Art scene icon Wendy Whiteley has joined the fight against plans to erect nearly 1,000 apartments in towers up to 30 storeys high, overlooking the picturesque Lavender Bay on Sydney Harbour. This is the very location where she cultivated her famous “secret garden.” The New South Wales government is pushing to increase housing supply, but locals, including Whiteley, are protesting four large-scale developments they argue will overshadow the quaint harbourside enclave, infringe on privacy, block sunlight, and strain infrastructure.
The proposed projects have been classified as state-significant developments by the Housing Delivery Authority (HDA), an entity created to bypass local councils and expedite housing construction. The state government faces significant pressure to meet its ambitious target of building 377,000 homes by mid-2029.
Whiteley, who moved to Lavender Bay with her late husband, renowned artist Brett Whiteley, in 1969, transformed a derelict junkyard next to her home into a lush public garden. She acknowledged the presence of the North Sydney central business district but criticized the “rapacious” rush to develop high-rise buildings as “short-sighted” and “really bad planning.”
“Lavender Bay was always magical. The other side of that is it has been a magnet for developers, it started the minute we arrived,” she said. “It’s been a constant battle.”
Community Concerns Over Development Impact
The development proposals, located at the edge of North Sydney’s densely populated business district, include plans to replace two office blocks near North Sydney train station with hundreds of apartments. Specifically, the 18-storey Fujitsu building on Blue Street is slated for demolition to make way for a 30-storey block containing shops and 200 units. Similarly, the nearby 14-storey Zurich building is set to be replaced by a 29-storey mixed-use development with 400 apartments, 195 of which will be co-living rooms.
Further plans involve razing buildings around St Francis Xavier Church on Mackenzie Street to construct three blocks up to 20 storeys high, featuring 186 apartments, including 50 designated as “affordable housing.” Additionally, several low-rise brick apartment blocks on the corner of Lavender and Middlemiss streets are targeted for demolition to build 140 apartments across three buildings of up to 20 storeys, with about 3% of dwellings allocated as affordable housing.
Local Opposition and Heritage Concerns
Clare Loewenthal, a local resident, is among those who have formed Residents Opposing Lavender Bay Overdevelopment (ROLBO). The group argues that buildings up to 70 meters tall would cause a “devastating loss” of sunlight and privacy and clash with the character of the Heritage Conservation Area.
“You can’t put huge towers of 20 storeys next to these tiny little workers’ cottages and terraces, and think it’s not going to have a huge impact. It’s the whole character of Lavender Bay that’s at risk,” Loewenthal said. “What we are saying as a community is that we want it to be appropriate, and we want it to fit in with what’s already here.”
Loewenthal also expressed concern about the potential loss of two social housing blocks due to the Lavender Street development. “People may feel we’re just elitists sitting here as NIMBYs saying we don’t want development, but we’re not,” she said. “We’re a really diverse community … we have a social cohesion that can’t be replicated in huge, big towers. None of us wants to lose that.”
Government and Expert Perspectives
If approved, the four proposals would collectively deliver 926 homes. North Sydney Council has a target to provide 5,900 new dwellings by mid-2029. North Sydney Mayor Zoe Baker emphasized the need for the state government to ensure the three projects near the station are “considered collectively and cumulatively” with a precinct plan to protect sensitive heritage areas and public open space.
Planning Institute of Australia national policy manager John Brockhoff noted that while councils typically prioritize precinct planning, the urgency of the housing shortage has shifted these priorities. “The government has the prerogative to take firm action on housing approvals and use a special entity like the HDA,” Brockhoff said. “But when they do that, they need to plan not just for the here and now, but for the long-term, and not just for the one site, but for the sites next door and the entire precinct.”
A Planning Department spokesman stated that the HDA does not limit councils’ ability to conduct strategic planning. All proposals must demonstrate enabling infrastructure and undergo a merit assessment, including public exhibition and consultation with councils, “to ensure high-quality outcomes.”
The controversy surrounding the Lavender Bay developments highlights the ongoing tension between urban growth and community preservation, a narrative that continues to unfold as Sydney grapples with its housing crisis.
