Planning Proposal Heritage Statement Planning
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PLANNING PROPOSAL HERITAGE STATEMENT PLANNING PROPOSAL 184-188 GEORGE STREET PARRAMATTA NSW 2150 SEPTEMBER 2015 NBRS & PARTNERS Pty Ltd Level 3, 4 Glen Street Milsons Point NSW 2061 Australia Telephone +61 2 9922 2344 - Facsimile +61 2 9922 1308 ABN: 16 002 247 565 Nominated Architects Geoffrey Deane: Reg No.3766; Garry Hoddinett: Reg No 5286; Andrew Duffin: Reg No 5602 This report has been prepared under the guidance of the Expert Witness Code of Conduct in the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules and the provisions relating to expert evidence This document remains the property of NBRS & PARTNERS Pty Ltd. The document may only be used for the purposes for which it was produced. Unauthorised use of the document in any form whatsoever is prohibited. Issued: SEPTEMBER 2015 IDENTIFICATION OF HERITAGE ISSUES PLANNING PROPOSAL FOR 184-188 GEORGE STREET, PARRAMATTA 1.0 INTRODUCTION This Report has been prepared to identify relevant heritage issues to accompany a Planning Proposal Application for a site at 184 – 188 George Street Parramatta. The site is located within the Parramatta City Centre and adjoins a State Heritage Item, ‘Harrisford’ and the Parramatta River Parkland. The report based on an inspection of the site and an analysis of the context identifies heritage constraints that would affect proposed development of the site and any mitigation that might be adopted to limit adverse impacts. The Planning Proposal is to amend Parramatta City Centre LEP 2007 provisions for the Height of Buildings and the allowances for Floor Space Ratio on the subject site. A development consent for the site (DA769/2011) has previously been granted in 2013 by Council and preliminary discussions with the Council’s urban design specialist has indicated that an ‘angular setback’ to the adjoining heritage item would be supported. This report should be read in conjunction with the Planning Proposal submission prepared by Planning Ingenuity Pty Ltd and the Urban design analysis prepared by HBO+EMTB. 1.1 Authorship This report was prepared by Robert Staas, Associate Director using research and a history researched and written by Léonie Masson, Historian of NBRS+PARTNERS. Previous heritage reports for the site have been undertaken and this report relies on some of the information provided in these reports. 1.2 Site Location The site is located on the northern side of George Street Parramatta, east of its intersection with Charles Street. The site extends down to the Parramatta River Park at the rear on the north and adjoins small scaled residential development on the east. The site is currently vacant and substantially cleared of vegetation. The site comprises three lots being identified as: Lot 11 in DP 1115358 Lot 20 in DP 1115360 Lot 30 in DP 1115365 The location is shown in Figure 1 below. PLANNING PROPOSAL: 184-188 George Street, Parramatta P:\15\15334\06_Reports\150814_Planning Proposal.docx 3 Figure 1 — Aerial view of the subject site showing the relationship with 'Harrisford' and the Parramatta River Park. 1.3 Heritage Listings The subject site is not heritage listed in the Parramatta City Centre Local Environmental Plan 2007 but is located adjacent to a State listed heritage item known as ‘Harrisford’. ‘Harrisford’ (and potential archaeological site) is identified on the State Heritage Register. A Colonial Georgian style former residence and one-time home of the King’s School it stands immediately adjacent to the site to the west along George Street at number 182. Harrisford is also listed as a heritage item in Schedule 5 of the Parramatta City Centre Local Environment Plan 2011 (Item 41 in Schedule 5) The State Heritage Inventory listing for Harrisford states the cultural significance of the place to be as follows: “Harrisford, which is located between George Street and the river, is one of the oldest houses remaining in the township of Parramatta. It is an important element at the head of the river, representing the early years of settlement. Site possesses potential to contribute to an understanding early of urban development in Parramatta.” Figure 2 - Harrisford George Street Parramatta PLANNING PROPOSAL: 184-188 George Street, Parramatta P:\15\15334\06_Reports\150814_Planning Proposal.docx 4 Figure 3 — Extract from Parramatta City Centre Local Environmental Plan 2007 showing the site and the adjacent heritage item Harrisford circled. Figure 4 — Extract from Parramatta Local Environmental Plan 2011 showing the subject site, circled, and heritage items located to the east and north of the City Centre area. PLANNING PROPOSAL: 184-188 George Street, Parramatta P:\15\15334\06_Reports\150814_Planning Proposal.docx 5 2.0 DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE The following history is reproduced in its entirety from Parramatta Archaeological Management Unit 3034. This area was part of the early settlement at Rose Hill. Initial development of the township of Parramatta centred on George Street (formerly High Street) and Macquarie Street (formerly South Street). Rather than permanent alienation by land grant, most land in the town of Parramatta was distributed by short-term leases until the mid-nineteenth century. Prior to 1809, when the first freehold grants of town allotments were made, leases that were granted to individuals at Parramatta were mainly on large acreages surrounding the Government town centre. While there were some free settlers in the town, it was prisoners' huts that dominated the town allotments. The first permanent dwellings constructed in the new town were concentrated along the principal thoroughfares of George, Macquarie and Church Streets. Allotments in George and Macquarie Streets were the site of a number of convict huts that were later occupied by free persons, including allotments within the subject area. Each of the convict huts was accompanied by a garden plot. From the earliest settlement, both the convicts and the garrison had been encouraged to plant gardens to relieve the pressure on the Government stores and to provide fresh produce to the town. The width of George Street was originally 205ft (62.5m) but is now 20m wide, so the original street frontage is behind the present frontage. The 1804 Plan of the Township of Parramatta shows the early configuration of this area. Phillip and Charles Streets had not been laid out by this time. The subject area included three allotments fronting George Street, each with a building along this frontage, and two allotments fronting the river (the southernmost of these allotments had a structure adjacent to the western boundary of the allotment). In 1811, the newly arrived Governor Macquarie laid out the town of Parramatta in a grid pattern, extending Pitt and Macquarie Streets and creating Phillip Street. Between 1810-14 Smith Street was also created and aligned. Part of Macquarie's plan for Parramatta was the removal of all convicts into a barracks that was completed in 1821. This opened up the town to increased settlement, as the former huts were vacated. Macquarie also implemented a system whereby, to obtain a town lease, the applicant needed to provide building plans prior to the approval of the lease. While the civilian population continued to rise from 1810, investment was hindered by this leasehold system. The 1822 Plan of the Town of Parramatta shows a reconfiguration of the allotment boundaries. Charles and Phillip Streets had been laid out by this time and there were a number of structures along both frontages by this time. During the administration of Governor Macquarie, four-fifths of the houses in Parramatta were held by permissive occupancy alone. The lack of legal status of land occupancy caused a great deal of uncertainty for occupants. Between 1822-3, Parramatta was surveyed and owners and occupiers of land were identified. Of 390 allotments, only ten were held by lease at this time. By 1833, a Commission was established to convert leasehold to grants based on the presence of a structure on the allotment worth at least 1000 pounds. PLANNING PROPOSAL: 184-188 George Street, Parramatta P:\15\15334\06_Reports\150814_Planning Proposal.docx 6 The 1844 Plan of the Town of Parramatta shows a number of larger structures along George Street by this time (especially at the corner of George and Charles Streets, granted to W Byrnes), as well as a few buildings along Charles Street. The allotment boundaries had not changed considerably since 1822 (but were much larger than the current configuration). There were two major floods in Parramatta, in 1864 and 1890. In 1890, the water rose to 8m south of the river, collecting houses on the way. The river bank collapsed in this area and was later reclaimed. The allotment boundaries within the subject land had not changed considerably by 1871. By 1895, there were a number of structures fronting George Street and a few fronting Charles Street. Development within the subject area by this time, however, was not nearly as intensive as within the blocks closer to Church Street. The 1895 Detail Survey Plan for this area (Sheet 10) shows a number of outbuildings associated with the main structures, including sheds and cess pits. These outbuildings tended to be located towards the rear of the allotments or along the boundary lines. Many of the allotments extended to the edge of the river, though there was little development along the waterfront. The area that is currently adjacent to the ferry wharf remained largely undeveloped by this time. By 1951, there appears to have been little further development in this area. Part of the foreshore reserve appears to have been cultivated as garden plots by this time. Since 1951, the subject area has been further developed as a commercial area and the ferry wharf was constructed near the corner of Charles and Phillip Streets. 'Harrisford' is located at 182 George Street. This two-storey brick house was built between 1823 and 1829 for Reverend William Walker.