Please see attached

The new building is too too close with 37 Victor street Sebel building. And the new building will cause more traffic in Victor street Sebel area and nearby. Also the new building will block all the natural light and views. Please make a fair decision and agree with a reasonable design for the existing building and future building. Thank you !

Whom It May Concern,
I am writing as a resident of the Sebel building to express my concerns regarding the proposed Mandarin Centre redevelopment.
What stands out most to me is the cumulative impact this project will have on the community. It is not just one issue, but a combination of factors that together will significantly reduce the quality of living in this area.

Traffic congestion on Victor Street is already a daily frustration, and it is difficult to see how the Victor street can absorb any additional demand.
At the same time, the scale of the development will lead to a complete loss of natural light for over 100 units in Sebel, causing significant health issues.

Privacy is another concern. The close proximity of buildings means that residents may find themselves living directly opposite one another, with limited separation and little sense of personal space.
There is also a noticeable shift in the sense of security within residential buildings. Incidents such as unauthorised access and theft are becoming more common, and increasing density without clear safeguards may worsen this trend.

In addition, the building configuration raises questions about wind conditions at street level. Developments with limited spacing can create accelerated wind flows, making public areas uncomfortable or even hazardous. It is concerning that there appears to be little publicly available evidence demonstrating that this issue has been properly assessed or mitigated.

Overall, this proposal, in its current form, does not strike an appropriate balance between development and the preservation of existing residential amenity. I urge the decision-makers to reconsider the scale and design of the project, or to refuse it outright unless these significant concerns are meaningfully addressed.

Yours sincerely,
A Sebel resident

Dear State Department,

I object to the proposed redevelopment of the Mandarin Centre at 61A–65 Albert Avenue.

The surrounding road network, particularly Victor Street, is already operating beyond capacity. Any additional traffic generated by this development will further degrade an already failing system.

The proposal also introduces serious privacy concerns. The proximity of the new buildings means that windows will directly overlook neighbouring apartments, removing any reasonable expectation of privacy for both existing and future residents.

There will also be a clear loss of natural light. Many residents have made long-term lifestyle commitments based on these existing conditions. The impact of complete loss of the natural light should not be dismissed.

Furthermore, there are growing security concerns in the area. Recent incidents within residential buildings highlight the risks associated with increased density and accessibility.

This development places excessive strain on infrastructure, reduces residential amenity, and introduces avoidable safety concerns. It should not proceed in its current form.

A concerned local resident

To Whom It May Concern,

I live in Sebel and I would like to raise my strong objection to the proposed Mandarin Centre redevelopment.

Over the past year, I have already noticed a worrying increase in security incidents within our building. There have been break-ins, including individuals accessing higher levels to steal personal belongings such as suitcases. Even items from shared areas, such as artwork in the lobby, have gone missing. These are not isolated concerns—they reflect a growing vulnerability.

Introducing a large-scale development directly adjacent to our building will only increase foot traffic and accessibility, further heightening these risks. The Sebel building is simply not designed to handle this level of exposure, and I am concerned that resident safety will be compromised.

In addition, the proposed design shows windows that will directly face into existing apartments. This creates an uncomfortable and intrusive living environment, where privacy is significantly reduced.

Combined with worsening traffic on Victor Street and the loss of natural light and views, this development will fundamentally change the character and livability of the area.

For these reasons, I strongly oppose the proposal.

Sincerely.

To the Department,

I am writing as a local resident of the Sebel building to express my strong opposition.

While I understand the intent to revitalise the area, this proposal appears to place an unreasonable burden on existing residents and infrastructure, without adequately addressing the consequences.

Privacy is serious issue. The design indicates a very short setback distance between the proposed buildings and the Sebel. This will result in direct overlooking between Sebel units and the new development, allowing residents to look clearly into each other’s apartments. This raises significant privacy concerns. Section 2F of the Apartment Design Guide requires a minimum separation of 24 metres between habitable rooms and balconies in residential buildings.

The proposal will also significantly reduce natural light and existing views for nearby apartments, particularly south-facing units, leading to a clear decline in living conditions. In addition, there are concerns that the development will cast further shadowing over Chatswood Oval, impacting its usability and amenity.

There are also concerns regarding increased density, impacts on wellbeing, and potential wind tunneling due to minimal building separation, none of which appear to be adequately addressed

Traffic in this area is also at breaking point, with frequent delays just to access Victor Street. This development will further worsen an already unmanageable situation.

For all reasons above, I object to the proposal

Sincerely,
A local resident

Re: Objection to Planning Proposal [61A-65 Albert Ave, Chatswood (Mandarin Centre)
Dear Sir/Madam,
I write to formally object to the above planning proposal.
My concerns are as follows:
• The proposed development, at 246 metres in height, is excessive and out of scale with the surrounding built environment.
• The location on a dead-end street is unsuitable for a development of this scale and intensity, particularly in terms of access, traffic flow, and emergency vehicle movement.
• The proposed 444 car spaces, with access via Victor Street, will significantly increase traffic volumes on an already heavily congested street, both during construction and once the development is operational.
• The street is currently used by a significant number of elderly residents, including those using mobility scooters and wheelchairs, and increased traffic and activity would pose safety and accessibility risks.
• Given the large elderly population on the street, unobstructed and reliable access for ambulances and emergency services is critical, and this may be compromised by the proposal.
• A medical health centre at one end of the street, including doctors, a pathology collection centre, and dental services, relies on safe and efficient access for patients and delivery of blood product and laboratory specimen, which may be adversely affected.
• During construction, the volume of heavy vehicle movements will further exacerbate safety risks, congestion, and access limitations on this constrained dead-end street.
• The height and bulk will result in significant overshadowing, including impacts on Chatswood Oval and the solar panels on the rooftop carpark of the adjacent Westfield shopping centre.
• The proposal is likely to increase traffic, noise, and congestion in the surrounding area.
• The scale and design may negatively impact neighbouring properties, including loss of privacy and amenity.
• The proposed 4% affordable housing is unacceptably low, suggesting the project is primarily profit-driven and provides minimal benefit to the existing residents and visitors of Chatswood.
• Insufficient consideration appears to have been given to environmental impacts.
For these reasons, I respectfully request that the application be refused or substantially revised to address these concerns.
Thank you for considering my submission.

My reasons against this project are as follows:
Firstly, the Chatswood road infrastructure can not possibly facilitate the construction and traffic of more vehicles. The current road structure surrounding Mandarin centre, namely Victor Street, Albert Avenue and Orchard road is currently facing heavy traffic from pedestrians and vehicles trying to travel to and from Chatswood Westfields causing excessive travel times for commuters particularly during busy weekend periods. These roads are too narrow and allow far too low a rate of car travel through to even cope with current levels that any obstruction; partial or full, would have detrimental effects to surrounding residents in these roads as well as surrounding suburbs trying to enter. Victor street and Orchard road have many residents that any obstruction would inhibit their ability to even enter their homes and Albert avenue is far too major of an arteriole of Chatswood to be obstructed. If road infrastructure remains as it is currently, it will most definitely not cope with the new proposed development. In other words, short term pain for long term pain.
Secondly, sound and air pollution that the construction would bring would be incredibly disruptive. There are many new families in the area along with neighbouring schools and parks, the level of pollution this project this would bring for the duration of construction would be unacceptable. As someone who suffers from severe sinusitis, living above the construction site would make my current situation unliveable.
Thirdly, the project would obstruct the natural light of surrounding buildings and parks.

The main concern here is the increased security risk building this project so close to the residences of Sebel. Our building is not equipped to account for the lack of privacy that will be a result of this project. We are already experiencing increased robberies from our adjacent buildings. From break ins to lobby robberies, we are very risk distressed. This project will allow people to look straight into our homes and efficiently plan more robberies. The view is the second main issue. People have been working to own this residence all their lives to retire with a view of the city centre, this project will block off all views and create significant decrease in life quality. The roads are already too small to accomodate present traffic needs. The noise of the project will also decrease the quality of life. Elders cannot move out while it is being built, and they are also the target of robberies. We already need to account for the risk of the Metro expansion, we do not want to also deal with this project repercussions. This project has more cons than pros.