Double green light for Conquest’s Castlecrag precinct as Heritage Council and Transport for NSW sign off on environmental impact statement
Conquest’s vision for a landmark mixed-use precinct at 100 Edinburgh Road, Castlecrag, has secured simultaneous planning breakthroughs from the Heritage Council of NSW and Transport for NSW (TfNSW).
These clear technical endorsements from both statutory agencies confirm the project has successfully passed its key Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) hurdles, proving the project's merit despite a highly vocal community campaign.
In formal advice delivered to the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) under State Significant Development application SSD-90134958, the state’s peak planning bodies thoroughly reviewed the site’s design and construction parameters. Their signoffs effectively clear the path for the 13-storey mixed-use precinct, which will bring 150 new homes and a vibrant ground-floor retail hub to the gateway of Castlecrag.
The state-level clearances address two pillars of the project's viability:
• Heritage Clearance (Heritage Council of NSW): Following comprehensive architectural reviews, the Council officially determined that the proposal will have little to no impact on State Heritage Register listed landmarks and respects the broader topography of the local Griffin Conservation Area (GCA).
• Infrastructure and Network Clearance (Transport for NSW): TfNSW completed its formal assessment of the network footprint, outlining a series of standard, actionable conditions of consent to manage asset interfaces, traffic flow, and excavation adjacent to Eastern Valley Way.
The 100 Edinburgh Road landholding, where demolition has been successfully completed under previous approvals from Willoughby Council, has been the subject of an intense local community opposition campaign. Activists consistently argued that the proposed height and density would erode the local heritage character and compromise adjacent arterial road infrastructure.
Conquest has firmly maintained throughout the process that its architectural design, developed by the world-class firm FJC Studio, works to enhance the area's urban fabric rather than detract from it, a position now thoroughly validated by the state's independent statutory authorities.
Conquest Head of Placemaking Benji Williams says the dual agency approval demonstrates the technical soundness of the planning submission for 100 Edinburgh Road.
"Passing this rigorous EIS phase proves that when world-class design is paired with diligent planning, you can successfully integrate necessary housing density with historical conservation. The standard management conditions provided by Transport for NSW give us a clear, collaborative roadmap to execute our construction program seamlessly without disrupting the local network."
Conquest will now progress through the final stages of the DPHI assessment framework, ready to deliver a meticulously planned, sustainable community hub that sets a new standard for sensitive suburban revitalisation.
