Sydney International Convention, Exhibition & Entertainment Precinct

Please see attached pdf file

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From the online information available I understand that the developers are only planning to keep the level of noise coming from the new entertainment centre and the event deck to the legal minimum requirement.

The online information about the sound proofing for the entertainment centre is far too technical for nearby residents to comprehend how it will affect them, making it impossible to object to noise or to accept the level of noise coming from the building. I object to the current level of soundproofing if the noise is not fully contained within the building.

I am surprised that the event deck has been placed so close to a residential building, I feel that it shows disregard for local residents since the potential for noise coming from this structure is huge: maximum capacity 5000 people, normal capacity up to 2500 people. Because of the potential for major noise disturbance, I strongly object to the number of days that the event deck is available for use throughout the year during evening hours. Other than the six major annual events, the event deck noise should be restricted to not after 7pm at all other times, out of respect for people living nearby. Having an increase in noise levels during evening hours is going to have a huge impact on residents's stress levels and will drive away many owner occupiers, thus increasing the amount of short lets on our complex (people who are not interested in maintaining the building or making this their home).

Bar and event deck: We have enough bars in this area already. People need to be encouraged away from alcohol into healthier, more constructive past times. I would much rather have seen a sports hall here which is viewable to the public from outdoors on the east and west sides, with public viewing galleries indoors, thus encouraging the public to be more involved in pastimes such as trampolining, gymnastics, fencing, martial arts, and archery. We have so many students living in the city centre, we need to be able to provide more healthy outlets for people who live in the city centre (instead of more gyms).

I hope that the new entertainment centre will have improved seating that has more room for dancing and improved (indoor) acoustics, since it was an appalling set up at the old entertainment centre. Who would have thought that you could go to a James Brown concert and not have room to dance and to top that have the people sat down behind you complain that they could not see because you got up to dance. Live rock and pop music is to be danced to, not to be taken sat down. Even James Brown tried to encourage people to stand up, poor man, it was embarrassing: only a few very self-conscious people stood up and there was only room to shuffle around near one's seat. I gave up going to the current entertainment centre because people view bands sat down and the acoustics are dreadful.

I would like to suggest that the new exhibition centre incorporates a vertical hanging garden into the wall that backs onto Darling Drive so that residents are looking at dense greenery which blocks their view of the city instead of a huge wall. It means more imagination, work and planning, but it will show some respect for the well-being of city residents by making it a better structure to live next to. Please consider this. Just doing the legal minimum amount required isn't good enough. Make yourself happy by giving back to the community at the same time by designing people-friendly structures.

The form I filled to make my comments online had three choices for me to pick: I object to it, I support it or I am just providing comments. I support some of it while I object to various aspects of it which have the potential to reduce the quality of life for local residents, so rather than say that I am just providing comments which is vague in terms of how my submission will be processed, I have chosen to say, I object, in the hope that my concerns will be (seriously) taken into consideration by the planning department. The impression I get from people living in my area is that what we have to say will make little difference to the plans already in place. I am still hopeful that this is not the case and that the planning department really does work with the local community to work towards something that works better for everyone.

Please see attached.

Please see attached letter

I am an affected neighbour of the proposed redevelopment of Darling Harbour South, the subject of SSD Application SSD 5725 .

I object to the proposal SSD 5725 and its companion SSD 5878.

My reasons, set out in detail in the main attachment to this submission, are that the proposals will be :
less useful to the immediate neighbourhood and to the NSW community, than what they replace;
more costly to the future users and its neighbours, in money and unrequited impacts;
more costly to taxpayers in that perfectly sound facilities, currently successfully in use, will be demolished to only be less effectively replaced by new ones;
less visually attractive than presently (also a cost or detriment to those who will have to look at them every day) and those yet to come, denied the relative beauty of what is there now;
the source of serious traffic and transport impacts on the surrounding district which have been underestimated, wrongly estimated or not estimated at all in the EIS;
unaffordable in the present economic climate by a government upon which more urgent social demands press ever harder, every day - ie the money value of the outlays and deferred undertakings supported by taxation (debt, future tax increases, subsidies, guarantees etc) are needed more urgently by other individuals or groups, or elsewhere in the State.

Please see attached

Please see uploaded file submitted on behalf of Australia ICOMOS.

File is attached as PDF.

The submission can be published - see attachment.

At a well attended Extraordinary General Meeting of the Bullecourt Pyrmont Strata Plan on Tuesday May 7, 3013, the Executive Committee was empowered to make the following response on behalf the residents.
The residents of the Bullecourt Apartment complex do understand the need for a substantial upgrade of the convention and exhibition facilities as important for the economic and social development of Sydney but at a major cost to these residents. Many will suffer a substantial loss to their visual and views amenity with larger structures and what appear to be large featureless walls that will be situated closer to the apartment complex, resulting in the blocking of some or most of their current city views to both the east and north east.
The residents understand that in order to improve the efficiency of the convention and exhibition centre, the planned shape of the new convention and exhibition complex is unlikely to change. It is appreciated that the lower area (called the "event deck") between the proposed Exhibition Halls and Theatre (the "Entertainment Centre" replacement) is an attempt to mitigate that loss of visual and view amenity. However, the proposed mode of usage of the event deck is of major additional concern.
The first concern is that the effort to mitigate the loss of views is directly contravened by the proposed erection of any large marquee type structure on the event deck for a period that is currently planned as the equivalent of a quarter of each year. Given that the event deck will now extend westward directly in the direction of Bullecourt well beyond the current structures, this marquee type structure will be right in the face of many residents, cutting off the bulk of their view. Restricted the use of the marquee to the eastern side of the event deck would go some way to reducing the intrusion into Bullecourt residents views.
More critical, however, is the second concern - NOISE emissions from the event deck.
A number of issues present themselves:
1. In all discussions with the Applicant, the residents of Bullecourt have been assured that the deadline for termination of events would be 10 pm - in line with current Tumbalong Park event guidelines. It is now stated under 4.4 Outdoor event deck scenarios "that these types of events are likely to end by 11 pm with the "the live music component likely to end by 10 pm"." With "bump out" for envisioned events accommodating upwards of 5,000 people means a major noise disturbance well past midnight. Table 7 in the relevant section of the DA indicates the recommended night (10 pm onward) noise level for urban residential is 45 dB with a maximum of 50, and 50 with a maximum of 55 for evening. That means that the estimated noise level for a conference dinner with live entertainment is 11 db over the recommended noise level in the evening (6 over maximum) and also 11 over at night (after 10 pm - 6 over maximum). Even then, a reasonable person could be very sceptical about these noise estimates. Five thousand people, live music, power generators, portable air-conditioning plant, portable chillers and other catering equipment - all well within 60-70 meters of people's balconies and bedrooms! It is totally unacceptable to already plan for a breach in noise guidelines - and plan to repeatedly breach the same noise guidelines for up to 1 in 4 nights in the year. It needs to be clarified that events will end at 10pm and bump out will occur as quickly as possible soon after.

2. There is nowhere in the DA any statement about clearing and locking access to the Event Deck. What happens if the guests attending these various events decide to party on? There must be clarity that the events end at 10 pm with clearing and locking of the Event Deck very soon after.

3. Large marquees will require substantial energy for heating or cooling depending on the time of year. No mention is made of where the power is coming from. It would be totally unacceptable if very large and noisy generators were placed at the Bullecourt end of the deck to provide this power. It must be clarified that such generators will either be contained within the Exhibitions Halls proper or located away from the residents.

4. There are proposed 6-7 major events per year for which, apparently no restriction will be made regarding either level of noise or duration. The residents understand that New Year in Sydney is special but what are these other events that require the total loss of a night's sleep for Bullecourt residents? It must be clarified what "unrestricted" events are envisioned and what noise mitigation is planned for these. 6-7 Events in a year appears to be infrequent but a loss of a total night's sleep every couple of months is unacceptable even for "urban" residents.

5. The placement of the band and associated amplification and speaker systems for live music, and speakers for recorded music, is critical. If these are located at the Oxygen bar end, and facing Bullecourt, the noise that the residents will be subjected to will be horrendous. It is an absolute necessity that it be specified that the speakers for the various sound systems will be placed to face East towards the city where there is a larger distance and other buildings between the nearest neighbouring residential complexes.


A third set of concerns is the emission of odours and other gaseous matter from activities associated with the event deck.
1. An event involving serving alcohol to 5000 people could result in alcohol fumes being carried over to Bullecourt.
2. Similarly, a dinner or worse still, a barbeque type event could result in food odour, cooking smoke and oil fumes being carried over to Bullecourt.
3. While the emission of alcohol or food odour or fumes could be contained by a marquee type structure, the fumes associated with the power generation, air-conditioning or food chilling / catering by portable equipment cannot be contained and could be carried over to Bullecourt.

A fourth set of concerns involve the emission of light from activities associated with the event deck. It is unlikely that an evening activity on the event deck will be conducted using only ambient lighting from either the surrounding area or the moon.
1. A lighting plan for the entire development let alone the event deck has not been specified.
2. A live entertainment event, either accompanying an outdoor reception or dinner will most likely be accompanied by stage lighting and/or disco style lighting that could include lasers. There are no indications in the application as to how any potential light pollution will be either controlled or mitigated on behalf of the Bullecourt Residents.
A fifth set of concerns involve the potential for anti-social behaviour directed at the residents of Bullecourt.
1. The proximity of the western side of the event deck to the Bullecourt Apartment complex could invite anti-social behaviour in the form of abuse, thrown objects and general loss of privacy being suffered by the residents.
2. The application makes no provision for preventing or mitigating anti-social behaviour by the participants of an event deck activity.

In summary, in the DA as presented:
* Includes a temporary structure that further reduces the already hugely compromised visual environment for the Bullecourt complex for up to a quarter of the year
* Plans for exceeding urban noise levels
* Fails to address other major impacts such as light and odour emissions and potential socio-behavioural impacts

The planned usage of the event deck seems to be thoroughly ill-conceived and will have an enormous negative impact on the lives of the hundreds of residents in the Bullecourt complex.  

Dear Sir,

Please find submission as attached in PDF format

Yours sincerely,
Abram Tanus

Please find attached list of objections to the proposed development

Please see uploaded PDF

See the group attachment which I fully support.

A disaster !

See document uploaded

See uploaded document

Please find Cox Richardson Submission uploaded.

Please refer attachment