Planning Controls ‘Virtually Abandoned’ in Double Bay

A Sydney council has virtually abandoned its planning controls in a blue-ribbon suburb, according to plans filed for the latest shoptop proposal for the neighbourhood. The comments were contained in a development application now before the council in question, Woollahra, for the second mixed-use scheme for Double Bay put forward in a matter of days. GSA Planning completed the reports for both applications for the highend suburb in Sydney’s east. It said the council needed to focus on constancy and compatibility in the area. “Importantly, it should be noted that the development controls have virtually been abandoned on the southern side of Cross Street in the immediate context of the subject site which is demonstrated through the number of height and FSR non-compliant approvals,” one of the planning reports said. Proposed for the upmarket suburb are a six-storey shoptop for 8-10 Cross Street by Caradonna Capital, and a five-storey development at nearby 41-15 Knox Street. The proposals for the waterfront suburb come hot on the heels of plans to demolish the InterContinental Hotel in the suburb to make way for a $1-billion lifestyle precinct . Caradonna Capital's plans comprise five apartments each of three bedrooms atop retail and a single basement level. The plans by Woods Bagot would replace three older commercial buildings on the 549sq m site, which backs onto Knox Lane. Meanwhile, Iluka Property Investments want to demolish an older four-storey commercial building tenanted by McGrath and the The Savoy Hotel for its 615sqm site that also backs onto Knox Lane. The five-storey block with two levels of basement parking below retail and nine apartments has been designed by MHNDU. ▲ A render of the shoptop projected proposed for 34-45 Knox Street, Double Bay. GSA Planning said the Cross Street proposal was “an appropriate response to the site and its rapidly evolving context”. It said the plans ensured “compatibility with the bulk and scale of recently approved and/or constructed mixed-use developments along Cross Street, in particular the southern side of Cross Street”. “This includes eight, five and six storey developments ... [that] have effectively transformed the desired future character of Cross Street and the immediate context of the subject site and its surrounds.” ▲ GSA Planning image of Double Bay Centre which is transitioning towards five- and six-storey mixed-use developments. The report said that the majority of building envelope controls in the Double Bay DCP were now less relevant given the recent approvals. Older buildings in this part of Double Bay were largely developed around the 1960s with the InterContinental Hotel, built in 1991, an notable exception. Double Bay remains one of the most wealthy suburbs in Sydney. According to PropTrack, the median house price in the suburb across 2024 was $7.77 million while apartments were fetching an average of $1.86 million.

Planning Controls ‘Virtually Abandoned’ in Double Bay

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Planning Controls ‘Virtually Abandoned’ in Double Bay

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