Liberal leader Mark Speakman wants buildings listed to stop housing in Cronulla
Nearly 100 locals opposed the proposal, including many parents with children at the neighboring St. Aloysius Catholic elementary school, concerned about air pollution during construction, the overshadowing of school grounds and the impact on their children’s privacy.
Several threatened to withdraw their children from school if developments continued. It was “crazy over-development,” one person wrote in one post, while another said the proposed building’s color “doesn’t suit a coastal area” and would clash with their building. “I have to drive past it every day to get home,” said another. “Too tall, too big, too UGLY.”
The empty lot in Caringbah, near the train station, where a developer wants to build 686 units. Mark Speakman says it would be “serious over-engineering”.Credit: Nicki Short
In the separate Caringbah proposal, which will be heard by the independent Sydney South Planning Panel on Monday, the developer is seeking to expand a 443-unit concept proposal that was approved by the Land and Environment Court in 2020 but construction never began.
The new proposal envisages 686 apartments in nine buildings, 351 of which would be affordable housing for 15 years. The large lot, which has been vacant for nearly a decade, sits on a road between the train station and the high school and is close to two major roads, the Kingsway and Taren Point Road, in an area that already has several others developments exist.
Speakman said the developer’s target of an additional 240 units is “unsuitable for a site that doesn’t have the proper roads and other infrastructure to cope with it” and is a clear case of severe overdevelopment.
“I support new housing, including in the Sutherland Shire, where there is space, infrastructure and amenities,” he said. “In this particular case, it would be irresponsible to allow hundreds more homes on top of the homes already approved.”
Opposition leader Mark Speakman is seeking a heritage injunction to stop any development.Credit: James Brickwood
The 70 objections received by Sutherland Shire Council also highlighted the potential impact on parking, although many objected to the height and density of the buildings.
Advisors hired by the planning department have recommended that the proposal be rejected on the grounds that there is insufficient affordable housing to accommodate the additional living space sought.
In a separate letter dated August 9, the consultants explain that the proposal must be rejected because a concept proposal for the site is already approved and active and any new proposal must be consistent with that concept.
The herald contacted Tier Architects, who had submitted the Caringbah proposal, and the department’s consultant, Gyde Consulting, but received no response from either.
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