Tape brings plans unstuck
A few months ago, a seemingly innocuous technical report appeared on the website of the federal Environment Department that analysed views from Old Government House in Parramatta.
The report went on to describe a one-kilometre-long arc from Old Government House that established where significant views from the house would be affected. The problem is that all Parramatta's city centre is within the significant view zone. A further arc was drawn half a kilometre long to define "highly significant" impacts on the views from the good governor's front verandah. These spiderweb-like arcs have now trapped a 26-storey building in the highly significant area and the Commonwealth, under the Environmental Protection, Biodiversity and Conservation Act (EPBC), has taken over planning approval by making it a controlled action.
The technical report now becomes the planning rules, with its dictates on building shape, colours and height. Just imagine if this type of heritage tape spread like a virus through the planning system, such that views from all heritage buildings up to one kilometre away became part of planning controls.
The Urban Taskforce has battled the Parramatta example to ensure it doesn't set a precedent at various levels of government. Developments would need to consider expert technical reports that said the original occupant of a heritage building a kilometre away would have preferred round buildings or no buildings as they gazed from the front door.
The irony is that Governor Macquarie, who lived in Old Government House from 1810 to 1820, built more than 250 buildings in 10 years at a rate of one new building every two weeks. Macquarie was the father of the Australian development industry. He wanted to see Parramatta grow and would probably have been proud to see even a 90-storey building from his verandah as Parramatta City Council is proposing.
Developers have big barriers from red tape and green tape in trying to get planning approvals. We need to stop heritage tape before it spreads throughout the planning system.
Frequently Asked Questions about this Article…
In the article, 'heritage tape' describes a new kind of planning hurdle emerging from Canberra where technical heritage reports create long-range view-protection zones (or arcs) around heritage sites. These zones can effectively add new planning controls on building shape, colour and height, which everyday property investors and developers need to know about because they can affect approvals and project design.
A federal Environment Department technical report mapped one-kilometre and half-kilometre arcs from Old Government House in Parramatta to define 'significant' and 'highly significant' view areas. Those arcs placed a proposed 26-storey building inside a highly significant zone, and the Commonwealth, under the EPBC Act, took over planning approval by declaring it a controlled action.
According to the article, the Environmental Protection, Biodiversity and Conservation (EPBC) Act was used by the Commonwealth to take over planning approval for a development deemed a 'controlled action' because it impacted views defined in a federal heritage technical report.
Technical heritage reports can establish planning rules that go beyond local controls by specifying where views are 'significant' or 'highly significant.' For investors this can mean additional approval hurdles, design constraints, longer timelines and potential changes to project feasibility or value if a development falls inside those mapped zones.
The article raises that concern: if view-based heritage arcs became commonplace, they could spread through the planning system so that views from many heritage buildings up to one kilometre away become part of planning controls — potentially creating widespread new constraints for developers and investors.
The Urban Taskforce challenged the Parramatta example at various government levels to try to stop it setting a precedent. The article frames this as industry pushing back to prevent technical reports from dictating widespread planning controls based on distant heritage views.
While the article doesn’t provide specific market data, it explains that view-based planning controls can dictate building height, shape and appearance and add approval complexity. Those factors can increase development costs, delay projects, or limit what can be built — all of which can influence project returns and potentially local property values.
Investors should monitor technical heritage reports and any federal involvement under the EPBC Act for projects near heritage sites (like Old Government House in Parramatta). Keep an eye on mapped 'significant' or 'highly significant' view zones, industry responses (for example from groups like the Urban Taskforce), and any changes to planning approvals that could affect timelines, design constraints or costs.
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