nicra2300
nicra2300
| Forum role | Member since | Last activity | Topics created | Replies created |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Member | Apr 6, 2014 (12 years) |
- | 0 | 2 |
- Forum role
- Member
- Member since
Apr 6, 2014 (12 years)
- Last activity
- -
- Topics created
- 0
- Replies created
- 2
Bio
Newcastle Inner City Residents Alliance (NICRA) is a community movement aiming to fight plans by GPT and UrbanGrowth NSW to destroy the heritage environment and key public vistas in the Newcastle CBD.
NICRA was formed in March 2014 to oppose changes that would amend the State Environment Planning Policy (SEPP) (2012) as these changes would result in significant and inappropriate alterations to the height limits set out in the Newcastle Local Environment Plan (LEP) (2012).
NICRA is not opposed to progress and development. We are generally supportive of plans outlined in the Newcastle Urban Renewal Strategy (NURS), which suggest the West End as an appropriate site for high-rise building.
However, NICRA is opposed to height increases first set out in the SEPP amendments document, which was only made available for public comment from March 5-21, 2014.
The height increases include:
• a 19-storey residential building on the site of the David Jones car park on King Street
• a 14-storey residential building on the corner of King and Newcomen streets
• a 15-storey residential building in Wolfe Street
The height changes to the existing LEP as outlined in the Development Control Plan (DCP) sets out various height changes according to location. Changes include:
Height limits that are currently 10 metres will increase to 24 metres
Height limits that are currently 24 metres will increase to 35 metres
Height limits that are currently 24 metres will increase to 70 metres
Height limits that are currently 30 metres will increase to 55 metres
Height limits that are currently 30 metres will increase to 59 metres
Height limits that are currently 30 metres will increase to 49 metres
The proposed significant increases in height limits will have a major detrimental impact on the city's built form, character, scale and heritage, and on key public vistas of the city to and from the Christchurch Cathedral.
The three proposed towers will dwarf all existing buildings in that historic precinct and greatly distort the profile of The Hill and the Cathedral. These towers will be modern buildings completely out of sympathy with what elsewhere in the DCP is correctly recognised as the ‘19th and early 20th century’ character of these precincts.
In heritage terms, the proposed height increases are crude, ugly and thoughtless vandalism that will commence and forever ensure the cumulative and permanent degradation of the heritage assets of Australia’s second oldest mainland city. This will prove an opposite outcome from what the Strategy claims to achieve.
NICRA invites contributions to the debate and welcomes correspondence from interested community members. You can contact NICRA organisers via nicra2300@gmail.com
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