At an Extraordinary Council Meeting on 30 June 2026, Mosman Council reviewed community feedback on its draft Masterplan and endorsed a preferred way forward. Here’s what it means.
Why is this happening?
In 2025, the NSW Government introduced its Low and Mid-Rise Housing Policy (LMR) — a state-wide, one-size-fits-all planning reform designed to boost housing supply near town centres and transport corridors. Mosman Council pushed back, arguing the LMR would land badly on the area’s infrastructure, traffic, heritage and character without accounting for local conditions.
After months of advocacy, the State agreed to let Mosman prepare its own community-led alternative — on one condition: it still has to deliver at least as much housing capacity as the LMR would have. In practical terms, that’s a floor of roughly 950,000 square metres of gross floor area that the masterplan has to accommodate, one way or another.
The consultation
Through April–May 2026, Council tested two options with the community:
- Option 1 – “Low and wide”: development spread broadly at lower heights
- Option 2 – “High and narrow”: development concentrated with taller towers
Nearly 4,000 people engaged. 85% backed proceeding with some form of masterplan, but the community was almost evenly split between the two options. What people agreed on: protect Mosman’s village feel, heritage and walkability, and concentrate growth along the transport corridor rather than into residential streets. Infrastructure and traffic were the biggest concerns raised.
The preferred option
Council has landed on a hybrid — closer to Option 1, refined with feedback from both sides:
- Heights: tallest towers (two at 25 storeys, one at 20, five at 18) concentrated at Spit Junction. Military Road/Spit Road corridor set at a consistent 12 storeys, stepping down to 4–6 storeys at the edges.
- Heritage protected: Balmoral Slopes, Mosman Bay slopes and heritage conservation areas stay excluded from uplift.
- New civic precinct: a library with youth and senior centres, underground parking, and an expanded ~2,000 sqm Village Green.
- More open space: a new 1,500 sqm space at Bridgepoint, extra pocket parks, new indoor courts, and retention of the Mosman Bowling Club.
- Better connectivity: new pedestrian links and cycle routes.
- A future DCP to manage design quality, landscaping and dwelling mix.
What’s next
The project just passed Step 4 — endorsing the preferred option. From here:
- Now–August 2026: final technical work (Urban Design, Heritage, Transport studies).
- August 2026: Council considers submitting the refined masterplan to the State for a Gateway Determination.
- Post-Gateway: a full formal public exhibition, giving the community another chance to comment before anything is locked in.
Material amendments now could push this to a September 2026 meeting instead.
How this affects you
Owners in the masterplan area: your site’s height and yield potential may differ materially from what the LMR would have allowed, depending on where you sit relative to the corridor.
Residents: growth is being directed to Spit Junction and the Military/Spit Road corridor, with lower-density and heritage areas largely protected — but infrastructure delivery remains the key watch-point.
Buyers/developers: nothing is locked in until after Gateway and formal exhibition, likely later in 2026. Sites in the corridor and near Spit Junction are the ones to watch.
Want to know what this could mean for a specific property? Get in touch.