Work has begun beneath Queens Wharf as preparations get underway for the safe demolition of the fire-damaged western building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Building inspections will get underway today before the work moves under the wharf later next week, pending favourable swell and wind conditions. Workers will use a small boat to carry out investigations underneath the structure before a floating pontoon is installed to enable the isolation and relocation of utilities connected to the site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
City of Newcastle\u2019s Acting Director of Corporate Services Kathleen Hyland said the upcoming demolition of the western building is a critical first step in unlocking the future potential of the precinct.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe transformation of Queens Wharf is a significant undertaking for City of Newcastle, which will deliver a new future for one of our city\u2019s most iconic waterfront precincts,\u201d Ms Hyland said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSome people would be unaware that this site and the majority of the adjacent road is built on piers above the harbour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe complex nature of the sub-structure means there is some preparatory work that needs to be completed as part of the safe and carefully managed demolition of the vacant western building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhile not all progress will be immediately visible, this work is an essential step in transforming Queens Wharf and enabling the long-term revitalisation of the site.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This services relocation work will take around two months to complete and will occur both under the wharf and inside the building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Site establishment for the demolition of the building will begin after the services work is completed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Access to the ferry and public promenade will be maintained during this period. Once demolition is complete, a range of short-term activations will be implemented to encourage the community and tourists to continue to enjoy the harbourfront site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Queens Wharf has been a popular destination since it was constructed as a Bicentennial project and officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1988. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It includes two separate buildings \u2013 the western building which has been vacant since a fire in May 2020, and the Queens Wharf Hotel, along with two car parks, a public promenade and the Transport for NSW owned ferry wharf. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Revitalisation of the precinct received strong community support, with almost 1,800 comments and suggestions received by City of Newcastle during a recent community engagement process, with 97% endorsing the overall vision for the project. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
To stay up-to-date with the latest information about Queens Wharf visit the project page<\/a> on City of Newcastle\u2019s website.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Work has begun beneath Queens Wharf as preparations get underway for the safe demolition of the fire-damaged western building. Building inspections will get underway today before the work moves under the wharf later next week, pending favourable swell and wind conditions. Workers will use a small boat to carry out investigations underneath the structure before … Continue reading “Transformation of iconic harbourfront precinct takes next step”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38967","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newcastle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38967","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38967"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38967\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38968,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38967\/revisions\/38968"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38967"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38967"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38967"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}