\nThe cottage\u00a0was\u00a0originally\u00a0used\u00a0a mess hall for colonial military officers\u00a0and\u00a0sustained severe damage in\u00a0the\u00a02015\u00a0Super Storm\u00a0that caused\u00a0tens of millions of dollars to the city and black outs for up to five days.
\n
![\"Lord-Mayor-Nuatali-Nelmes-with-workers-at-Shepherds-Hill-Cottage-exterior-web.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/www.newcastle.nsw.gov.au\/getattachment\/Council\/News\/Latest-News\/Repair-of-Shepherds-Hill-Cottage-back-underway\/Lord-Mayor-Nuatali-Nelmes-with-workers-at-Shepherds-Hill-Cottage-exterior-web.jpg\" "\\"Newcastle")
\nExtensive\u00a0repairs\u00a0and restoration work\u00a0to the outside of the Cottage were\u00a0completed\u00a0last year\u00a0as part of\u00a0a $730,000 project, which\u00a0included\u00a0a new roof and plumbing, repair of wooden windows and renewal of cladding, posts and beams.
\nThe\u00a0current works\u00a0include\u00a0an internal fit out, followed by construction of new outdoor toilets, a storeroom, driveway and parking area,\u00a0which were\u00a0allocated\u00a0$285,000 in this year\u2019s\u00a0budget.
\nThe restoration project is part of City of Newcastle\u2019s record $116 million 2020\/21 capital works program and will complement\u00a0the landmark Bathers Way\u00a0coastal\u00a0pathway, which is currently under construction at\u00a0South\u00a0Newcastle Beach.
\n“With\u00a0final\u00a0approval from the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment\u00a0now secured, we\u00a0are completing\u00a0the work required to\u00a0open this incredible, historic site for public use,” Lord Mayor\u00a0Nuatali Nelmes\u00a0said.
\n\u201cA\u202fheritage architect\u00a0is\u00a0overseeing\u00a0all work on\u202fthe\u00a0182sqm\u00a0building,\u00a0which\u00a0sits on one of the most spectacular pieces of\u00a0real estate in Newcastle\u00a0at the top of King Edward Park,\u00a0offering\u00a0stunning views of the Pacific Ocean, Port Stephens and\u00a0the\u00a0Newcastle coastline through to Dudley.
\n“With its\u00a0prime position on\u00a0the\u00a0Bathers Way coastal pathway\u00a0it will become a major community asset\u00a0once restored\u00a0and I look forward to seeing\u00a0what options for use are proposed during the\u00a0expression of interest process.\u201d
\n
![\"Lord-Mayor-Nuatali-Nelmes-with-workers-at-Shepherds-Hill-Cottage-interior-web-1.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/www.newcastle.nsw.gov.au\/getattachment\/Council\/News\/Latest-News\/Repair-of-Shepherds-Hill-Cottage-back-underway\/Lord-Mayor-Nuatali-Nelmes-with-workers-at-Shepherds-Hill-Cottage-interior-web-1.jpg\" "\\"Newcastle")
\nShepherds Hill Cottage\u00a0forms part of Shepherds Hill Defence Group site, which\u00a0sits on Crown Land managed by the City.
\nA Conservation Management Plan (CMP) for the site was endorsed by the NSW Heritage Council midway through 2019 after a revised CMP was placed on public exhibition in late 2018.
\nOnce the restoration works are completed early next year, City of Newcastle will run an\u00a0EOI process for a prospective tenant.\u202fThe successful tenderer will need to comply with the Shepherds Hill CMP and obtain Heritage NSW\u00a0and development application\u00a0approval of their proposal.
\nThe cottage, battery observation post and gun emplacement were originally designed to defend Newcastle’s burgeoning coal port after the 1878 Royal Commission into Colonial Defences.
\nMore recently,\u00a0Shepherd\u2019s Hill Cottage was being\u00a0partially\u00a0utilised\u00a0as the headquarters for Marine Rescue\u00a0Newcastle\u00a0prior to\u00a0the building being damaged in 2015.\u00a0The organisation\u00a0has been without a permanent home since that time but\u00a0will\u00a0now\u00a0be moving\u00a0to a Crown Land site managed by City of Newcastle on the Stockton foreshore.\u00a0Marine Rescue\u00a0has accepted\u00a0a 21-year peppercorn lease for the\u00a0parcel of land,\u00a0which will allow the group to construct\u00a0a\u00a0new\u00a0purpose-built\u00a0command post.
\nMarine Rescue\u2019s\u00a0communications tower, which is still on\u00a0the\u00a0Shepherd\u2019s Hill\u00a0site, is expected to be removed\u00a0by the end of October.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"