The dispute centres on two proposed apartment towers at the entrance of Castlecrag, a suburb designed by American architect and landscape designer Walter Burley Griffin and his wife, architect Marion Mahony Griffin. The original plans by Conquest were for 13-to-15-storey buildings, which the New South Wales government deemed excessive in "height, bulk and scale" and asked the developer to revise.
Conquest responded with amended plans: 130 apartments instead of 150, and heights of 13 and 11 storeys respectively. Under planning rules, residents who previously objected have no further right to comment on the revised proposal.
Tim Donahoo, 65, secretary of the Castlecrag Progress Association and a manager of Cricket NSW, told reporters the changes make little practical difference but the community has no avenue left to protest. "The developer has changed the plans in a way that won’t make much difference at all but we don’t have the right to comment on new plans," he said. Donahoo emphasised that residents accept the need for housing and are not NIMBYs, but insisted any development in Castlecrag must respect its unique low-rise, environmentally integrated character. "It was drawn up by world-famous American architect and landscape designer Walter Burley Griffin and his architect wife Marion Mahony Griffin, and people come here from all around the globe to see it, so any development has to be appropriate."
The state government has not commented on whether the revised plans satisfy its concerns.