Late-night construction on Pavilion, Coles Caringbah project reignites noise complaint debate

Noisy late-night construction works on a development in southern Sydney have renewed the debate about the true price of progress, with locals split between labelling the transgressions a symptom of ‘growing pains’ or a defiance of ‘tools down’ orders.

Noisy late-night construction on a major development in southern Sydney has renewed debate about the impact of development on local communities, with residents split between labelling the transgressions a symptom of ‘growing pains’ or simple rule breaking.

It comes after residents reported heavy construction works continuing as late as 10pm for the past several weeks on the multimillion-dollar Pavilion development in Caringbah, overseen by real estate investment group Conquest.

Sutherland Shire Council confirmed it was investigating whether builders on the site were disregarding the mandatory ‘tools down’ time at 6pm, as the project aims to complete a complex flush with 130 new apartments, a Coles supermarket, and multiple retail shops by early 2026.

Local mother-of-six Ashleigh Page supports the development, but said construction rules existed to encourage the transformation of suburbs in ways that work with the existing community with southern Sydney primed for mass development in the years ahead.

“We are excited for the new Coles and are definitely happy about the development as a whole, but there have been quite a few occasions where we have heard construction noises well into the night,” Ms Page said.

Residents reported the loud construction works continuing late into the night.

Bright lights and heavy machinery have kept locals in the surrounding residential area up for the past few weeks.

“It’s one of those things where I understand the development is going ahead and I understand noise is a part of that but not late at night. I shouldn’t have to be looking after a sick kid and having to worry about their sleep being disturbed by loud construction … following the rules keeps everyone happy.”

Not all residents were on board with the rule enforcement, as a cohort of locals took to an online community page to defend the late-night works against “NIMBYism”.

Other residents argued late-night construction was part of “getting the job done” and certain work could not be stopped and abandoned once started.

In response to the concerns, Conquest confirmed builders had worked on the site past ‘tools down’ to finish pouring concrete slabs for the base of the development.

“On several occasions in the past few weeks, a supervisor and two concreters have continued work on the Pavilion site at Caringbah beyond 6pm,” a Conquest spokesperson said.

“The later working hours were incurred because concrete was being poured for the slab and, once commenced, it must be completed at that time.

“Under the existing DA, there is an allowance for work to continue beyond 6pm if necessary.”

Conquest promises the development will “activate the suburb” and “serve as a landmark epicentre for the Caringbah precinct for many years to come”. Picture: Facebook

The development is expected to be completed in early 2026. Picture: Facebook

Sutherland Shire Council said it was reviewing the hours permitted in the development application to check if Conquest was given an exemption from the tools down order, and encouraged residents to provide evidence to council if they wished to make a complaint.

“Council’s compliance officers have spoken to the builders on-site as part of an ongoing investigation into these complaints, with staff currently reviewing evidence collected by a neighbouring resident,” a council spokesperson said.

“While Council has the power to impose financial penalties on builders operating outside the conditions detailed in their development consent, such penalties can only be enforced where offences can be proven.”