‘Monstrosity’: Paddington residential tower slammed by Woollahra councillors over heritage concerns

Councillors from the city’s east have accused the Labor state government of having the ‘heritage equivalent of blood on their hands’ over plans for a seven-storey unit block in Paddington.

What it could look like ... an artist’s impresson of the proposed north facade at 160 Oxford St, Paddington. Picture: Toohey Miller

Councillors in Sydneys’s east have lashed out at the state government over development in their area, claiming they “will have the heritage equivalent of blood on their hands”.

A proposed $78m seven storey residential tower in Paddington has earned the ire of Woollahra councillors due to the replacement of cheaper studios with luxury apartments in an area known for its Victorian terraces, and the use of affordable housing to get the development State Significant status – providing a faster pathway to approval.

The proposed site is located in a heritage area between two shopping precincts and on the major thoroughfare of Oxford St, opposite the sandstone fence of Victoria Barracks army base.

An artist’s impression of the proposed development at 160 Oxford St, Paddington. Picture: Toohey Miller

Deputy Mayor Sean Carmichael, at a recent Woollahra Council meeting, said the government was “nuts” for enacting the Low and Medium Rise (LMR) housing reforms which allowed for the development’s height.

“This government is nuts that they are taking such a heavy-handed approach with our crown jewels, how dare they,” he said. “They will have the heritage equivalent of blood on their hands. No housing crisis justifies that.”

The current site at 160 Oxford St, Paddington. Picture: Supplied

“If the government can’t be trusted to manage Paddington, they can’t be trusted with the Harbour Bridge or the Opera House or The Rocks.”

Paddington ward councillor Matthew Robertson said the area was recognised by the National Trust for its heritage, and the proposed residential tower was the first in the region to take advantage of the LMR reforms.

“The transition in scale we’re going to have between this monstrosity and the existing built form will be extreme,” he said.

“You couldn’t find a more offensive and obtrusive position on Oxford street to put such a large development.”

The current site at 160 Oxford St as it appears opposite the fence to Victoria Barracks. Picture: Google Earth

A petition to Planning Minister Paul Scully, against the Paddington development, had gathered more than 1100 signatures at the time of publication.

Mr Scully said no development application had yet been lodged for the project.

“We need every area to do their part to deliver more housing so we can address the state’s housing challenges,” Mr Scully said.

“It’s disappointing that Woollahra councillors seem so opposed to more housing in their area, particularly housing which would allow people on low and middle incomes to live in their area.”

New Liberal leader Kellie Sloane has said she is “pro-housing” and a “best friend” to builders, as long development had been properly planned.

Newly elected leader of the opposition Kellie Sloan. Picture: Thomas Lisson

Last week, Ms Sloane insisted that “every community needs to do the heavy lifting when it comes to housing”.

“Whether it’s my community or whether it’s Western Sydney, or whether it’s regional New South Wales,” she said.

“I’m on the record already as saying I support Woollahra station. What I don’t support is sloppy planning, planning without a business case, planning without community infrastructure.”

Without Ms Sloane’s support, councillors in Woollahra have turned to former deputy leader of the Liberals, Stuart Ayres for support.

Councillor for Paddington ward, Harriet Price, took her concerns to Mr Ayres, who is now the chief executive of the Urban Development Institute of Australia NSW, at a recent local government conference in which he sat on a panel.

Urban Development Institute of Australia NSW CEO Stuart Ayres. Picture: NewsWire / Nikki Short

Cr Price asked Mr Ayres on Tuesday at a planning controls seminar whether there was “any appetite to actually review the affordable housing bonus”.

The former deputy Liberal leader said elected officials needed to “get real” about where affordable housing policies should be enacted.

“You are not going to solve the housing crisis in Sydney in Woollahra, Rose Bay and Mosman,” he told the seminar’s audience.

“You’re just not going to do it. People who live in Mt Druitt, Penrith, Campbelltown, Blacktown, they know it.”

Mr Ayres, former Minister for Western Sydney, said nobody he knows in the city’s west would be able to afford rent in Woollahra, even with a 15 per cent discount from market rate.

Originally published as ‘Monstrosity’: Paddington residential tower slammed by Woollahra councillors over heritage concerns