Powerhouse Parramatta

I Object to proposal of the State Government demolishing both Willow Grove and St George Terrace buildings to make way for a new museum to house historic items that we all love to look at and be amazed with they way things were built all those years ago. It doesn’t make any sense what so ever to demolish the very thing that you would be encouraging people to go and look at.
We are all aware of alternate locations or better still incorporate those beautiful buildings into the grounds of the project some how.
The future generations need to see how our much pride and precision they were built with, it took time, and these old building would be built far better than anything built in the housing industry these days.
Once again I object to the demolition of Willow Grove and St George terrace buildings.

Regards
Chris Pierce
Kellyville

I object to the demolition of Willow Grove and St George’s Terraces in Parramatta.
The NSW Government is so wrong about knocking down our heritage buildings. These magnificent old residences were built in the 1800’s and need to be preserved. They are rare examples of architecture that no longer exist in the Parramatta CBD and should be retained.
It is an area that my ancestors settled into in the 1800’s, and I think it’s a disgrace that we could lose this part of our history Please save our Australian heritage from being flattened and save it for our younger generations.
Yours sincerely
Paula Rose

Please find attached the Business NSW submission to the Parramatta Powerhouse EIS consultation. If you have further questions about this submission, or would like to discuss further, please contact me at [email protected].

Best regards,

Simon Moore

I object to the project insofar as it would involve the loss of the two heritage items Willow Grove and St Georges Terrace.
If those cannot be preserved, another site for the Museum must be found.
It is unfathomable that government would promote a proposal which blithely destroys fine examples of our colonial heritage architecture. NSW has seen so much heritage destroyed that a line has to be drawn here. What is left must be preserved.
There must be numerous alternative locations in Western Sydney. By all means build a museum but not at the cost of losing significant history. It is not an either or situation.

I object to the demolishing of Willow Grove on the grounds of its historical and architectural significance.

Hello
I object to the Parramatta Powerhouse project
I object on the following grounds
1. The heritage St George Terraces should be preserved as tangible and cultural history of the area. Their destruction is an abomination.
2. The flood risk represents an unacceptable risk to the assets which belong to all Australians
Parramatta deserves a world class museum but not at the expense of the heritage already there
Yours sincerely
Dr T Smith

Please refer to attached

Dear Sir or Madam

As I was unable to make a submission on the website due to some technical errors, Service NSW has given me this email address to make my submission to.

I STRONGLY OBJECT to the project to move the Powerhouse Museum from Ultimo to Parramatta on the following grounds:
• I OBJECT to the closure of the Ultimo Powerhouse Museum. I very much value the Ultimo Powerhouse buildings and precinct. The buildings have been wonderfully repurposed for the Powerhouse Museum collection and the Powerhouse should remain open in its current buildings.
• I OBJECT to any plan to sell any part of the Ultimo Powerhouse site which should remain in public hands, with the amazing MAAS collection on display.
• The outrageous project cost of $1.8 billion (and rising) to move the objects in the Powerhouse Collection outweighs the benefits of moving them to Parramatta, or anywhere else around the state while waiting for a new building to be completed.
• There are enough objects already in storage in the MAAS collection which could be used in a new museum in Parramatta, without moving the Ultimo collection.
• I support the idea of a major museum in Parramatta, such as the Museum of NSW proposed by the Parramatta Council in the Parramatta Cultural Plan, 2017. A new museum should not come at the expense of the existing Ultimo Powerhouse – it should not be an ‘either/or’ choice.
• I OBJECT to the location of the new Museum on the riverbank in Parramatta given the flood risks and accessibility issues.
• I OBJECT to the demolition of the heritage buildings Willow Grove and St Georges Terraces. Any new building should be repositioned so as to retain these last remaining heritage buildings.
• I have asked the Premier to consider the views of the 14,000 people who signed a petition against the project (of which I was one), the Historic House Association and National Trust of Australia (NSW), and the many community, museum professionals and heritage experts who have advised against the project, and please reverse the decision to push ahead with this project.

Greetings, I just wanted to write and voice my objection to the Powerhouse Parramatta Project. Demolishing more Heritage Buildings like Willow Grove Villa and St Georges Terraces is completely unnecessary and is detrimental to the cultural richness of this country. These buildings should be respected and preserved; they are examples of architecture that no longer exist in the Parramatta region.

The history that surrounds those buildings should be retained for future generations to enjoy and appreciate. As a society, especially in the current political climate, we are constantly being pressured to rewrite history and deny cultural significance for fear of offending others. Destroying history like these beautiful buildings is offensive to everyone who lives in the area and this project will have a negative impact on the people and community. Progress should not mean erasing history, it requires acknowledging it and moving forward.

Thankyou for reading this email and noting my objection. Please find another project to express yourself by, that does not involve such destruction; we are put on this planet to create.

I have never made any reportable political donations.
Please withhold my name from being published along with this submission.

I wholly object to the moving of the Powerhouse Museum to Parramatta. Now it represents a history and stories of the pioneers of Australia and its once vibrant manufacturing industry. It is a prime location now in the city for families and tourists to get to very easily. In the proposed move only 20% of the exhibition will be on display in the new museum. That is a shocking revelation for a world class museum. Supposedly, its treasures will be scattered around regional centres. Just because it has been gifted to them does not mean it will be put on display. It is time that regional centres like Dubbo which already has a world class zoo and attracts many tourists, have money spent here in our agricultural areas.

I object to the project of the Powerhouse Museum at Ultimo being moved from its present site. The project from its first submission in 2018 has totally changed. It is now a world class museum and the new museum has shrunk the collection to half the size of the current museum. In the proposed museum there is no storage space, no parking places for the public, little climate control and no way of moving large objects.

Parramatta is an amazing cultural precinct in its own right. It should be incorporating the history of the Willow Grove and the old terraces into another amazing museum focused on aboriginal and colonial history as Parramatta as it history goes back to 1788 and is only 10 years younger than Sydney.
Our history is worthy of museums not destruction.

Please note - I do not contribute to any political party.
I am most strongly opposed to The Power House museum being moved to Parramatta from Sydney and appalled that the beautiful, historical building in Parramatta, Willow Grove will be destroyed.
In regards to moving the museum to Parramatta I have several reasons for my objection.
1. The current rail system places Sydney as the cog of all transport making it relatively easy for NSW schools and tour operators to take visitors to see the museum. Those coming from outer suburbs of Sydney would have to travel first to Central then catch another train to Parramatta making travel time consume too much of the day and time spent at the museum reduced drastically.
2. The current museum at Ultimo is too small but what is proposed at Parramatta will not improve space for displays.
3. Sydney is the birthplace of settlement by the English and has an airport to bring visitors to the city which has many historical places of interest so it makes sense to have the museum there.
4. The proposed design for the Parramatta site is not at all pleasing to the eye nor will it cater for long time storage of the historical objects that need to be displayed.
5. Willow Grove - this beautiful old home needs to be preserved not knocked down and replaced by an ugly giant milk crate. Willow Grove is a significant building in Australia's history. The proposed building is ugly and I believe it will not function successfully as a museum with all the other types of business being included in its construction.
6. As a senior citizen and member of a very large organisation of Senior citizens called PROBUS I can tell you now that we are the type of people who are most likely to have the time to spend at museums. I would have an hours trip to reach Sydney but that would be doubled to get to Parramatta by public transport. That would make our travel time 4 hours minimum. This is not acceptable.
7. I have objects from my family history in the Power House museum at Ultimo which I am able to view.
PLEASE reconsider the move of the museum to Parramatta. A second building in Sydney should be the common sense and most financially viable option to increase display space.
Evon Jenkinson
Secretary Engadine Yarrawarra Probus club
Retired NSW teacher

I am writing in regard to the proposed demolition of Willowgrove and St George's Terrace in the building of a new museum in Parramatta. My family has been associated with Parramatta since the 1840s and as a former history teacher, I am passionate about the history of this city, both the indigenous history and the colonial and more recent history. I visit Parramatta at least once a week to visit my son who lives near the CBD and to use the facilities there.
I object to this action for the following reasons:
1. These late nineteenth century buildings and the streetscape in Phillip Street that they are part of are unique in Parramatta. Parramatta has much of the colonial heritage of Australia but it is important to retain Willowgrove and St George's Terrace as part of the continuous historical development of this city and to retain the sense of history and beauty which these buildings provide. I worked in Phillip Street in the 1990s and admired the sense of old Parramatta that these buildings helped to create near the river. I am sad when I visit each week to see the buildings becoming more derelict. Surely it is possible to design a museum which incorporates these buildings rather than to demolish them.
2. I understand the need for development and the building of a museum is laudable but many parts of the world value heritage more than the NSW Government and Parramatta Council appear to do and are able to incorporate heritage into the development. The Premier recently condemned the defacement of statues as disregard for heritage and I agree although I understand the motivation. Statues can be replaced, however, but these buildings and the sense of place they create cannot be replaced. Piece by piece, I see the heritage of Parramatta disappearing, the latest being the Royal Oak Hotel.
I urge the government to place much more importance on our history and heritage and to keep and restore Willowgrove and St George's Terrace for our future.

The Board of DSMG Ltd met on July 12, 2020 and unanimously endorsed the attached submission. Not all Board members were attending in person so the second signature page adds thos members who were attending via Zoom.

I object for two reason's , if the new museum was built its on a flood plain , I don't want Willow Grove etc. any Heritage destroyed
The Government should look at other land they own in Parramatta
No more Heritage Buildings to be destroyed