13 October 2015
Concerns by North Sydney Council about proposals for tall buildings near St Leonards Station must not stop development in the precinct, says the Urban Taskforce.
“With proposals for a new Metro Station at St Leonards it is important that robust development with reasonable heights occurs near the station,” says Urban Taskforce CEO, Chris Johnson. “Three councils come together at St Leonards and the State Government should be ensuring consistency of development heights across the three borders.”
“The Urban Taskforce has previously raised concerns about North Sydney Council’s approach of taking a step down line from the tallest building to two storey housing almost half a kilometre away. The urban form of cities needs tall towers clustered together and any step down should only occur at the edge of the centre.”
“It is highly appropriate for a site owner after waiting 90 days for a response to a planning proposal to refer this to a higher planning level in the form of the Joint Regional Planning Panel.”
“Where an urban centre around a railway station includes three separate councils the planning should be undertaken by one authority. The proposed Greater Sydney Commission would seem to be the ideal authority to manage the overall precinct. The St Leonards Precinct is well-located and amenable and the development of this area should not be stunted by self-interested councillors.”
