswoman said.

“The program has been varied to ensure extensive community engagement prior to the planning proposal being submitted, which will occur when the current COVID-related public health orders are lifted and when effective engagement with stakeholders can be safely undertaken.

“We welcome the community’s ongoing feedback and encourage people to get in touch with the project team via the project website.”