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State Significant Development

Determination

Powerhouse Parramatta

City of Parramatta

Current Status: Determination

Interact with the stages for their names

  1. SEARs
  2. Prepare EIS
  3. Exhibition
  4. Collate Submissions
  5. Assessment
  6. Recommendation
  7. Determination

Site preparation works including demolition of all structures and tree removal, construction, operation and use of the Powerhouse Parramatta, public domain works and use, vehicular access, infrastructure works and signage zones

Consolidated Consent

10416 MOD 2 - Consolidated Consent

Archive

Early Consultation (1)

Request for SEARs (4)

SEARs (1)

EIS (37)

Response to Submissions (24)

Agency Advice (10)

Additional Information (22)

Determination (8)

Approved Documents

Management Plans and Strategies (22)

Reports (1)

Independent Reviews and Audits (1)

Notifications (3)

Note: Only documents approved by the Department after November 2019 will be published above. Any documents approved before this time can be viewed on the Applicant's website.

Complaints

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Enforcements

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Inspections

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Note: Only enforcements and inspections undertaken by the Department from March 2020 will be shown above.

Submissions

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Showing 81 - 100 of 1686 submissions
Name Withheld
Object
PYRMONT , New South Wales
Message
I object to the Powerhouse Parramatta project because it means moving an existing museum at the cost of heritage buildings in Parramatta. Parramatta has unique heritage that must be preserved at all costs. Find another location in Parramatta if you must but SAVE WILLOW GROVE.
Jenni Stapleton
Object
KIAMA , New South Wales
Message
I object to the proposed Parramatta Powerhouse Museum because it is the wrong museum, in the wrong scale, in the wrong location, for all the wrong reasons.

There is no logic to closing and/or relocating the existing city-based museum. It has worked perfectly as a family-oriented tourist attraction where it is now. With a suitable budget the Powerhouse could be revitalised to again contribute positively to the city as it has done for so many years in the past.

Sydney really needs an extra museum, and particularly one in western Sydney which could bring joy and pride to the local population and become a drawcard for tourists to the region. Parramatta is an obvious location because of its transport links but need not be seen as the only suitable host for such a venue in western Sydney.

I personally would love to see a specialist museum focused on Indigenous history, art and culture. This is sadly lacking in Sydney and would be a superb addition to the life of the city generally. Its location in western Sydney would support local Aboriginal communities and be a huge educational asset.

Such a museum would become a focus for the regeneration of an entire precinct and should be considered as an economic stimulus. It would not require a boastful and showy edifice such as is currently proposed which, in striving to be 'World Class', is out of scale and totally inappropriate to its site. It also requires the destruction of rare surviving heritage buildings and the existing river zone. The excessive cost and construction time reflects just how uncomfortably it sits on the suggested site. It is a loud and monstrous interloper where something quieter and more welcoming could more happily live.

Overall, the destruction of the existing Powerhouse, the banishment of most of its collection into storage for years if not forever and the corresponding destruction of a large part of Parramatta, its heritage and its river, will lead to no positive outcomes. The costs will far outweigh the potential benefits of doing something better.
Name Withheld
Object
Erskineville , New South Wales
Message
I wholeheartedly object to this destructive, insidious and ignorant waste of money representing the loss of the public domain in favour of private interests. The fact that the NSW Government is thinking of moving a museum dedicated to protecting, preserving and promoting our state's diverse heritage to a site that will result in the wholesale destruction and obscuring of it, offends me and it should offend all thoughtful people of this state not wedded to the vested interests behind this embarrassing project.

Moving the Powerhouse Museum, which has a mandate to hold "material heritage and stories of Australian culture, history and lifestyle, providing a comprehensive insight into this rich and diverse country", from its specially-designed location in Ultimo to a flood-prone site in Parramatta which entails the destruction of several heritage items is bad enough. However, the proposed design for the Parramatta site is mediocre in design, with a cubic modernist 'milk crate' style that is excessive in bulk and scale and does not respond to the purpose of the Powerhouse Museum or the history of Parramatta and covers an excessively large proportion of the proposed site. So much so that apparently it was impossible to retain and incorporate the two heritage items on the site, namely Willow Grove House and St Georges Terrace. In March 2019 prior to the election, Premier Berejiklian noted the intention to save the 1870 'Willow Grove' house on the site of the new museum, and now has completely ignored all advice to save it and plowed ahead with a totally unsympathetic design that entails the wholesale destruction of these heritage items.

Not only is it obvious that a more sensitive design could achieve a better result that saves these heritage items, but the case studies that show this principle in action are so obvious it seems embarrassing that the NSW Government has been so arrogant in discounting them. In so many cases museums and developments have been able to occur that can incorporate or preserve the heritage of their site, such as the retention of the nearby Brislington House as part of the development of the Parramatta Court precinct or the restoration/discovery of the 1859 'Cypress hall' on City Road, Camperdown and its incorporation into a student housing development. Instead of wiping the slate clean for an entirely new development, cleansed of any historical associations of the site (save for some tokenistic 'interpretation' that in no way excuses the cultural vandalism being perpetrated against Parramatta and this state by the loss of these heritage items), it is obvious and definitely possible to retain these two items and still have a development that can go ahead in some form.

I feel it important to register my extreme frustration with a government totally obsessed with profit and excessive development over the lives and culture of the people and communities they affect. The social history of Willow Grove as a longstanding maternity hospital and the importance of these surviving buildings in the centre of Parramatta despite all the development pressures, and the unsurprising community outrage over this proposal’s destruction of heritage, underscores the significant impact that their demolition will have on the cultural landscape of Parramatta.

Heritage items are an important component of a community's sense of place and belonging, and to have them discarded in such a cavalier way to make way for a fake Powerhouse Museum that won't have the same display space for its collection as the Ultimo site and will instead be a glorified convention centre, shows just how far from the public interest this proposal is. As the President of the Australian Institute of Conservation of Cultural Materials noted recently “this process is not committed to creating a world-class museum but having a museum as one of many changing sources of entertainment on the site.” Indeed, the plans submitted for this proposal demonstrate that this ‘fake Powerhouse Museum’ will have no (or very limited) permanent displays, particularly when compared to Ultimo and no on-site permanent storage for museum’s collection. Was not one of the original reasons for the museum move so that all the collection could be displayed? The museum’s administration will be primarily moved to an expanded Discovery Centre at Castle Hill, and the Parramatta site will be mostly for shows, and ‘convention’ style events and corporate functions. The deception that this proposal is a museum move is exposed for all to see.

Clouding the issue by pitting this museum move issue with an 'inner city vs. western Sydney' bent is a divisive simplistic straw man argument that discounts the fact of the people of Parramatta that also reject this unsympathetic proposal. The attitude that says, 'Parramatta needs this investment' regardless of the cost involved is such a reckless attitude. There is no doubt that Parramatta would significantly benefit from cultural investment including a new museum, but this pseudo-public development that is a private housing high-rise and convention centre in disguise, is certainly not the way to go about it, and certainly not in the way that entails the destruction of rare and significant cultural heritage. The current planning regime that allows the state government to declare sites subject to 'state significant' status, allowing them to 'turn off' heritage listings and do whatever they like, is a classic case of a government that has one rule for themselves, and another rule for everyone else.

The protection of our built heritage is an important principle for me, and heritage is something that I appreciate and enjoy on a daily basis. If they can do this in Parramatta there really is nothing stopping them from doing the same to communities anywhere else, from one end of the state to the other. It is not even primarily a museum, with much of the proposed space dedicated to impermanent exhibition halls, it is a glorified convention centre. There are so many other alternatives, including retaining the Ultimo Powerhouse site alongside creating a new Parramatta Museum or a Powerhouse Parramatta Branch (or at least being honest a calling this proposal what it actually is, the 'Parramatta Convention Centre'), and a sensitive design that allows for the retention of Willow Grove and St Georges Terrace, it boggles the mind that we have arrived at this point after six years and over $14 million of public money expended on trying to get this ‘square peg’ fit into this round hole. The proposed design is similar to the actual state of this proposal, full of holes and not fit for purpose; this proposal is cultural vandalism and it should be rejected. It is not a 'Powerhouse move' it is a Powerhouse expulsion.

I request that my name be withheld from the publication of this submission.
Evangelia Bahas
Object
HOMEBUSH , New South Wales
Message
I object to the project for the following reasons;

SPACE
- the project is now completely different from what was approved by Cabinet in 2018
- not a single space in either of the two buildings is specifically dedicated to museum exhibitions or the collection.
- the total public “presentation” space has shrunk from an initially stipulated 18,000m2 to 12,000m2 (compared with 21,400m2 in Ultimo), with a massive increase in commercial space. Every so-called presentation space is available for commercial hire, and designed to facilitate events and performances.
-there is only 25% of the climate controlled exhibition space that the Powerhouse has in Ultimo.
- no way has been identified for moving precious large objects into the building(s)
- there is no storage space for (any of) the collection
See Museum Expert Kylie Winkworth analysis http://tiny.cc/c0d6qz for details

- COSTS
Project costs have blown out from $200M (2015) to $1.4 billion - $1.8 billion (and rising!) http://tiny.cc/67d6qz
- the building cost alone is now approaching $1 billion
- unbudgeted future project costs include
- creation of storage space at Castle Hill because the “Milk Crates” cannot accommodate the Powerhouse’s unique large objects.
- the Ultimo precinct.
- the Parramatta River bridge.
- the whole collection move.
- marketing, exhibition design/installation, public relations.
- staff acquisition and training.
- conservation and restoration of objects for both move and display purposes.

- BAD PLANNING
The proposed structure is NOT a recognisable museum, CAN’T operate as a museum, and it would be impossibly costly if this were attempted because
- the flood amelioration budget has been cut, increasing risks for contents and for visitors.
- almost entire loss of functional office space for staff, of back-of house working space and adequate “vertical transportation” (lifts and escalators) for visitors, staff and materials.
- a single loading dock (down from two) for all commercial and cleaning activities will destroy the high sanitation standards required by museological functions.
The dock must serve two buildings, events for up to 10,000 people, 10 cafes and bars, a retail hall, 40 apartments, a school boarding house, the bump in bump out for concerts, a cinema, conferences and commercial hire, museum objects on hire rotation and international travelling exhibitions, along with food waste, laundry and rubbish...
There is not one parking space, and not even a loading zone.
Sydney Water
Comment
PARRAMATTA , New South Wales
Message
Attachments
ROSS McLEAN
Object
HELENSBURGH , New South Wales
Message
POINT 1 -
HERITAGE STRUCTURES ARE ASSIGNED THAT TITLE, NOT ON A WHIM.
AFTER A RIGOROUS PROCESS, AND MANY SUBMISSIONS BY LOCAL RESIDENTS AND/OR GOVERNMENT BODIES THE TITLE, 'HERITAGE LISTED' IS GIVEN TO A STRUCTURE OR AREA OF NATURAL HABITAT.
IT IS NOT A TITLE THAT CAN BE IGNORED BY ANY AUTHORITY WHETHER PUBLIC OR PRIVATE THAT COMES ALONG AT A LATER DATE.
IF WE IGNORE THE 'HERITAGE' TITLE APPLIED TO THE EXISTING BUILDINGS ON THE SITE, WE MAY AS WELL DITCH THE TITLE ENTIRELY.
I BELIEVE THE OPERA HOUSE, ON THE SHORES OF SYDNEY HARBOUR, HAS SUCH A TITLE HOWEVER, I PREFER THE ORIGINAL FORTIFICATIONS AND TRAM SHED OVER THIS BUILDING.
IF WE APPLY THE CURRANT NSW GOVERNMENT'S STRATEGY TO THE OPERA HOUSE, IT MEANS THAT IN THE FUTURE, IF I SAY PURCHASED THE SITE, I COULD KNOCK IT DOWN AND BUILD A NEW, MORE MODERN LOOKING TRAM SHED FOR LIGHT RAIL/TRAMS, OF PERHAPS GUT THE INTERIOR TO PROVIDE SERVING FACILITIES FOR OUR LIGHT RAIL/TRAMS.
I'M SURE THAT EVEN THE DIMMEST OF INDIVIDUALS CAN SEE THE ABSURDITY OF THAT SCENARIO.
SO ... HOW CAN THE PARRAMATTA LOCATION BE APPROVABLE IF THE WORD 'HERITAGE' IS INVOLVED?
POINT 2 -
THE CURRANT NSW GOVERNMENT CLAIMS IT IS CREATING JOBS ALSO - WHICH IS A CROCK, GIVEN THAT MANY FOLK ALREADY EMPLOYED AT THE MUSEUM WILL HAVE TO SEEK EMPLOYMENT ELSEWHERE IF THEY LIVE TO THE EAST, NORTH OR SOUTH OF THE CITY, AS GETTING TO PARRAMATTA WILL BE JUST TOO DIFICULT. THIS IS JUST WHAT HAPPENED WHEN THE POLICE HEADQUARTERS WERE MOVED TO PARRAMATTA, AFTER HUGE SUMS OF MONEY WERE SPENT BY A PREVIOUS GOVERNMENT ON A NEW HEADQUARTERS CLOSE TO THE CITY.
JOB CREATION AT THE EXPENSE OF THOSE ALREADY EMPLOYED AT A FACILITY IS NOT JOB CREATION, IT IS JOB THEFT.
POINT 3 –
LOCAL RESIDENTS IN PARRAMATTA AND SOME LOCAL AUTHORITIES, APPARENTLY DO NOT BELIEVE THEY ARE GOING TO GET WHAT WAS PROMISED ANYWAY.
TIME TO GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD ON THIS ENTIRE ISSUE.
POINT 4 –
IF THIS PROPOSAL GOES AHEAD, IT BEGS THE QUESTION WHAT OTHER VALUABLE ‘HERITAGE’ STRUCTURES AR AREAS OF NATURAL WONDER WILL BE DEMOLISHED TO MAKE WAY FOR ANOTHER MONSTROSITY.
PERHAPS PARLIAMENT HOUSE ITSELF, PRIME LAND IN AN IDEAL LOCATION, EXTREMELY SUITABLE FOR MULTI-STORY DEVELOPMENT. HOUSING, SHOPPING ETC.
SHOULD THE WORD ‘HERITAGE’ BE OVER-RULED HERE, IT WILL MEAN ‘NOTHING’ IS SAFE UNDER THAT TITLE.
REGARDS, ROSS McLEAN
Dianna Denley
Object
WINSTON HILLS , New South Wales
Message
Dear Department of Planning,

I object to the proposed Parramatta Powerhouse on the following grounds:

1. I don't believe heritage listed buildings should be bulldozed for the sake of building a museum on the land. It doesn't make any sense to me at all. This sets a dangerous precedent. Why heritage list buildings in the first place if they are simply going to be knocked down? I was under the impression that Museums cared about history.

2. The proposed building has less than 1/10th museum space, which doesn't make it a museum in my eyes. It is a glorified community hall, and a waste of taxpayer's money.

3. The Parramatta Powerhouse Project Team specifically informed us via a Zoom conference that there would be no parking available on site for this proposed project. How are regional and local school children going to travel to the site to make their visit worthwhile, when public transport can be a nightmare when working with Primary School aged children. For more local school children, they would spend longer travelling to the proposed site than making their way around it. This makes it particularly dangerous for children.

4. The proposed buildings doesn't blend in with the Parramatta riverfront very well does it?! It will forever be known as "The Milk Crate". Is that the reputation you're going for?

5. I noted that the Project team were going to conduct noise testing, during the lockdown period. How exactly were they going to test for those noise levels when the project designer's video shows thousands of people walking around and rock concerts and light shows at night? They were testing during a period when everyone was inside their homes, or at their places of work. It was a lockdown period. There was even a catwalk in the video! In a proposed Museum. Who'd have thunk it!!

6. I was informed by the Project Team in a zoom conference that the artifacts from the Ultimo Powerhouse would be stored at a separate location to the proposed Parramatta Powerhouse - in Castle Hill, I believe. Most of the artifacts from there would not be on display. If that is the case, why is the proposed "Parramatta Powerhouse" even called a Powerhouse? It won't be incorporating an existing powerhouse, and it has no relevance to the Ultimo Powerhouse any more. It doesn't deserve that name.

7. Where is Steam Engine #1 going to be displayed? The Project Team hadn't thought about that when asked. It doesn't seem like much thought has gone into the museum side of things at all.

8. I was personally informed by Lisa Havilah that the proposed Parramatta building was not going to be overwhelming for a child with Autism. "It's not that big" she said. I watched the designer's video last week and I can tell you that it definitely will be overwhelming for my 5 yr old diagnosed ASD child and she won't be attending this proposed building.

9. Our Premier stated in a morning press conference "There's nothing I love more than the sound of jackhammers, because that means jobs". How many museum jobs will be lost due to the closure of the Ultimo Powerhouse? At the very least 95, with more at stake. It was clear from her comment that the Premier was thinking only of construction projects, and not existing jobs.

10. The plans shown to us by The Project Team and the video from the designer clearly demonstrate that this is not a museum and therefore should not proceed on the site. It is disrespectful to the people in the Parramatta area to tell them one thing, and deliver something else entirely. This won't live up to the expectations that people have. It is not wanted, or warranted.

With all this in mind, I strongly urge you to reconsider this proposed project and save our heritage listed buildings, not knock them down for the sake of this eyesore.

I have not made monetary donations to any political party.
Johan Hagedoorn
Object
PICTON , New South Wales
Message
I OBJECT TO THE POWERHOUSE PARRAMATTA

Area allocated is completely unsuitable for the flowing reasons:
1) It is prone to regular flooding which will get worse than estimated as climate change does take place.
2) No suitable parking is allowed for, even no handicap parking. With 2 million visitors expected per annum ( 5500 each and every day ) surrounding streets will become parking lots !
3) Parramatta does need open space instead of more concrete buildings to make the city more attractive for visitors.
4) As plans do show, much space is allocated for events like rock bands etc. This will cause a lot of noise in the affected area.
5) Willow Grove is one of the few historically significant houses left in Parramatta. Demolishing this will have a detrimental effect on the area.
6) St Georges terrace is of historical significance and should not be demolished.
7) a single loading dock projected for all commercial and cleaning activities will destroy the high sanitation standards required.

I herewith declare that I have never made a reportable political donation.
I have never been member of or have never been affiliated with any political party.
I have no objection in my name being published.

Signed
Johan A. Hagedoorn
Gary Carter
Object
North Parramatta , New South Wales
Message
I object to the Powerhouse project.

I, like many others would like a world class museum in Parramatta. That museum should be a new concept, like a museum dedicated to the people’s origins and stories. I object to this MAAS proposal in its current form, and the closing of the Powerhouse in Sydney.

My objections are based on the following:

1. The heritage impact statement denigrates the heritage of Parramatta, by commenting that removal of these heritage items only has ‘minor cumulative impact’ , this is incorrect, as they are the last remaining Victorian Italianate free-standing villa and Victorian terraces in the Parramatta CBD.

2. The size of the MAAS precinct building at Parramatta has been continually misrepresented in public statements and media releases as larger than the real Powerhouse Museum at Ultimo. It is not. The Powerhouse Museum’s exhibition space is being downsized at Parramatta by 75%.

3. That the Council and fourteen thousand plus members of the local community continue to object to the removal of these heritage items.

4. The project originated during administration of the council and did not allow for community consultation and an elected voice.

5. That contrary to the architect’s statement, that the civic link ‘contain and release’ for the pedestrian experience, the current proposed design funnels pedestrian movement and blocks and impedes the Civic Link to the River.

6. The site sits in immediate proximity to the 1820 National Heritage Female Factory, our World Heritage Old Government House and Domain, and our diminishing 18th and 19th century heritage homes like: Brislington, Perth House, Harrisford, Houison Cottage, Blaxland Cottage, and many more. Parramatta was at the heart and the crossroads of 19th century enterprise and trade and all connections to the history needs to be respected.

7. This site is large enough to include the retention of the heritage items if it was to face and engage with the urban fabric of the CBD instead of the River.

In summation, Parramatta is the Cradle City and first food bowl of the Nation. We are now the central city of multi-cultural growth and wealth, and as such deserve and demand respect for our history and our story. Leave the Powerhouse where it sits, give us a Parramatta museum of heritage and culture, at a place that respects our first nation, colonial and immigration history.
Name Withheld
Object
DULWICH HILL , New South Wales
Message
I object to the Powerhouse Parramatta Project because it will remove even more of the suburbs historical buildings through the demolition of Willowgrove and St Georges Terraces.
With so few historical buildings left in the area - to lose even more is unfathomable.
People thought that doing this to The Rocks area in the 70's was a good idea and now look at the place. We must preserve some of our colonial history in local areas, the same way we should preserve Aboriginal and Indigenous history where ever possible!
Annick Fogg
Object
WINSTON HILLS , New South Wales
Message
I am writing that email in the hope that, even so all the planning of the new Parramatta Powerhouse seems to call for the destruction of important sites of Parramatta heritage such as Willowgrove villa and St georges Terraces, you and all the teams involved should know that Parramatta residents strongly object to the destruction of those sites.

How can anyone agree to the demolition of our heritage is beyond all understandings ?

I have not much hope that my objection or any others who will take time to object, will be even taken in any kind of consideration but be assured that by destroying the past you are taking away the culture of Australia.

Regards
Annick Fogg
Name Withheld
Object
GOOLMANGAR , New South Wales
Message
- Willow Grove Villa and St George's Terraces are part of our history and culture and must not be demolished.
- The social impact of their destruction has not been studied or reported upon in an Environmental Impact Statement. Personally, I would be deeply saddened, devastated.
- Parramatta is loved for its historical buildings and they are a great part of the sense of community. Loved not just by locals, but by others who value our history.
- I remember as a child, my Aunt, now deceased, would take us for a day trip from Bankstown to see the beautiful old buildings, but at the time I didn't know the names of those buildings. They must be maintained for future generations to know our roots.
- There is ridiculous irony in the proposal to demolish historical buildings to make way for a museum.
- Willow Grove and St George's Terraces are our heritage and must be maintained in the landscape of Parramatta.
- Willow Grove, built in the 1870s is significant aesthetically and historically.
- St George's Terraces, built in 1881 are a terrific asset to the streetscape of Phillip Street.
- They are a drawcard for tourism.
- Parramatta is becoming a wind tunnel with so much high-rise development and the historical buildings must not be demolished.
- Willow Grove and St George's Terraces are a major and important part of Phillip Street and must be kept.
- I cannot imagine the number of babies born in Willow Grove when it was a maternity hospital and I cannot imagine how they would feel if their birthplace was demolished. Social impact!
- Willow Grove and St George's Terraces must be retained as they are rare architectural examples from our history.
Gayle Osborne
Object
ROSELANDS , New South Wales
Message
I strongly object to the proposal to move the Powerhouse Museum to Parramatta. It seems that not a day goes past without us hearing of the ongoing destruction of much of the built heritage of both Sydney and Parramatta cities. Most recently, I understand that that the Parramatta site will be more ‘pleasure palace’; than museum (SMH 21/6/20), with greater focus on changing exhibitions and ‘events spaces’, restaurants and cafes. What will happen to the Catalina Flying Bird, the largest suspended flying plane in any museum in the world and similarly, what will happen to Locomotive No1 and the Boulton and Watt steam engine that were housed in purpose-built galleries of the current powerhouse Museum? Are these priceless artefacts of our history being sold off overseas – surely not?

The Powerhouse / Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences is a great institution and has earned world renown and respect. It does not have a direct connection to Parramatta itself. Nor should it. Leave the Powerhouse where it is AND develop another museum to showcase Parramatta and its heritage. Surely we do not need to ‘rob Peter to pay Paul’?. Why should it be a case of ‘either/or’? The current museum is in a central location in Sydney, is well loved and well visited, and more easily accessible for more people than the site in Parramatta.

Parramatta is a wonderful city with unique and important heritage for all of Australia. We need to promote Parramatta’s unique heritage internationally, and to encourage many more visitors to explore this city. We do not need to lose two more valuable heritage sites in Willow Grove and St George’s Terrace. We have already lost too much of our heritage, the actual history that both Australian and International visitors value and visit. Leo Schofield is correct when he asks us to ‘brace for cultural destruction’ (SMH 21/6/20). Imagine Sydney without The Rocks precinct? In 2016, more than 10,000 Sydneysiders presented to the government a signed petition to review the decision to close the Powerhouse and ‘relocate’ it to Parramatta. This was overturned. I am certain that many more people would protest this decision today, given the chance. Sydney has enough office towers and high-rise apartments. These should never be at the expense of valuable heritage which will also provide considerable revenue into the future.

Additionally, the site proposed for this new museum is too small, and it floods. The architects have supposedly overcome these constraints. Moist air promotes mould and the corrosion of metal. Can we be confident that have they overcome this and the potential for that ‘rising damp’ smell and the resultant deterioration of priceless exhibits? It is a great shame that the architects for the new museum were not required also to apply themselves to a non-negotiable design requirement for retention of Willow Grove and St George’s Terrace.

Additionally, the proposed move is not needed and is financially questionable. A new, more focused, museum in Parramatta is certainly warranted, but this can and should occur without disrupting the current Powerhouse Museum and its precious exhibits. Doubtless, it would involve lower cost for the NSW Government, essential during these precarious times. This would seem an ideal time to change a decision made under different circumstances.
Name Withheld
Object
CARLINGFORD , New South Wales
Message
This project does not appear to respect the historical or natural significance of the area. The design completely disregards that it is on the river shore and fails to blend in with its natural surroundings, namely Parramatta River. It also completely disregards the surrounding architecture, requires the destruction of two of our heritage sites and sticks out like an eyesore. A design that is meant to become an icon should not have it's main selling point as "simple" and "cost effective". An icon is something that represents the area, this design fails to represent or respect any of its surroundings.

This project also feels very out of touch with what we need and want. We don't want a museum moved from the Sydney CBD to be put into Parramatta when it has no significance to us and even destroys the heritage sites we already have. If you truly want to give Parramatta a new icon that we can appreciate, give us a museum/facility that actually respects the area its being built on and integrates the two heritage sites instead of destroying it.
Emily Barling
Object
CREMORNE POINT , New South Wales
Message
I strongly object to this project going ahead. The Powerhouse should remain at Ultimo. It contains valuable and important items that will not be able to be displayed at the proposed Parramatta site. This move does not serve the commumity and its best interests. Indeed, it will cost billions. For what?? An inferior museum!! This is madness! And Willow Grove historic home would have to be destroyed in the process. STOP DESTROYING OUR HERITAGE!! ONCE IT'S GONE, WE CAN NEVER GET IT BACK!! For what?? Apartments at the Ultimo site?? That is not in the best interests of the community! STOP THIS GREED!! I strongly oppose this move. The Powerhouse Museum is an important historic, educational and touristic facility that should remain at Ultimo. It contains incredible scientific and historic displays that deserve to be appreciated. Retain the Powerhouse at Ultimo and value this nation's heritage!!
Name Withheld
Object
DENISTONE EAST , New South Wales
Message
I find that the proposed destruction of and the breaking up of the MAAS collection as one of the greatest government sanctioned vandalism of Heritage items held in trust for the people of NSW. To use the word "Development" implies a positive change, but this is noting more than heresy. How this government could possibly consider that there is any voter support for this shows that there is no understanding nor interest in public opinion.

The current rampage on Australian Heritage is despicable and verges on cleansing all traces from what was once a beautiful city.

To sell off the Ultimo site shows again that the money is far more important to this small g government that the livability of our city.

As a current member of the MAAS, I would also like to know how you will reimburse my family and how do you suggest that I continue the education of my young daughter in the sciences with the Powerhouse closed?

This project just proves that Sydney is no longer in the hands of the residents and is a place to move away from.

I'm absolutely disgusted.
P Charles
Object
BOTANY , New South Wales
Message
This will ultimately lead to selling the historic site to developers for high-rise apartments. Not to mention loss of heritage-listed Willow Grove and St George’s Terrace. Back-flip to come for sure from the Premier as soon as the current site is closed. What an incredible waste of our history! All for what? Another Meriton sign?
mary richard
Object
MAROUBRA , New South Wales
Message
I OBJECT TO THE POWERHOUSE MOVING TO PARRAMATTA AND THE DESTRUCTION OF WILLOW GROVE AND THE ST GEORGE TERRACES.
This is the submission from
Mrs Mary Richard

Maroubra 2035.

I appreciate and value the little bit of History in Australia which is still remaining and I strongly believe that too much has already been demolished, destroyed or ruined. Our Historical buildings and areas need to be protected for us and future generations.

We cannot afford to destroy the wonderful ‘one of a kind’ Willow Grove plus the St Georges Terraces (and both of their potential archaeological sites) as they are rare examples of architecture that will no longer exist in Parramatta’s CBD when they are demolished.

We have so few places with such high Heritage value left in this State and their worth both in places to visit and understand how Parramatta & indeed how Sydney began is too important to destroy for us and future generations.

I believe that the importance of these buildings in Historical terms can never be duplicated and therefore they must be preserved and cared for as their loss will be a irreversible loss of conservation values that constitute the heritage significance for Parramatta’s CBD.

The Wonderful heritage gardens containing some 55 substantial trees around these buildings will be a unacceptable loss for the Community and wildlife alike if this relocation proceeds. The mature trees provide a picturesque garden setting of a substantial size and are in good condition, thereby detrimentally impacting the cultural significance of the area if they are removed.


The sad recent loss of the Heritage Royal Oaks Hotel and other buildings due to the unwanted Light Rail (a total failure in the CBD SE line) will see another 2000 trees removed from the Cumberland Estate and along the route. This is unacceptable to me and a large portion of Australians.

I cannot understand how the State Government can ignore our important History and the Communities objections with a recent petition signed by 14,000 people wishing to protect Willow Grove and the St Georges Terraces; along with Historic House Association and National Trust of Australia (NSW). All have condemned the Governments decision to continue on this path of destruction.

My enquiries have shown me that there has been a lack of any consultation that was genuine and meaningful with the Community regarding what cultural precinct and museum they wanted or needed.
How can the Government intend to spend $1.5 billion to move a museum, when half of these costs are going into relocation of exhibits, storage for years while Parramatta is being built and flood mitigation of the unsuitable site?

Plans on a massive scale which will see the western building being 17 storeys and the eastern building 14 storeys). A monstrosity that will dominate the streetscape and will be out of character with the surrounding area.

I want to keep the Powerhouse Museum in Ultimo a location that I, my children and grandchildren have visited over the years and learnt and experienced new and exciting things that have left us with special memories.

A smaller museum in Parramatta will never have the same impact and experience as the varied and wonderful exhibitions displayed at the Powerhouse in Ultimo. It has delighted and opened the hearts and minds of my family and friends for the last 50 years or so.

Keep it where it is and how it is and Save Willow Grove and the St George Terraces at the same time.

A Win for good planning and just the way that the Community have said (loud and clear) that they want to see this proposal, CANCELLED and the beauty, heritage and culture to remain as it stands today.

Mrs Mary Richard

Maroubra 2035
Name Withheld
Object
NORTH ROCKS , New South Wales
Message
The move of the Powerhouse Museum from Ultimo to Parramatta is unnecessary, unjust, and just plain wrong. By all means, give Parramatta a new museum but NOT at the expense of the iconic Powerhouse Museum. The Powerhouse Museum is a Sydney Icon and it should not be taken from the people of NSW who want it to stay where it is. This is yet another blatant destruction of Sydney's and Australia's history and heritage. The banks of the Parramatta River flood. Regularly. How is housing a priceless collection of artefacts in a known flood zone beneficial to the people of NSW? People who do not want the Powerhouse to move.
I implore you. Listen to the people who you are supposed to be representing. The people of NSW, including those in Parramatta, do NOT want the Powerhouse Museum to move so the historic site can be redeveloped. Stop taking heritage away from the people. Stop taking our history. As I said, by all means open a powerhouse museum at Parramatta, but NOT at the expense of the original Ultimo site. Do not take away another Sydney Icon. Do not take something that makes Sydney so special and unique.
Sarah Jones
Object
Bathurst West , New South Wales
Message
I am writing to state my objection to the following plans.
The destruction of Willow Grove and St George's Terrace at Parramatta

These buildings are of significant importance to our heritage and should receive the full protection of heritage listing and not be destroyed.
I object to the destruction of these buildings to make way for a new museum and believe strongly that the conservation of these buildings and incorporating them in to future plans for that area of Parramatta would be an option that would be far better received by the public.

I am not affiliated with any political party or lobby group.
I am just a concerned citizen who is not satisfied that the government are making a decision that is in the best interests of the community.

Pagination

Project Details

Application Number
SSD-10416
Assessment Type
State Significant Development
Development Type
Museum, Gardens & Zoos
Local Government Areas
City of Parramatta
Decision
Approved
Determination Date
Decider
Minister
Last Modified By
SSD-10416-Mod-2
Last Modified On
19/12/2023

Contact Planner

Name
Marcus Jennejohn