Kennards Self Storage, which operates more than 80 facilities in Australia and New Zealand, is attempting to expand a facility it operates in Castle Hill, New South Wales, Australia. The 5.4-acre site currently houses several buildings, including three that are used for self-storage, an office building, and another that’s leased to an outside party. The company submitted an application to The Hills Shire Council seeking to demolish the office building and one storage building and replace them with two new five-story structures, according to the source.
Local resident Steve Barber expressed concern that Kennards’ large, orange buildings will obscure neighbors’ view. “This will not only have a huge impact on the neighboring properties, but will be visible for kilometers around,” he told the source. “Basically anyone who can see the radio mast on their site will see the proposed new building spoiling the tree-lined skyline.”
Barber noted the proposal includes moving the storage structures closer to Windsor Road as well as removing trees and shrubs that provide natural screening. “I’m trying to get people to be aware of where it’s going and that it’s going to be in a high position,” he said.
In its request to the council, Kennards explained why the area needs more storage. “The community value of self-storage is in its capacity to provide for easily accessible and flexible storage of articles by individuals and various businesses and institutions, [and] demand has increased substantially in Sydney over recent years with a seeming alignment with urban density trends,” the application states.
The proposal also states the development is in the public’s interest because Castle Hill residents are moving to more “compact and sustainable patterns of living and working.” The company noted the area will see an influx of 143,000 residents over the next 20 years. The facility is near the Norwest Business Park, where several apartment complexes are under development, the source reported.
Kennards is a family-owned business based in Sydney. It opened its first self-storage facility in 1973 in Moorebank, Australia.
