Last month, the demolition of a house in Sydney with ties to Australian music history sparked controversy. The local council stated that the demolition process was subject to a planning regulation that bypassed its approval. The house, located at 4 Burleigh Street in Burwood, had witnessed the birth of two of the country's most famous rock bands over the past six decades.
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02-04, 2025The Young family moved into the house in the inner-west in 1965 and lived there for 12 years. During this time, George Young achieved success with the newly formed band The Easybeats, while Malcolm and Angus formed AC/DC in the house in 1973. Music writer Glenn A. Baker told ABC News that the importance of the house cannot be underestimated, describing it as a "sacred" place that attracted many famous artists and crowds like "locusts."
However, as the Burwood Council shifted responsibility for the demolition to the state government system, angry fans questioned why the house had not been given more protection. "What's happened is really bad, it's one of the most tragic things you've ever heard," Baker said. "Some people are really, really angry... I really think it's a disgrace." He believes that what happened in Burwood should be a wake-up call, and the greed and desire that led to the house's destruction should not have occurred.
Developer Burwood Square Pty Ltd purchased 4 Burleigh Street and its neighboring property in 2023, with plans to transform it into a $28.75 million residential development. A spokesperson for Burwood Council stated that the council was not involved in or approved the demolition process. They stated, "Under state government planning controls, the owner engaged a private certifier who was authorized to issue a complying development certificate, requiring only two days’ notice to council before demolition works could commence." The spokesperson also said that the council remains committed to finding ways to commemorate the area’s rich musical history, including discussions with the owner of 4 Burleigh Street.
Professor Nicole Gurran, a planning academic at the University of Sydney, said that complying development is a streamlined, "low-impact" approval pathway introduced 25 years ago for developments that meet certain requirements. She said the system helped address concerns about the speed and efficiency of planning. "There is no particular decision-making process other than proving that something complies with the rules, which is why the state government is happy to allow private certifiers to essentially approve it," she said. Phyllis Miller, President of Local Government NSW, said the use of private certifiers to approve complying developments is "an area of ongoing concern for councils and communities."
Both the planning and heritage departments told ABC News that demolition can only proceed as complying development if all relevant criteria are met, including not being on a heritage item or land subject to an interim heritage order (IHO). The departments stated that they work closely to ensure heritage is considered sensitively and appropriately within the government's plans to meet housing targets. Professor Gurran said that the overall development at the Burwood site would have to go through “normal checks and balances” after the demolition, assessed by professional planners and relevant decision-making bodies.
The AC/DC house was listed on the National Trust Register in 2013, a community organization without legal power, but which can provide independent early warnings for places under threat of demolition. The NSW Government said that the house was never nominated for heritage protection. They stated that neither the heritage minister Penny Sharpe nor state government agencies were asked to consider an interim heritage order before the house was demolished, and that the local council could also have considered granting one. A decade ago, independent heritage experts City Plan Heritage were proactively engaged by Burwood Council to assess the property, but the company did not recommend the site be heritage listed because it was deemed “not significant enough historically.”
Professor Gurran said the case highlights that “heritage listing is a subjective process, and also a confusing process.” “In the context of us all talking about it being too hard to build new houses, anything like heritage listing is seen as a constraint on development.” Councillor Miller said while councils have various roles and responsibilities when it comes to local heritage, “the strongest protections and recognition come from other levels of government.” She said, "The main purpose of heritage listing is not to stop development, but to ensure that the planning system has a process to consider how important heritage can be respected while appropriately accommodating development."
