the large number of residential properties to be added on herbert street will definitely create unbearable stress to the traffic on the street. it is already difficult (1 to 2 minutes wait) to get out of my building (19-23 herbert street) on to herbert street towards artarmon, during peak hour. i can see long queue of traffic on herbert street towards pacific highway everyday from 4pm to 6pm. I also notice that there will be another high rise development on herbert street near pacific highway side. Traffic chaos will be inevitable. on the other hand, i also worry about the impact to the physical structure of our building, which is already quite old (30 years).

From public information available this proposal departs significantly from the profile of buildings in this section of Herbert Street. It would overshadow adjoining buildings and housing in Naremburn. The proposed building is completely at odds with planning guidelines for the area concerned. It would add significantly to traffic in the area and off street parking in the area. This is a particularly busy area in that it provides access to the Royal North Shore Hospital. Any congestion could adversely affect the access to the hospital of emergency vehicles including ambulances.
I recommend that the proposal as submitted be totally rejected and that the developer be invited to submit a new proposal that accords with established planning criteria and traffic considerations. It is for consideration in any revised proposal what community housing might be included in a revised project. It is also for consideration whether some specific allocation for elderly accommodation might be included in any revised project given the proximity of the site to the RNSH.

For over 20 years I have been a resident of Park Road, Naremburn, just a few hundred metres from the proposed development site. I am a private citizen with no links to, or interest in, property development. I frequently walk and drive past this site and through other parts of the St Leonards/Artarmon industrial area. This area is characterised by low-medium rise buildings which provide a relatively open and light-filled environment. The proposed development will vastly overshadow parts of residential Naremburn and will markedly change the character of the area. The proposed maximum height of 110 metres hugely exceeds the current height restriction for this location under WLEP 2012. While the building height increases along Herbert St towards St Leonards Station, this is a graded effect which minimises the visual impact. In contrast, the proposed 110m tower, and smaller adjacent tower(s), make a mockery of this planned visual effect and will protrude like the proverbial sore thumb.

The need for a massive high-density residential development at this site is not supported by the Crows Nest TOD rezoning, and the proposed 413 new dwellings would greatly increase the congestion that currently occurs at the Ella St corner. With only 322 car spaces planned for the development, it is hard to imagine how the surrounding areas could possibly accommodate the additional street parking. In addition to inconveniencing both residential and commercial existing users of this area, it will seriously impact on the amenity of the nearby Naremburn Park which is heavily used for sporting and recreational activities.

The Urbis Scoping Report seems to argue that the proposed development would somehow be compatible with the changing nature of the Crows Nest/St Leonards precinct, but this is spurious since the site is distant from the Crows Nest/St Leonards hub and more aligned with the area to the north and east characterised by low-rise industrial and residential use. There is no serious argument for any benefit to the residential and commercial community of this proposed development – the only beneficiary would be the commercial developer. To the contrary, this development would be clearly detrimental to the neighbourhood and its occupants, and would in no way contribute to the goals of the Crows Nest TOD rezoning. Its approval would simply represent a capitulation to property development for no benefit to the community, an unnecessary breach of existing height and use guidelines for the site, and a significant further erosion of Willoughby Council’s planning authority. I strongly urge the rejection of this proposal and any other proposal that closely resembles it.

By proposing a building of this height and scale, the developer is attempting to bypass local planning controls at the expense of hundreds of homes and thousands of residents. Please don't let developers use the SSD pathway to ruin the surrounding area, all in the name of a quick dollar for themselves.

Naremburn and Crows Nest have absorbed their fair share of additional housing. We have mostly supported the TOD for both St Leonard's and Crows Nest, and the recent LMR changes that flow into our suburb. Most residents here get that we need more housing. But this proposal is obscene in its height and scale, even adjacent to the TOD precinct. A tower of any height on that block, which is the crest of the ridge, will rob all of Naremburn of its privacy and skyline, and it will fiercely overshadow family homes and residences.

Please let common sense prevail. This development is not an SSD, and please don't let the SSD pathway be corrupted by developers for profit at the expense of entire suburbs.

The project is outside the Crows Nest TOD rezoning area, in amongst suburban single story housing and low rise commercial buildings. Because of this the project is out of character with the surrounding area, will dwarf all existing buildings, create extensive shadowing impacting solar benefits around it to properties and parkland, exacerbate further road congestion on a suburban street (Ella st connects directly to Dalleys rd, a suburban street full of single dwellings and low rise apartments, single lane and a rat run already), traffic is often banked back to past Naremburn park in mornings and afternoons, parking will become even more difficult with not enough parking provided in the development, ( some 90 odd units without parking spots), and a dangerous precedent for a quiet leafy suburb like Naremburn. It is not St Leonards nor is it the highway. It right in the middle of single height and low rise properties. Even the high rise in St Leonards is no where near the proposed 39 stories of this project.
This project will destroy the suburb, create stress and anxiety due to road congestion and lack of parking, put immense pressure on infrastructure already buckling under the strain of overuse.
The project is in clear contrast to the established and agreed upon design principles of the Crows Nest TOD with a clear statement that St Leonards is the centre for high rise with a transition to smaller and lower development as one moves from the highway to surrounding neighbourhoods.
Stop this project, stop the destruction of our suburbs, stop the greed and flaunting of principles by developers who create mess and then move to create another.
Cecille Heath
Concerned Local
Resident.

I am writing to formally object to the proposed development due to its significant adverse impacts on neighbouring properties and the local community.

My concerns include the loss of privacy, reduced access to natural sunlight, increased traffic and parking congestion, potential wind impacts, and the excessive scale of the development. The proposed apartment tower adjacent to our property will be approximately three times the size of any existing building in the area, making it inconsistent with the character of the neighbourhood and a clear example of overdevelopment.

I am also concerned about the noise, dust, and disruption that will result from the construction process, which will negatively affect the amenity and quality of life of nearby residents.

Given these impacts, I respectfully request that the application be refused or substantially revised to better address the concerns of the local community.

Thank you for your consideration.

Yours faithfully,

Ariel

The intersection is already severely congested during rush hour. Adding a development of this size will place even more pressure on the local road network and exacerbate traffic congestion.

This project is right next to my apartment and going to block my sunlight and years of construction noises and add pressure to the existing community crowds.

The proposed height is too high

This development is not appropriate as it is too high and dense for the lower rise area of St Leonards. There will be significant overshadowing and congestion as a result. It is not induce the Crows Nest TOD rezoning area and will dwarf all buildings. We do not need high rise in Naremburn.