The Diocese of Broken Bay has appointed London-based Niall McLaughlin Architects, working alongside Sydney executive architect Hayball, to design a new Roman Catholic cathedral precinct at Waitara on Sydney’s North Shore.
The 7.7 hectare site will accommodate a cathedral and public forecourt with a café and bookshop, a pastoral centre, a parish hall, Catholic Care social services facilities, clergy and bishop residences and diocesan offices.
The precinct is intended to serve around 250,000 Catholics across 26 parishes spanning the Central Coast, North Shore and Northern Beaches.
The design draws on the Hawkesbury River landscape, proposing timber framing structures set against sandstone forms, with rooftop gardens and the preservation of an existing blue gum forest on the site as public amenity.
Formal approvals have not yet been lodged. Funding is to come from the church’s institutional capital and dedicated fundraising appeal, with the project expected to evolve over several years.
A 7.7-hectare institutional landholding in Waitara, once through approvals, will represent one of the most significant community and civic developments on Sydney’s North Shore in recent memory.
Share on socials
