They say that had been agreed as the right course of action by their private certifier advising on the building’s responsibilities.
Previously known as “Glenview Court”, the building on Illawong Avenue was originally designed by acclaimed architect Harry Seidler but was later changed by another developer.
The building is a prominent feature of the suburb’s skyline, and well known to those who use the popular coastal walk or swim at Tamarama Beach.
Glenview Court in 2016 before the redevelopment.
The redevelopment included excavation and construction of the two-level basement car park, balcony extensions and an extra storey for the penthouse apartments.
Last week Building Commissioner David Chandler told a conference that the “well-intended” owners’ corporation had got itself into a situation where it had effectively become a developer by accepting advice to build the two penthouses to pay for the upgrade.
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“Frankly the building has got issues. We’re stepping very carefully through that because we don’t want to hurt those people,” he said last week, before the orders were issued.
“Fortunately, there’s no one living in this building, so it’s not a case of moving out of the building onto the footpath. This is a building that will sometime in the future become habitable again. At the moment, it’s not ready to be habitable, so there will be a bit of grief.”
Mr Chandler said the owners had borrowed to carry out over $50 million of work.
Strata committee chairwoman Christine Smetsers, who has led the redevelopment, said the owners were working with experts and had been corresponding with the Building Commissioner’s office over the past month to resolve the “differences of opinion which have led to the order”.
“We did everything according to the best advice we were given, and we were following the legislation as it was at the time,” she said.
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