A plan to rely completely on manual labour to build a four-storey mansion complete with a sauna and a pool in an elite Sydney suburb has locals up in arms.
The undeveloped harbourfront site in Mosman, on the exclusive lower north shore, is inaccessible by trucks, cranes and other crucial construction vehicles.
This means all building materials will have to be carried by tradesmen to the steeply sloping site along Lower Boyle Street and the Lower Spofforth Walk.
Residents have expressed serious concerns over the risks involved in carrying building materials along a narrow footpath on public land.
Mosman local Peter Ritchie said there was a reason why nobody had attempted to build on the prime piece of real estate for over a century.
‘The idea that building materials for a four-storey structure can be delivered to this site by hand is ludicrous in the extreme,’ he told the Mosman Daily.
‘This is an extremely difficult site to access and build upon due to its steepness and lack of direct street access. ‘
‘This is why it has not been attempted in over 125 years.’
Resident Michael Bracher is also against the development of the prime plot.
‘(It’s) not appropriate for the site particularly given that all materials are to be carried in and cause access disruptions to residents for an extended period of time,’ he told Mosman Daily.
Locals are concerned the construction will encroach on the iconic Cremorne Point walk, which winds through gardens and native bushland.
Plans before Mosman Council reveal the four-storey home will be constructed from pre-fabricated material and feature a media room, a pool, a sauna and a bar.
The council’s planning department has raised concerns over the requirement for all of the building materials to be brought in manually over public land.
It has also flagged the height limit of the proposed four-storey home and a proposal to cut down 13 trees – some of which are up to 9metres tall.
A planning panel refused an application for the development at a Mosman Council meeting on Wednesday morning.
A council spokesperson told Daily Mail : ‘A development application for 1A Lower Spofforth Walk was considered by the independent Mosman Local Planning Panel on Wednesday 18 September 2024.
‘Documents, including the agenda and minutes, as well as an audio recording of the meeting, are available on the Council’s website.
‘As outlined in the meeting minutes, the Panel refused the application.’
The plot was last sold $1.4million in 2015 and is owned by Sanhui Jia.
The listing described the block of land as ‘incredibly rare’ and ‘one of the area’s last remaining development opportunities’.