Camden is an emerging township located approximately 1 hour South west of Sydney’s CBD. The township has strong colonial roots and was settled in the early 1800’s. Its architecture is a mix sandstone / brick cottages and weatherboard cottages typical of this early period in Australia’s history.

Currently, the town is experiencing exponential growth due to the growing population and government initiative to release  land in the surrounding areas for residential development. For the past decade, the structure has been used in a commercial setting and started its life as a dwelling. Over years, the structure has slowly decayed and in desperate need of a face lift.

The proposed childcare looks to re purpose the existing structure and add a new wing to the rear of the property. The addition mimics the the style of the existing structure which was vital in securing development consent.

Some of the challenges we encountered  during this Development Application centered around the heritage conservation aspect of the proposal. Many of the immediate neighbors objected to the proposal stating that the childcare would diminish the structures heritage appeal . We put a solution forward carefully detailing a plan to maintain the existing streetscape appeal  while also maintaining a conservative approach to the rear extension and how it was perceived.

In the end, our expertise in the childcare field and our knowledge of the legislation coupled with the customised design outcomes proved key to gaining approval for this site.