The Australian Government: Sydney Harbour Federation Trust. Planning.

Harbour Trust: Planning

The Plan: Introduction

In September 1998, an Interim Sydney Harbour Federation Trust was established by the Commonwealth Government to manage surplus Defence lands on Sydney Harbour foreshores prior to the passage of legislation.

On announcement of the establishment of the Interim Trust, the Prime Minister, the Hon. John Howard MP, reminded Australians that Sydney Harbour is

'...probably the world's greatest harbour. It is one of the great natural beauty spots of our nation. It is the cradle of European settlement in Australia and it is one of those parts of our country which gives immense pride and immense pleasure, not only to the residents of Sydney, but also to all Australians because it wins such wide acclaim around the world.'

Prior to this it had been proposed to sell portions of the sites for redevelopment. This resulted in vigorous community opposition and as a consequence the Government decided to establish the Trust to devise a long-term plan to return the vacated land to the People of Australia, '...not just to the people of Sydney, not just to the people of the suburbs around Sydney Harbour but to all of the people of Australia.'

The Trust was established as a statutory body under the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust Act 2001 to manage the vacated lands with the objectives of maximising public access to the sites, cleaning up contaminated areas and preserving the heritage and environmental values of the sites. It was also required to develop plans for the sites within 2 years of the proclamation of the Act.

The importance of establishing the Trust and giving it the responsibility of developing a management plan, was outlined by the Prime Minister:

'...[the establishment of the Trust] will prevent any ad-hoc treatment of the return of the land to the people and it will ensure that there is maximum weight given to the desire of all Australians that the maximum advantage be derived in open space and recreational purposes in relation to the land.'

This plan aims to achieve the goals identified by the Prime Minister.

The Trust currently has the responsibility of preparing plans for lands which include the former Defence lands at Middle Head-Georges Head and Chowder Bay in Mosman; the North Head former School of Artillery; Macquarie Lightstation near South Head; Woolwich Dock and Parklands; Cockatoo and Snapper Islands; and the former Marine Biological Station at Watsons Bay. The location of these lands is shown in Figure 1.1 (PDF 163kb) Area to which the Plan Applies.

These lands have been isolated from the rest of the community by their former tenure and use as Defence facilities. It is now time to weave these lands into the life of Sydney.

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Vision

The vision of the Trust is:

To provide a lasting legacy for the people of Australia by helping to create the finest foreshore park in the world and to provide places that will greatly enrich the cultural life of the city and the nation.

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The Trust Approach to Planning

In many planning initiatives, there is an underlying intent, to redevelop or facilitate development for a pre-conceived purpose. In such circumstances, planning seeks to make the new development fit in, minimise the negative impacts, ameliorate unavoidable adverse effects and provide trade offs to compensate.

The Trust, by contrast, is seeking the most appropriate outcome, inspired by the intrinsic values of the lands, one that will be of most benefit to all Australians now and for the future.

The Trust, on behalf of the Commonwealth Government, is both the planning agency and manager of the land. The plan therefore fulfils a number of functions. It provides the basis for:

  • Carrying out conservation and rehabilitation works over the life of the Trust
  • Seeking suitable uses to occupy the buildings and places by lease
  • Management, maintenance and operation of the sites

To achieve the best outcome, the Trust will allow the sites to evolve gradually, rather than determining specific uses and actions for each building and place at this point in time. Therefore, the plan has to provide a framework for making decisions over time. It will also provide assurance about the environmental qualities of the outcomes that are expected to fulfil the Trust's objectives, as determined by the Act.

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Land to which the Plan Applies

On December 1, 2001 the Trust gave public notice in accordance with the SHFT Act of its intention to prepare a plan for the following:

Trust Land Sites
  • Cockatoo Island
  • Snapper Island
  • Macquarie Light Station
  • The former Defence lands at Georges Heights, Middle Head and
  • Chowder Bay
  • Woolwich Dock and Parklands
  • The former Marine Biological Research Station at Camp Cove
Harbour Land Sites
  • The former School of Artillery at North Head including the Royal Australian Artillery
  • National Museum
  • HMAS Penguin
  • and the site of the Australian Institute of Police Management

The boundaries of the Plan area are shown in Figure 1.1 (PDF 163kb) Area to which the Plan Applies.

The Plan applies to all of this land, although not equally. The Trust has the power to make plans for Trust Land Sites and Harbour Land. Both of these types of land are defined in the Trust's Act.

A Trust Land Site is land that is either in the ownership of the Trust or land that has been formally identified for transfer to the Trust.

Harbour Land is any land in the Sydney Harbour region irrespective of its ownership.

In the case of Trust Land Sites any Commonwealth body, including the Trust, must comply with the Trust's Plan when carrying out any activities on the land.

In the case of Harbour Land the Plan is not legally binding but it has clear strategic value. More importantly, the inclusion of Harbour Land Sites in the Trust's Plan allows the Trust to take a holistic approach to its planning.

HMAS Penguin, the Australian Institute of Police Management and the Royal Australian Artillery National Museum have been included in the Trust's Plan as Harbour Land Sites. The Plan does not develop detailed outcomes for these sites. However, the Plan's overarching objectives and policies provide guidance for any development proposals relating to them. Furthermore the Trust has included these sites when researching base line information for matters like flora and fauna and has endeavoured to integrate these sites with the planning of the Trust's land.

The former School of Artillery at North Head also falls into the category of Harbour Land. Although the Commonwealth has had "the use, occupation and enjoyment" of the land since 1910 it does not have title to it, and as such the Trust is constrained in its ability to implement the Plan. The ability of the Trust to implement the Plan will depend upon the resolution of title to the land by the Commonwealth and the State of New South Wales. However, it is considered essential to include the land at North Head in the Trust's Plan, in order to adequately achieve the intention of Parliament.

In addition to the Plan Commonwealth land and activities are subject to environmental legislation such as the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, and the Australian Heritage Commission Act 1975. This means that any future proposal on Commonwealth land would also have to be consistent with these Acts.

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How the Plan Works

The Plan has five main functions. It:

  1. Articulates the vision, core values, objectives and policies that will guide all of the Trust's activities
  2. Identifies land-use and environmental outcomes for each Trust land site
  3. Provides a framework for implementation through the development of detailed policies, site management plans and guidelines
  4. Provides a process for the assessment of actions or development
  5. Provides a framework for the future management of the Trust's land

The Plan has three main parts.

Part A - Planning Context, Objectives and Policies

Part A articulates the whole of harbour vision and core values that will guide the Trust's activities.

It describes the harbour context for the plan, the statutory matters that the SHFT Act requires it to address, the issues arising from the Trust's public consultation process and the existing plans and policies that are relevant to the plan.

Most importantly, it includes a set of overarching Objectives and Policies for matters such as water quality and public access. The Plan makes it mandatory for these Objectives and Policies to be addressed when any more detailed plans, policies, guidelines or developments are being considered on Trust Land Sites.

Part A applies equally to all of the Trust Land Sites and encapsulates the sub regional values of the sites. The overarching objectives and policies outlined in Part A will also provide guidance for development proposals relating to the Harbour Land Sites.

Part B - The Sites

Part B deals with the individual Trust Land Sites. There is a discrete section for each of the sites that describe its history, values, and interrelationship with the surrounding area, site conditions and opportunities.

Each section also spells out the proposed land-use and environmental outcomes. It identifies areas to be revegetated, buildings and places to be conserved, buildings to be removed, contaminated areas to be remediated and most importantly how public access is to be improved.

Each section identifies generic land use outcomes such as new parklands and areas suited for other activities. However, it does not specify particular uses for individual buildings. There are over four hundred existing and mostly unoccupied buildings in the Plan area and it is not possible or desirable to identify specific uses for each at this time. These will be dealt with in greater detail in the Management Plans.

As mentioned previously, the Trust is constrained in its ability to implement a plan for the Harbour Land at North Head. However, a vision and outcomes for the North Head site are included in this Part of the Plan.

Part C - Implementation

Part C applies to all of the Trust Land Sites. It deals with the mechanics of how the Trust will implement the Plan and describes the way in which the Trust will set priorities for implementation.

Details of how and when the Trust will prepare more detailed management plans, policies and guidelines, and what their role is, is outlined in Part C. This part also includes a description of how proposed actions are approved, the matters the Trust will consider when deciding whether to grant approval to an action, an outline of how the community will be involved in these processes and the way in which the Trust will make decisions about the leasing of Trust properties.

It also prescribes a process for the inclusion of new sites into the Trust's Plan and when and how the Plan will be reviewed and amended.

Refer to Figure 1.2 (PDF 101kb) Planning and Implementation Processes.

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