According to the North Head Sanctuary Masterplan adopted by the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust (SHFT) in 2024 the SHFT intends to enhance pedestrian safety and the sense of place by separating vehicles and pedestrians to enhance safety and retain and adaptively re-use heritage assets at North Fort.

Even though in their own words in the Masterplan the entry condition for vehicles is narrow off Scenic Drive and there appears to be limited scope to alter or remove heritage fabric to change the road entry condition they have brutally removed two meters of the heritage stone wall to create a pedestrian entry.

The SHFT however has gone ahead and done this with little or no consultation and failed to taking into consideration its own policy that calls for the necessity for detailed design options that must include civil and road design and review of heritage fabric tolerance for change. The design phase should examine significant public domain improvements to the zone between the existing buildings with a view to separating vehicles and improving pedestrian safety.

Let’s hope they have plans and the funds to redirect and pave the worn out trip hazard dirt track across the grass from the Bella Vista to the new opening and the carpark beyond.

Improved landscaping (including the removal of the stinging nettles from the grass) in the area would also assist in mitigating the destruction of the Heritage gate entry to North Fort.