High rise not appropriate for area

This historic area has been appropriately developed under the LEP 2012 . This proposed development is totally outside these guide lines and not in keeping with its surrounds at all. It will dwarf our new beautifully and deliberately well designed art gallery that many of us have raised funds for for years . The residents of this area have had to stand up for tasteful and appropriate development in the area before . There is high density development in nearby and more appropriate areas .
I am not sure if the Department of Planning can or is willing to take into account the cultural and historical significance of this area but I believe they should do so before they rezone the area thereby allowing this development and others like it in this area. No doubt they are aware that the oldest public school which still operates is just up the road and there are many historical buildings in the vicinity.
The other aspect for consideration is the infrastructure that exists is older ie narrower streets and older water and electricity supply and a development of this size may cause significant pressure to be placed on these .
Parking and traffic regulation in the area is already a significant concern. Given the developments location , an intersection between two already busy thoroughfares that are navigated by pedestrians for shopping and school purposes , I fear it will cause major congestion and interruption to traffic flow. It will most certainly add to the already dangerous situation on this corner for pedestrians and bike riders.
Thank you for your consideration in these matters.

This is a critical planning for Newcastle and it must be a part of the Newcastle community. The process has to be discussed & approved by the Council & the people of Newcastle with carful consideration. Newcastle is not a city as such it is a large country town and its heritageneeds to be a part of any decision. As an owner of a apartment in Eastend Newcastle I take great pride in seeing the correct outcome of development in the area.

I live directly across the road from this development and it would destroy my life. I have a view directly over the top of the original building and my house faces that direction. All apartments will look directly into my house and backyard. I will have no privacy and will have no natural light as I will have to keep my curtains closed all the time. We moved from the area where all the high rises are being built and bought in a place that had building limits and was set to remain as houses. I have a 3 year old daughter who will be very affected by the dust as she has asthma and will be very dangerous for her to be on the street with all the trucks and movement. Also sleeping will be a huge problem with all the noise. Traffic will be a huge problem as it already blocked up on peak hour let alone add in all the cars from the development. There are so many places in Newcastle that can already accommodate this development why would it be allowed to be placed in an area with no high rises. This building will look so out of place to the surrounding structures and will tower over civic park and everything else around it. This will also decrease the value of my own home and make it much harder to sell if I need to. This development is so out of touch with the local area and community and does nothing to improve the area of the lives of people that live in the area. I would happily allow this development if it stayed to the same height as the original building as this would fit in with the area and not add hundreds of people and cars onto an already congested side street. I suggest you come and walk the street and area and see what th Le building would do to the surrounding suburb this will not just effect a few houses but hundreds and this can not be worth the small amount of dwellings that will be provided compared to he other new ones being developed in the old train corridor where all the high rises have permission to build. Living directly across the road will have a very adverse effect on myself my wife and our 3 year old daughter for the building period and the life of the building. I hope you see reason and realise this is so out of character for the area and will adversely effect all the people living in the area. Thank you for taking the time to read this and understand how this will impact all those who live here.

I am totally opposed to this 12-storey development. The proposed building is markedly out of proportion to surrounding structures in this historic area. It will greatly overtop this crucial community area which contains the civic and cultural hub of Newcastle. The develpoment will dwarf Civic Park, the recently re-opened Newcastle Art Gallery, the Library, Newcastle Town Hall and two heritage churches.
In addition, it encroaches on the historic suburb of Cooks Hill and the famous restaurant strip of Darby Street. Approval of this building sets a bad precedent which will put pressure on authorities to approve further very tall buidlings also out-of-keeping with the ambience of this historic and quaint community area.
Please reject this development. It is too high and dominating.

I strongly object to the proposal for the following reasons
1. In 2014 Newcastle City Council and the State Government made a decision to remove the rail line into Newcastle and replace it with light rail. This resulted in the Newcastle CBD being relocated to Honey Suckle and LEP's were changed to allow high rise apartment complexes in and around the new Newcastle Interchange. Photo 1 attached shows the relocated Newcastle CBC and the development happening in and around the interchange. As a result of the CBD being relocated, there is no reason to allow development approvals in the old area of the city which are outside the current approved LEP height limits. The proposed development is over 3 times the approved height limit and the provision of a 12-storey apartment complex at this location will dominate the landscape and will be akin to the Blues Point apartment Tower at North Sydney. Photo 2 shows the view from Newcastle's Anzac Bridge Tourist point. I would expect that the current view down the Harbour will be completely blocked by the proposed twelve storey building.
2. A similar Development application was rejected by Council in 2019 on the adjoining block at 59 Darby St. This decision was challenged in the Land and Environment Court with the development subsequently given approval with a maximum height of some 24m. As such, the current development application should be limited to the same height as the Court decision for 59 Darby St or it will create an unwanted precedent for the area.
3. The State Significant Development legislation was brought into being in an attempt to alleviate the housing crisis for low- and middle-income families. The provision of 113 "Luxury Apartments' does not help this objective as they will be unaffordable to low- and middle-income families. These units, if approved, will only be affordable to property investors to buy and sell as the price of housing continues to increase.
4. The proposal is for 113 units and commercial premises but will only provide 155 parking spaces. This will result in significant congestion and lack of street parking. Like many other apartment developments in the area, these units will be rented by singles sharing together where each person has their own vehicle. The lack of parking at the apartments will result in more vehicles parking on the streets at night and increased congestion as customers of the Art Gallery, Library, Civic Theatre and the restaurant strip along Darby Street look for somewhere to park. It is highly conceivable that customers will be turned away from attending these community facilities due to unavailability of parking.
5. The proposed Building will destroy the heritage of the area and create an unwanted social impact as it will dominate the landscape immediately adjacent to the community facilities such as the Newcastle Art Gallery, Newcastle Library and Civic Theatre. Having a 12-Story apartment tower across Darby St and overlooking Civic Park will detract from the tranquility and attractiveness of the park for users.
6. The proposal will result in significant shadowing to adjacent properties in Regency Park and along Tyrrell St, particularly during the afternoon and evening.