1973: North Sydney's booming skyline

Source: Donaldson, J. 1973. "$800 million building boom". The Daily Telegraph, April 26: 9. 

Above is a newspaper article that was published in The Daily Telegraph in 1973 reporting on the skyscraper boom that was being experienced in North Sydney. It was claimed that the value of commercial properties in the North Sydney CBD had doubled in just six months to $800 million (equivalent to $8.5 billion in today's money according to the RBA Inflation Calculator). 

The photograph of the skyline was labelled with buildings either under construction or recently completed.

Recently, I decided to grab a photo of the skyline from Neutral Bay (Where the original photo was taken) as close as I could to where the original photograph was taken to provide a comparison photo to show the change over the past half-century. The "tall" buildings of 1973 are now dwarfed or even blocked while Northside Gardens (right) is currently being redeveloped into a luxury apartment complex.

Photo taken by the Author (2023).

1964: North Shore Council Restructure

 

Source: Anon. 1964. ""Impracticable," Mayor protests". The Daily Telegraph, February 4: 7.

Above is a 1964 newspaper clipping from The Daily Telegraph with a map of new North Shore council boundaries proposed by the Northside Advancement Committee to the Local Government Boundaries Commission.

Under the proposed scheme:

• Lane Cove Council would be enlarged by around 25% to encompass parts of the Willoughby Council area west of the Pacific Highway. It became a predominantly residential area.
• Mosman Council would be enlarged by around 25% to encompass part of the North Sydney Local Government Area. Like Lane Cove, it would also be a predominantly residential area.
• Willoughby and North Sydney Councils would be merged to form a new local government area focusing on commercial development.

The restructuring was simply to aid commercial development on the North Shore and provide residents north of the harbour with increased employment opportunities, avoiding the need to cross the harbour to seek employment. This was the same approach taken with Sydney City Council at various stages in its history, where the boundaries reflected commercial activity. 

Source: Anon. 1964. "Scheme to develop Nth. Shore". The Daily Telegraph, February 3: 8.

Town planning expert Dr. Ivan Boileau supported the plan as it encouraged "a twin commercial" (two cities) centres.

 

Source: Anon. 1964. "Expert sees value in N. Shore plan". The Daily Telegraph, February 5: 14.

While the proposal never came to fruition, such a proposal today would not be popular going by attempts to merge North Sydney, Mosman and Willoughby Councils into one council in 2016. 

Remember This? The Changing City Photo Feature (1971)

Below are two photos that were published in a photo feature The Changing City, in The Daily Telegraph on 13 May 1971. The photos focus on the demolition of homes for the Eastern Suburbs Railway Line. The second photo also features highrise development taking place in the area, with the Kingsgate Hotel rising in the background. Note that Kings Cross, Darlinghurst and Woolloomooloo at the time were being subject to rezoning for highrise development, and proposals for highrise buildings had also been lodged, which were set to transform the area. However, with a few exceptions, the highrise developments did not proceed, and the area was allowed to retain its current densities and streetscapes. 

1988: Early mention of a proposed North-West Rail Link.

I found an article from The Sunday Telegraph that was published in 1988 focusing on transport options for our North-Western Suburbs including Rouse Hill and Kellyville. 

At the time, Rouse Hill and Kellyville were semi-rural suburbs with planning underway to develop them into new suburbs.

Source: Pedley, S. 1988. "New rail link likely for suburban sprawl". The Sunday Telegraph, October 23: 11. 

Baulkham Hills Shire Council (Hills Shire) had met with representatives of the NSW Government and property developers to discuss transport options to serve the new estates.

Being considered was construction of "major new freeways". This would have included construction of the Castlereagh Freeway which evolved to become the M2 Motorway and part of the Western Sydney Orbital. 

Also it mentioned that "Sydney's rail system could be extended to take in the proposed development of new suburbs north-west of the city".

I highlighted could because it meant that a rail line was a possibility. However no mention of possible routes is given.

Council was prepared to approve the developments subject to a commitment that the transport projects proceed.

As a minimum, council was prepared to accept a "property integrated bus service" to serve the new estates.

It was disappointing though, that there were no possible routes suggested for the rail link because that would have had the debate going.

Related entries

1998: The first plan for a North West Sydney rail line

1960: An even earlier proposal for Transport Oriented Development at North Sydney

In 2016, I published an entry on an early scheme for Transport Oriented Development at North Sydney dated 1968. 

Recently, I came across an even earlier proposal dating from 1960. The key differences between this and the 1968 scheme is:

• The Hotel was planned to be a hostel.
• The office building (13 Blue Street) was originally planned as a 22 storey apartment tower.
• The 9 storey office building (Zurich Building) appears to be longer.

Anticipated completion was 1962.

Source: Anon. 1960. "The Changing Face of North Sydney". The Sydney Morning Herald, September 20: 37.

Related Posting

1968: Early proposal for Transport Oriented Development at North Sydney

1988: Queen Elizabeth II opens Darling Harbour

Above: The Sydney Morning Herald produced a special supplement to mark the official opening of Darling Harbour on May 4, 1988. 

On May 4, it marked 30 years since the Queen officially opened Darling Harbour on the same day in 1988. Darling Harbour was opened to the public in January, but much of the precinct was still a construction site.

Source: Darling Harbour Authority. 1988. "The A-H of Seeing The Queen" (Advertisement). The Daily Telegraph, May 4: 14. 

Since January, Harbourside opened in two stages and Exhibition Centre (demolished in 2014 for the new complex) was now ready for public use.

Source: Bilkey, M. 1988. "Frantic rush to get Darling Harbor ready". The Daily Telegraph, May 4: 13. 

The Queen arrived on the Royal Yacht Britannia before being driven to Tumablong Park where she officially declared that Darling Harbour was open.

She also visited the First State 88 exhibition at the Exhibition Centre and did a public walkabout.

Below are newspaper clippings from The Daily Telegraph (May 5, 1988) and The Daily Mirror (May 4, 1988).

Remember This? Sylvania Waters taking shape (1964)

In the last of our current Remember This? series, below is a Page 1 feature from the September 9, 1964, edition of The St George and Sutherland Shire Leader reporting on the development of the new housing estate at Sylvania Waters and Captain Cook Bridge.

 

1974: The battle to save beachfront homes at Bilgola Beach

I was motivated to do this entry after what occurred back along the beachfront at Collaroy in June. Ten homes fronting the beach were threatened with collapse after heavy swells caused by an East Coast Low eroded the beachfront.

The East Coast Low of May 25-26 1974 (known as the Sygna Storm) is regarded as the most ferocious storm to ever strike Sydney.  The city was pounded by heavy rain, strong winds (up to165km/h) and record swells of nine metres along the city's coastline. the worst damage was reported on the city's beaches, which were heavily eroded. The following fortnight saw another two East Coast Lows hit the city, which only worsened erosion.

The worst hit area was at Bilgola Beach, where homes in June 1974 were threatened with collapse which was quite similar to what happened at Collaroy this year. Below is the front page of the  June 5, 1974, edition of The Manly Daily.

A seawall was built (presently under the dunes) to protect the homes. Fortunately, they were saved as this front page clipping from The Manly Daily of June 12, 1974, shows below.

 An almost intact pool fell into the sea, just like at Collaroy earlier this year.

It is inevitable that the homes on the beachfront will be threatened again in the future as natural processes reshape the beachfront and retreat inland. There is no date for when it will happen, but luckily locals have not had to deal with the threat of losing their beachfront homes since that storm.

  

1998: Bruno Grollo & Sydney

This week, I thought I'd share a feature report on Bruno Grollo, that was written by Mark Skelsey of The Daily Telegraph in late 1998. Grollo was the head of Grollo Constructions (now Grocon).

At the time, he was in Sydney to attend the final concrete pour of their first project in Sydney - 1 Martin Place. It included the restoration of the famous GPO Building. Behind the stone facade, would rise a 25 level office and hotel complex. 1 Martin Place would open to the public less than a year later.

  

Source: Skelsey, M. 1998. "Grollo has high hopes for Sydney". The Daily Telegraph, December 11: 35

Grollo was keen to see if Sydney could end up with its own Grollo Tower, which believe it or not was at the same time he had won approval to build his 120 level, 560 metre tower in Melbourne which at the time would have been the world's tallest skyscraper.

The article mentions that Sydney's height limits (Capped at 235 metres) was due to the need to protect the views from Sydney Tower, which from what I am aware of, is not correct. From my understanding, Sydney's current height limits have stemmed from the need to allow sunlight to penetrate into city streets, public spaces and parklands.

This article from 1995 explains why:

Source: Skelsey, M. 1995. "The sky's not the limit: New city plans could reign in high-rise boom ". The Daily Telegraph Mirror, February 3: 14.

Earlier this month, Sydney City Council announced that it is proposing to increase the city's height limit from 235 metres to a maximum 310 metres., Already, there are proposals that are testing the waters for taller towers in central Sydney, with negotiations currently taking place between developers and the council. One proposal is for a 248 metre office tower at Circular Quay and a 260 metre apartment tower above the Event Cinemas complex in George Street.

1973: Sydney Harbour development

In 1973, The Daily Telegraph decided to explore some possible visions for Sydney's future based on news events of that time. For decades now, State and Commonwealth land have gradually been handed back to the public and with each handover, there is the debate of what to do.

North Head, for instance, was envisioned as being a park with tree-lined roads but there would be a lookout tower and restaurant.

The vision that could have probably been the most controversial would have been the plan to build a massive marina at Balmoral. This would also include demolition of the famous baths. Balmoral is noted for its long beach, quiet waters and picturesque setting which attracts people from far and wide, so a marina may have not been the right move for the suburb. The idea for a large marina stemmed from the concerns about access to the harbour and mooring space.

It was proposed that other sites around the harbour would also house marinas, though many of those sites have not experienced marina development in any capacity.

1968: Early proposal for Transport Oriented Development at North Sydney

North Sydney decided to embrace the skyscraper during the 1960s which fuelled a major high-rise boom. In 1968, plans to develop the airspace over North Sydney Station was unveiled. It comprised of a hotel and two office towers and was to be completed in three stages.

Source: Anonymous. 1968. "A Look At Tomorrow's North Sydney". The Sydney Morning Herald, April 8: 8. 

In the end, the towers were built. The hotel (known today as the Harbourview Hotel) became reality as conceived.

Photo was taken by the Author.

The two office towers were built, though they were to appear during the 1970's and1980's

The first office tower (middle) at 13 Blue Street was built in 1975  and is now known as the Fijitsu Centre. The tower rises 20 levels

Photo was taken by the Author.

A decade later, the 12 level office tower (right) was completed, known as Zurich Insurance House, which appears shorter from earlier plans

Photo was taken by the Author.

However, they do not share the common podium as originally planned and there is a public square outside the Zurich Insurance Building for people to soak up the city and harbour views.

NEVER BUILT SYDNEY: Bondi of the Future Exhibition (1968)

In 1968, Grace Bros at Bondi Junction held an exhibition where architecture students at the University of NSW were asked to create models of what they thought Bondi would be like in the year 2000.

Thank goodness Ben Buckler is still what it is. I prefer the older and smaller unit blocks.

Source: Anonymous. 1968. "Skyline 32 Years Ahead," The Daily Telegraph, November 19: 15.