I have been a resident of Paddington for 54 years and resided in Gipps Street for 9 of those years. The site of the proposed development sits in the heart of the original Paddington village that sprang up with the construction of the Victoria Barracks in the 1840s. The area is historically significant not just for Paddington, but also for the State of New South Wales and Australia.

- The bulk and scale of the development is completely contrary to the objectives of the Paddington Heritage Conversation Area as outlined in the Woollahra LEP 2014 and DCP 2015 - to conserve the amenity, character, and unique National heritage significance of Paddington.
- Regulations that all residents of the Paddington Heritage Conservation Area -- current and future -- have to comply with when considering alterations and additions.
- It will overwhelm surrounding residences and destroy the area's street scapes.
- It will have a negative impact on traffic and pedestrian amenity.
- Significantly, it will result in the net loss of genuinely affordable housing from the surrounding area.

The approval of this development will set a terrible precedent for the future of Paddington as one of Australia's significant heritage conservation areas - the whole purpose of which is to prevent developments of this scale.

I do not agree with this development for a number of reasons:

1) The current building is already considered affordable housing and these people will be displaced unnecessarily
2) Significant sightline issues
3) Design impacts a heritage area and is not in keeping with the overall aesthetic
4) Developers hold the so-called 'affordable housing' apts for a period of time, after which they will sell at a premium, which is a rort, given the profit they will make selling the other 30 apartments. Their profits offset any potential public good.
5) Access is proposed from Shadforth St, which is a tiny street, which will negatively impact residents both during construction, and post construction.
6) The proposal to include retail is fanciful, given that Paddington's retail strip suffers significantly because of a lack of public parking, which this development will exacerbate rather than alleviate.

Demolishing affordable housing for luxury penthouses will not solve the underlying issue at hand, which is, to create a community and environment for everyone to enjoy. Furthermore, 80 car parking spaces will only encourage more cars on the road, and add to the congestion that already exists in the east given it is water locked. A development of this size and scale goes against the existing surrounds which need to be preserved and enjoyed for many years to come. Paddington has a rare history and it should be celebrated not destroyed. Furthermore, the size and scale of this building will cost locals their privacy and restrict their lifestyle choices with regards to how they want to spend time in their homes and in their space. A space that they were in first. Doctors are full, childcare is impossible to seek, parking is at a minimum, public transport never turns up, the community does not need this added pressure. It needs thoughtful planning and design, and a space for the community to enjoy given the high density living. These decisions are almost impossible to reverse, i plead you to think carefully and cautiously and to listen to the people whose lives will be impacted by these decisions.

I am a local Paddington resident of more than 20 years. It is one of Sydney's oldest suburbs and important we protect its heritage significance. We need to protect the Paddington Heritage Conservation Area. Approving this site would set a precedent for other oversized high rise developments within a character heritage area, characterised by 19th and early 20th century terrace housing. The sheer scale of this development will completely overshadow the workers cottages and terraces of adjoining streets- Shadforth, Gipps and Glenmore road- some of the finest examples of their type in Paddington. Oxford street is already highly congested with traffic and a high volume destination for visiting shoppers, parking on adjoining streets is almost impossible for residents like myself, with very few terraces having garage facilities. The last thing we need is more visitation and more demand on local streets and parking. As I understand there will be over 80 cars parked in the basement of the development and no doubts they will have visitors, or additional vehicles, and our local streets simply can't take it. It is already at the stage that if I move my car from street parking near my house during a weekday or on a saturday it can take me up to 30 mins to find a park when I return. Sometimes there are zero parks left in Paddington Zone 1 and I have to park in an adjoining parking zone and risk a fine, even though I'm a resident. I also understand that the development would mean a LOSS of 17 affordable housing units, from the 27 in the existing block of flats down to just 10 in the proposed high rise development. How is this a good thing? This smacks of greed and overdevelopment of a heritage area and as a resident I am absolutely opposed to this development. There is no justifiable benefit to the neighbourhood- every single aspect of this development detracts from a heritage area rather than brings anything at all good. I object in the strongest possible terms and implore the assessors to see sense and deny this application.

Please see attached submission.

OBJECT to the height, scale and percedent.

See attached letter

This area is of unique architectural significance. Many of the iconic terraces in Paddington and Woollahra are labelled heritage-listed only via local council and are therefore already subject to demolition via the small to medium density housing plan by the NSW State Government. As a resident, I am appalled that the amenity of the local area is vulnerable to erosion as a result of such creeping powers by State Government but, aside from the "NIMBYs" as Premier Chris Minns has thoughtlessly labelled concerned and impacted residents, many non-residents from other areas of Sydney that I've spoken with are outraged to hear that the iconic Paddington rows of terraces - both residential and shops - are under threat. This proposed building is totally out of character for the local area. While many of us agree that housing must be increased, the housing benefits of this proposal (both number of apartments as well as the lack of affordable housing which it intends to replace) do not solve the housing issue or justify the erosion of the local amenity. This proposal is short-sighted and will only serve to negatively impact nearby residents and business-owners who have carefully selected Paddington and Woollahra for its local amenity and draws visitors from all over for the same reason. We can do better to improve housing without so sloppily imposing on existing communities.