Glebe residents wrangle with Harold Park developers

Almost 200 residents voiced their opposition to the proposed 16 new buildings in Glebe last weekend.

The development application for the 10 hectare site at Harold Park Raceway is under scrutiny by the City of Sydney and residents are worried about the height of the buildings and a sharp increase in traffic.

The Greens member for Balmain Jamie Parker, who organised the public meeting, described the blueprint as “too high, too dense” and raised concerns about increased traffic on the local road network.

The surrounding streets could expect an additional 752 vehicle movements per hour on a Saturday morning, and 699 additional movements in the afternoon peak, Mr Parker said.

“The City needs to ensure the developer or the council produces a microanalysis to identify the real impacts [on traffic]. If that is done, the impact will be so significant I’m confident that the development will have to be reorganised, either reducing the density, car spaces or the retail component.”

Developer Mirvac will construct up to 16 new buildings on the site, including residential complexes up to eight storeys, terrace houses and a retail precinct. The project will offer 38,000 square metres of open public space and support around 2700 new residents.

Most residents at the meeting said traffic congestion was their primary concern.

They were most outraged by plans to link The Crescent with nearby Maxwell Road, which runs beside Jubilee Park.

Dr Lesley Lynch, Glebe Society spokesperson, said the eight-storey buildings will obscure the view from the Arthur St cliff top.

She said developers could have reached a similar density via an improved six-storey design.

But the Society has achieved some key successes in the planning process.

“We had some big wins and we didn’t get all we wanted,” Dr Lynch said.

“The big wins are the 3.8 hectares of public land, the preservation of the tram sheds, and halving the overall amount of space that could be used for retail activity.”

Mirvac has also agreed to hand over 1000 square metres of land for affordable housing, which Dr Lynch said is desperately needed in the area.

Mr Parker said increasing the population isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

“We do need to have more housing, in particular affordable housing,” he said.

The Harold Park project remains under the control of the Central Sydney Planning Committee, which comprises three City of Sydney councillors (including Lord Mayor Clover Moore) and representatives from the state government.

Responsibility for similar projects had previously been seized by the NSW Government under the now-defunct Part 3A of the Planning Act.

The closing date for responses to the current DA has been extended to October 17.

By Michael Koziol