SUTHERLAND Shire's oldest house, 5 Evelyn Street, Sylvania, will be removed from the heritage list under a proposal by Sutherland Shire Council.
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Known as "Gunyah", the house at 5 Evelyn Street North, was built between 1870 to 1880 and was part of the original Thomas Holt Sutherland House Estate.
The council bought it for $610,000 in 2003 and planned to spend $200,000 restoring it but the estimated cost blew out to $495,000.
It's resale price was estimated at up to $1.8 million.
The move to take the house off the heritage list was among amendments made by the council last week to the draft Sutherland Shire local environmental plan 2013, which goes on public exhibition next month.
It contradicts a recommendation by the state government's independent panel reviewing the LEP and council staff that the house should remain heritage-listed.
Deputy mayor Tom Croucher told the August 5 council meeting that the building was not in a fit state to be renovated.
"The council has no funds to restore it. I ask it be removed from the heritage list," Cr Croucher said.
Cr Kevin Schreiber said the cost of restoring the building was enormous "for very little gain".
"As much as we like to keep our heritage sites, if the public knew how much we would have to spend on this site, the cost far outweighs the benefit to the community," he said.
But Cr Phil Blight moved the recommendation of the LEP review panel to keep it on the heritage list.
"This is the oldest building in Sutherland Shire. It was occupied until council bought it some years ago," he said. "Four years were wasted while council debated what was to be done. It is council mismanagement which is ruining this place, nothing else.
"At least four rooms could be restored to make it a substantial property, some 100 metres from the waterfront.
"The staff recommended we keep it and the State Heritage Council said it was state significant.
"It could be the gem of the shire and it has been left to fall part."
Cr Carmelo Pesce said he drove past the site and was ashamed to see how it had been let go by the previous council.
"Walls were smashed, there were mattresses on the floor. It was a building that had gone way beyond repair and I speak from my experience as a builder," he said.
"It would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to restore it. I would be proud if it was the way it should be, but it is not. The right thing to do is to sell it and move on."
Do you think the shire's oldest house should be removed from the heritage list?
