Strickland Estate and Nielsen Park upgrades on public exhibition

By SASHA FOOT

A drafted master plan pushed by the member for Vaucluse, Gabrielle Upton, conceptualises two decades of upgrades for the Strickland Estate, Nielsen Park and the Hermitage Foreshore.

The pre-design plan for the Sydney Harbour National Park – funded by the NSW Government – concentrates on increasing public access, upgrading beach amenities and restoring the heritage buildings. To gain feedback on the project, the government has launched a community consultation period that will aid in refining the final concept design.

Upton said the master plan outlines “the necessary upgrades [to] improve access and wayfinding and enhance the sites’ cultural and natural attributes”.

These upgrades, she states, will “improve visitor experiences and identify the permitted uses for the buildings”.

An essential feature of the pre-design plan is the future uses of the largely vacant 8 Strickland Estate Buildings listed on the State Heritage Register.

In 2017, Upton worked to make Nielsen Park a State Heritage Listing, and added Strickland House Estate a year later. The Hermitage Foreshore Reserve also joined the State Heritage Register in 2020.

The central building of the Estate is Carrara House, or Strickland Estate, a 19th Century waterfront villa deemed of “exceptional” heritage significance. According to the project plan, the main activities of the estate home are occasional film and event use; there are suggestions to develop the site into a gallery/ museum and an artist’s workshop.

The drafted designs also recommend that the Women’s Ward, a 1933 building considered of “moderate” heritage significance, be fully or partially demolished.

Beach remains closed

Watsons Bay Local Anne Morrison says attending to the delayed beach works at Nielsen Park is the priority, adding that the plans for the national park are “far too unnecessary”. 

“I don’t understand why the government plans to waste money spoiling the natural bushland with this extra development,” Morrison told City Hub. 

President of the Darling Point Society, Charlotte Feldman, says the upgrades at Nielsen Park Beach, while effective in improving public access, over-rely on concrete.

She called the overuse of concrete “very unattractive and potentially dangerous”.

Feldman is particularly frustrated over the delays in upgrading the beach, saying that it is “far too long before the public can use it”.

“People are really upset that they can’t use this beautiful, safe and friendly beach this summer.”

Part of the vision for the Harbour National Park is a stone jetty at Milk Beach, which draws on the original heritage pier. Community feedback on the master plan will close on February 15.