Planning and heritage in a mongrel city

On one level, the TOD program could have presented a unique opportunity to reimagine the intersection of growth and heritage. Yet despite assurances of local heritage controls still applying, significant changes are expected. This has ignited heated debate between developers and conservationists, advocates and activists, communities and councils, YIMBYs and NIMBYs, about density, property values, rights, and the very essence of our urban identity. Some members of the affected communities have embraced the change, while others are vigorously defending their local areas against new development.

In the affrays, those that support heritage conservation have been characterised as elitist and anti-development. Heritage protection has been blamed for the housing supply and affordability crisis. According to the NSW Productivity commissioner, ‘vast areas’ of metropolitan Sydney listed as heritage conservation areas and heritage items have ‘greatly reduced land for new housing in some of Sydney’s most desirable areas’ driving prices and rents up.⁶

Heritage practice has been criticised for being non-expert, non-objective and biased. Some public sentiment suggests that ‘ordinary’ or mundane historic suburbs or mid-century buildings are not ‘heritage’, and identifying such areas and items exemplifies the industry’s vested interest in creating work and pandering to councils and resident communities in hindering development.

The values attached to the historic urban landscape of the TOD areas haven’t played a part in the debates. Sydney’s train lines and stations were developed from the 1850s. It should be no surprise then that many of the TOD station areas include statutory listed HCAs and heritage items. The grounds and gardens of inner-city historic estates were subdivided by builders and real estate agents for terraces and confections in brick and stucco. The rail network expanded exponentially during the latter part of the century mirroring Sydney’s population and suburban growth. In the 20th century, waves of high rise residential flat buildings changed the city’s skyline and many Sydney suburbs.

The structural issues with housing demand and supply are not new either, and can’t be blamed on heritage listing. Chronic under supply of housing was an urgent issue post war,⁷ and since then variously, insufficient land supply, regulatory hurdles, market volatility, public policy and tax concessions have all contributed to housing shortages, affordability, and urban sprawl.

The ideological battles around low-density suburban housing and the resistance to higher density apartment or flat buildings have a long history. They are deeply engrained in the Australian Dream and public psyche and have been supported politically through public policy.

Historically then, heritage is not a barrier to development but a vital thread. Historic neighbourhoods have had to adapt to and absorb new cultures, new development, and higher densities historically, shaping Sydney’s ever evolving urban landscape. While some of the public debates about heritage springing from the public reaction to the TOD program might seem novel, they have been echoed in myriad forms at various times in Sydney’s history and highlight the enduring tensions between ‘progress’ and preservation.

It prompts me to think, it might be time for a critical re-evaluation of our approaches to planning, architecture, and heritage conservation—to ensure that we navigate today’s challenges more effectively. Devoid of historical dialectics, the reforms have been evolved without any substantive community engagement, or nuanced understandings or evidence about contemporary heritage planning and practice, let alone other planning considerations.

Yet, internationally, cities such as London, Vancouver, and Paris, offer different approaches to heritage tethered to communities and inclusive and sustainable growth. For example, research by the British Council provides an integrated approach to cultural heritage.⁸  It is recognised as a sector, and as physical spaces and intangible practices, as well as a force for people centred inclusive and sustainable growth.

London Plan making and policy is supported by a Characterisation and Growth Strategy.⁹ The strategy has at its basis: character and capacity for growth analysis; infrastructure requirements for sustainable densities; and heritage conservation and growth considerations. The approach integrates both the social and physical character to determine and optimise growth.¹⁰

In Vancouver, the city-wide land use plan to 2050 which is to guide growth and change involved four phases of public engagement, and two years of technical analysis. Heritage stewardship is a key direction, emphasising cultural diversity and inclusion, and addressing discrimination, erasure and loss.¹¹

In Paris, the city’s local planning scheme is in the final stage of being updated.¹²  The general revision commenced in 2020, with innumerable public consultation phases and technical diagnostics¹³ to meet environmental objectives and rebalance housing and employment targets. This bioclimatic plan has as one of its key themes ‘a city that enhances its existing heritage’.  To that end, they are extending listings, and applying special provisions to greening existing buildings, and upgrades to buildings from 1950, 1960s and 1970s to contribute to liveability and climate adaptation.¹⁴

According to the UN, the building sector is responsible for 37% of greenhouse gas emissions globally.¹⁵  In Paris, 70% of urban planning licenses are for adaptive reuse projects with planning provisions favouring the rehabilitation of existing buildings. Thresholds for social housing are ambitious too, with a minimum of 30% for many housing programs, and in some areas up to as much as 50%.

Back here, the recent criticisms and disagreements around heritage might make entertaining reading. Yet now heritage is a hard sell. It feels more like a luxury we can no longer afford.

On the contrary, might the vociferous debate indicate just how important heritage is? This is not just a petty squabble, heritage is a thorn, deep in the flesh. We need to embrace the arguments and accept that heritage is persistently being negotiated. It’s part of the life of the city and our communities.  It is dynamic and has evolved politically and socially within communities by each generation. Resistance, activism and counternarratives might just be the lifeblood of heritage, and have given it much more besides, helping us see the value in not only other peoples and cultures, but ordinary everyday practices and places. Together we need to insist we are at the table contributing to imagining changing the world with an enriched archive of our city’s historic and cultural legacies for generations to come.

We know history is complicated and some places have uncomfortable pasts. Keeping and interpreting such places is instructive. Our heritage is one of our best resources for helping people confront the past, particularly if we approach that past through truth. It connects us deeply to conversations about the environment, climate change and our health and wellbeing. It also connects us to profound existential questions about who we are as individuals, communities, states and nations.

Philosopher, Martin Heidegger considered being, dwelling and thinking integral to human flourishing.¹⁶  This means that heritage is not merely about conserving or resisting the demolition of historic places but nurturing and recognising quotidian meanings, connections, and a sense of belonging.

In grappling with the myriad obstacles and challenges in this mongrel city, we would do well to remember that sustainability, social equity and spatial justice will need to be at the heart of our radical hope, and heritage can play such an important role in helping to achieve this.

Heritage conservation is not a luxury, but integral to sustainable and equitable urban development. Just as our urban history shows us, heritage is a dynamic force persistently shaping our cities and communities. We should also be encouraged by the fact that connected communities, and organisations such as the National Trust and ICOMOS, and many more besides, have achieved profound and transformative outcomes for our cities and other places through action, activism and engagement.

So, in conclusion, let’s keep going, buoyed by what we have achieved in heritage conservation, and inspired by the outstanding efforts of the people and projects that have been recognised and honoured today!

Thank you.