An open-air plaza beside North Sydney Station has become a focus of community concerns over plans to convert the adjoining commercial building at 5 Blue Street into 148 dwellings.
Zurich Australian Insurance Properties is seeking approval for a 14-storey mixed-use development containing 62 apartments, 86 affordable co-living units and ground-floor retail. The proposal would reuse parts of the existing building and refurbish Blue Street Plaza, although changes to the surrounding public space and planning controls have drawn scrutiny.
The Plaza Residents Want Protected
McMahons Point resident Shaun Sullivan expressed general support for converting the commercial building but questioned plans for new residential floors to extend over part of the open-air plaza. Sullivan raised concerns that the proposed building overhang could reduce the amenity and harbour outlook available from the public space, even if the plaza remained accessible.
Lavender Bay resident Katharine Loewenthal also supported adapting the existing building rather than replacing it with a substantially taller development. However, Loewenthal questioned proposed changes to planning height controls affecting Blue Street Plaza, arguing that the need for additional development potential over an area intended to remain publicly accessible had not been adequately explained.
The architectural plans include landscaped areas, seating, pedestrian shelters and potential public artwork around the plaza. Ground-floor retail would face the open space, with pedestrian connections linking Blue Street, Greenwood Plaza and North Sydney Station.
Concerns about the broader neighbourhood have also featured in submissions. Lavender Bay resident Julia Gibson questioned whether surrounding roads, parking areas, schools and hospitals could accommodate further residential development. Gibson also raised concerns about the combined effects of several proposed developments near the suburb’s low-rise heritage conservation area.
Support For Housing, With Conditions
Not all submissions opposed the redevelopment. Lavender Bay resident Neil Grummitt supported converting the existing commercial building, citing its proximity to public transport and the inclusion of affordable accommodation. Grummitt nevertheless questioned the proposed height controls over the plaza and sought clarification about parking allocated to the co-living units.
Nearby View Sydney hotel, at 17 Blue Street, also indicated it did not oppose the project in principle. Its submission requested safeguards to limit construction noise, vibration and dust, while protecting vehicle access and hotel operations during building works. The accommodation proposed by Zurich would include 12 one-bedroom apartments, 19 two-bedroom apartments, 29 three-bedroom apartments and two larger penthouses.
Affordable co-living units would occupy Levels 1 to 3, with the development documents proposing permanent management as affordable housing by a community housing provider. Individual units would contain private bathrooms and kitchenettes, supported by shared living, kitchen and study facilities.
Basement parking and vehicle servicing would be accessed from the rear of the building through Blues Point Road, separating those movements from the main pedestrian frontage. The application was publicly exhibited between 16 July and 13 August 2026. North Sydney Council is also recorded as an objector on the NSW Planning Portal. The proposed redevelopment, listed as State Significant Development application SSD-86270706, remains in the response to submissions stage and has not been approved.
Published 10-October-2026
