I support the project, I believe it will significantly improve housing affordability and availability in the area.

I would however like to see the number of storeys and units significantly increased as well as units set aside for essential workers.

The proposal is well outside of the agreed Crows Nest TOD and with its excessive height will overshadow residential housing and the RNSH. It will cause extra traffic in the area, including on Ella Street and Dalleys Road which already has two traffic calming one-way constrictions. It is right opposite a major data centre which has very high power and water demands. Current power and water infrastructure are likely to be inadequate.
Developments like this MUST be restricted to the TOD areas - otherwise what is the point of them. If approved this will be used as a precedent and will enable further degradation of amenity not just in Crows Nest, but state wide.

This submission sets out fatal flaws in the application and why approval must be refused.
1. Through-Fare Traffic and Delivery Congestion
The Reality of "Last-Mile" Logistics: The developer’s reliance on the argument that proximity to public transport reduces private vehicle usage fails to account for modern e-commerce and delivery patterns.
Congestion Catalyst: A population of approximately 830 new residents across 413 apartments will generate immense daily volumes of food, grocery, and parcel deliveries (e.g., UberEats, Amazon, couriers).
Local Safety Hazards: Servicing this volume via Herbert and Ella Streets will result in constant e-delivery vehicles on footpaths and courier double-parking. This will severely disrupt through-fare traffic, creating significant safety hazards in a neighborhood characterized by high proportions of elderly residents and young families.
2. Parking – no visitor spaces, on‑street chaos guaranteed
The proposal provides no dedicated visitor parking. By leveraging "sustainable transport" arguments to minimize on-site residential and visitor parking, the development will inevitably trigger a parking overflow into the surrounding low-to-medium density streets (such as Ella and Francis Streets). This displacement disproportionately penalizes existing vulnerable residents and young families who rely on local street parking for daily mobility and access to their homes. The SIA’s own survey flagged “parking impacts” as a top concern. This is an unacceptable off‑site impact.
3. Severe Overshadowing and Loss of Solar Access
A 39-storey twin-tower complex will cast massive, fast-moving shadows over surrounding R3 medium-density zones and local public recreational assets (such as Naremburn Park), permanently degrading the solar access and living standards of the established community.
4. Cumulative impacts
Within 1km of the site, there are at least 12 approved or proposed SSD high‑rise developments (including a 42‑storey tower at 601 Pacific Highway and a 40‑storey at 20‑22 Atchison Street). The cumulative effect will add thousands of dwellings, yet:
No new school capacity – Chatswood High School and Artarmon Public School are already at or near capacity.
No new open space – the few parks (Wadanaggari, Naremburn, Talus Reserve) are heavily used.
No recreational space - local recreational facilities is constantly under the threat of/replaced by redevelopment.
The SIA’s assertion that cumulative impacts are “manageable” is baseless.
5. Federal Budget 2026
The federal budget changes effectively turn the proposed St Leonards development into an investor goldmine while doing little to improve genuine, long-term housing affordability. First-home buyers will still face stiff competition from high-income investors for the new units, while renters may find that older, cheaper housing stock in the precinct is slowly drying up.

The extraordinary scale of the proposed 39-storey twin towers represents a massive commercial windfall for the developer, unlocked entirely through state-vetted density and height bonuses. However, the proposal fails to offer a reciprocal, long-term benefit to the St Leonards/Crows Nest precinct. The proposed 10% affordable housing allocation expires after a mere 15 years, meaning the public permanently forfeits its solar access, airspace safety near RNSH, and local road capacity in exchange for a fleeting social benefit. Furthermore, standard developer contributions are entirely inadequate to address the severe deficit in local green space and public infrastructure that a population influx of this scale demands.

The community has twice rejected this scale of development. The SSD pathway should not be used to override local democracy. I urge refusal.

The size of the building is completely disproportionate to the surrounding areas and particularly in the vicinity of Naremburn Park. The building overshadows Talus Reserve area and this area which is an area of limited open space in Naremburn Crows Nest.

We live near Darvall Street in Naremburn and the visual impact is significant due to the bulk and scale of the development.

The design of the building includes car parks on level 2 and 3 - could this not be removed and the bulk of the building reduced?

Overall this building is not reasonable for the context of the area that it is proposed.

While I am generally in favour of consolidating higher density housing projects around transport hubs, I have real concerns about this development proposal and its potential impacts on the residential area where I live.
As other local residents have no doubt already noted, the height and bulk of the project are likely to create problems with overshadowing and privacy for residents in surrounding properties. Shadow diagrams confirm this.
Traffic congestion and parking pressures are already affecting this area and the proposed development can only exacerbate this situation, particularly in the construction period. Experience has shown clearly that construction workers do not choose to travel by public transport and already our local roads carry too many heavy vehicles.
The height of the south tower is of particular concern, in terms of visual and environmental impact. It simply DOES NOT FIT within the scale of the surrounding area. I would be far less concerned if it were closer to the height of the existing high rise buildings. Permitting the development of such extravagantly excessively higher towers in this area would seem to set an unfortunate precedent for other potential development sites in the area.
The plan to include 10% 'affordable housing' within the development sounds fine on paper but the devil is in the detail. Affordable for whom? and for how long? Personally, I feel this is a missed opportunity for a more positive contribution to be made by government via the inclusion of a percentage of social housing within the complex.
Similarly, I believe real value could be added to the proposal by including a substantial provision (maybe 150-200 units?) for retirement or 'over 55' housing. The location is ideal for older people, many of whom do not have cars and also require access to health services on a regular basis. And nor do they require access to schools, which is another challenge for families with children in this area.
In summary, I believe that with significant changes along the lines suggested above, this development could provide a valuable contribution to creating better and more diverse housing choices in Naremburn.
As a retired planner and passionate local resident, I would be happy to discuss these ideas further and to participate in any ongoing consultative processes or community advisory groups.

I am writing to object to the proposed apartment development. While I acknowledge the need for additional housing, I have significant concerns about the scale of the proposed building and its impacts on neighbouring residents and the surrounding area.

Solar Access and Overshadowing
The height and bulk of the proposed development are likely to result in a substantial reduction in sunlight and solar access to neighbouring properties, including my apartment, balconies, and common areas within our building. Access to natural light is an important aspect of residential amenity, and any significant increase in overshadowing would adversely affect residents' quality of life.

Privacy, Visual Amenity and Neighbourhood Character
The proposed building would introduce direct overlooking into nearby apartments and private outdoor areas, resulting in a loss of privacy for existing residents. In addition, the development would diminish existing views and alter the visual character of the immediate neighbourhood. The scale of the building appears out of proportion with surrounding development and would create an imposing presence within the streetscape.

Traffic, Parking and Pedestrian Impacts
The addition of a large number of new residents is likely to increase traffic congestion in the local area, particularly along Herbert Street and surrounding roads. Increased demand for on-street parking, visitor parking, service vehicles, and delivery traffic will place further pressure on already constrained infrastructure. Additional pedestrian activity may also create safety and accessibility concerns, particularly during peak periods.

Infrastructure and Utility Capacity
The proposal raises concerns regarding the capacity of existing local infrastructure to accommodate a significant increase in population density. Increased demand on water supply, wastewater systems, utilities, and other essential services should be carefully assessed to ensure that current residents do not experience reduced service levels or reliability.

Construction Impacts
The construction phase is expected to have substantial impacts on neighbouring properties due to excavation, piling, and building works immediately adjacent to existing residential buildings. Residents are likely to experience prolonged periods of noise, dust, vibration, and general disruption. Of particular concern are structural vibrations and potential impacts on neighbouring foundations and building integrity.

Wind Impacts
The height and form of the proposed development may significantly alter local wind conditions. Tall buildings can generate down-drafts, wind tunnelling effects, and increased wind velocities at street level and around neighbouring properties. These impacts may reduce pedestrian comfort, affect the usability of outdoor spaces, and diminish residential amenity.
For these reasons, I respectfully request that the consent authority carefully consider the cumulative impacts of this proposal on neighbouring residents and the surrounding community. In its current form, I believe the development would result in unacceptable adverse impacts on residential amenity, local infrastructure, and the character of the area.

Thank you for considering my submission.

I object to the proposed redeveloping and rezoning and State Significant Development at 33–37 Herbert Street St Leonards (SSD-88511459) for the these reasons:
1. Excessive Height and Overdevelopment of the Site
2. Significant Overshadowing and Visual Impacts
3. Traffic, Transport and Infrastructure Capacity Concerns
The details can be found in the attachment.

This proposal is terrible and not in keeping with the area. It creates significant overshadowing on our Naremburn suburb and our home. We will have significantly less sunlight in the afternoons. I strongly object to this project!
This 39 storey twin tower will remove any privacy we have in Naremburn.
Terrible visual impact on our suburb. This site is well outside the Crows Nest TOD rezoning area and would dwarf all exisiting buildings.
Traffic and parking congestion in the area is getting worse and worse and this is going to add to this problem!
Thank you.

The current scale is not appropriate for the area - the scale should be that of what was approved in the South St Leonard’s redevelopment precinct. Development of this scale will exacerbate existing traffic bottlenecks - particularly along Dalleys Road, Reserve Road, Ella Street and Herbert Street.

The development as proposed is against the principles in the Crows Nest TOD (implemented July 2024) in terms of its location and scale.

I wish to see a reduced scale development take place here.