A bushy plot of land along the Lane Cove River is up for sale again, with North Shore conservationist groups once again petitioning the NSW Government to buy the land and expand the neighbouring national park.
What happened: The 6.17 hectare property along the Lane Cove River, known as “Naamaroo”, was last purchased in 2023 for around $15 million by The King's School. Previously, it was owned by the Uniting Church. At the time, North Shore bushcarers urged the National Parks Service to purchase the land, to no avail.
In October, the patch hit the market again, and local bushcarer groups Friends of Lane Cove National Park and STEP Inc again asking the state government to consider buying the land.
Image: Tony Butteriss
What is it: While a large amount of Naamaroo is uncleared bushland, the property also has accommodation for 184 guests, multiple halls, a commercial-grade kitchen, a swimming pool and a basketball court.
The zoning of the site — RE2 Private Recreation — does not permit the development of housing. Rather, it is reserved for community and recreational facilities, such as bowling greens, golf courses or a leagues club.
What they said: Friends of Lane Cove National Park president Tony Butteriss said members of the organisation had been working in the area since at least the 1994 Lane Cove bushfires, and that it was good quality bushland with very low weed density.
He told the Lorikeet the park was “very skinny and very long, very impacted by things around it”, that securing additions to it was important, and not unprecedented.
He pointed to the addition of Sugarloaf Point to the park, in 1996, as an example.
The campaign has been supported by Davidson MP Matt Cross, who has written to Environment Minister Penny Sharpe requesting the government consider purchasing the land and incorporating it into Lane Cove National Park.
Will that happen? National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), which manages land acquisitions like this, claims its resources are already spread thin.
A NPWS spokesperson said it “recognises community interest in seeing Naamaroo added to the national parks estate”, but the service “receives more offers of land for acquisition than can be supported within available budgets each year”.
The property was assessed by NPWS when it last went up for sale, but the service did not identify it as a priority for acquisition.
“NPWS prioritises land acquisitions within the available budget, focusing on habitats and landscapes that are underrepresented or currently not reserved, threatened species habitat and other areas of significance”.