Ian Rufus of Hillcrest
Development and heritage solutions
Call us for more information
(02) 6351 2095
Our Services
176 Main Street Lithgow - shop and serviced apartments
Hoskins Church Lithgow - Conservation Management Plan
Emirates Wolgan Resort interpretation and conservation
Leura Garage Restaurant
Project list
The majority of these projects have been carried out over the past 5 years. During this period the consultancy quadrupled in size, engaged major subcontractors and collaborated with other specialist consultants, where required, to get a superlative result.
RECENT PROJECTS
Blue Mountains City Council:
The majority of these projects have been carried out over the past 5 years. During this period the consultancy quadrupled in size, engaged major subcontractors and collaborated with other specialist consultants, where required, to get a superlative result.
Gosford City Council:
Heritage assessment and development solutions of the bridges of Wisemans Ferry Road, Hawkesbury River, in association with Andrews. Neil Pty Ltd.
Emirates Wolgan Resort:
Ongoing conservation and assessment of collection, design, construction and implementation of heritage interpretation for Wolgan homestead in conjunction with Ian Kiernan.
ASSESSMENTS OF CULTURAL HERITAGE SIGNIFICANCE
Gosford City Council:
Heritage assessment and development solutions of the bridges of Wisemans Ferry Road, Hawkesbury River, in association with Andrews.Neil Pty Ltd.
Blue Mountains City Council:
“Heatherbrae”, Lawson - historic cottage for adaptive re-use & for community access.
Penrith City Council:
Memory Park refurbishment, High St, Penrith - Plan of Management.
River Road Reserve, Emu Plains - Plan of Management.
Cemetery office, Penrith General Cemetery.
Lake Macquarie Council:
Fernleigh railway track, Lake Macquarie.
Department of Commerce:
Tuggerah railway station & bus interchange site, in association with Andrews.Neil Pty Ltd.
DECC Parks Service:
Warry’s Road Bridge #1, Hill End, conservation and restoration works in conjunction with Hughes Truman Engineers.
CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT PLANS
Hoskins Family Trust:
Hoskins Memorial Church and Paul Sorensen gardens.
Peter Stutchbury architects:
“Pirramimma” Wentworth Falls (Reg Livermore house).
Sydney Catchment Authority:
Joe Deacon’s House, Yerranderie.
“Bowman’s Hill”, Wollondilly.
“Barrallier”, Wollondilly.
Warrumbungle Council:
Mendooran Mechanics Institute.
Lithgow City Council:
Eskbank House, Lithgow.
The Sisters of Mercy:
St Joseph’s Mount convent, Bathurst.
CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES
Blue Mountains City Council:
“Heatherbrae”, Lawson - historic cottage for adaptive re-use & for community access.
DECC Parks Service:
Properties at Hill End (in association with High Ground Consulting) – 30 items: cottages, gardens, orchards.
Warry’s Road Bridge #1, Hill End - conservation and restoration works in conjunction with Hughes Truman Engineers.
HERITAGE INTERPRETATION
DECC Parks Service:
Interpretation Strategy for Hill End Historic Site: Assessment of collection and design of strategy of heritage interpretation for Hill End - cottages, gardens, orchards, artists, mining remnants and other themes.
Emirates Wolgan Resort:
Assessment of collection, design, construction and implementation of heritage interpretation for Wolgan homestead in conjunction with Ian Kiernan.
HERITAGE IMPACT STATEMENTS/DEVELOPMENT APPLICATIONS
Preparation of Heritage reports, Statements of Environmental Effects and collation of other documents for lodging Development Applications with relevant authorities for assessment. These are grouped below according type of proposal.
Adaptive re-use:
Gallery / cafe Clarence – access and scenic / environmental issues.
Church - renovations and dwelling additions, Lithgow.
Dwelling to gallery/ cafe and sculpture garden, Katoomba.
Garage to cafe / gallery – extensive additions, Leura.
Interwar garage conversion into funeral home, Katoomba.
Funeral parlour into café-gallery, Katoomba.
House - Professional consulting rooms, Macquarie Ave, Lemongrove, Penrith.
General Store, redevelopment, Faulconbridge.
Cafe - major extension and alterations Katoomba.
Church and school development, Lithgow.
Major commercial infill:
Shops, The Mall, Leura.
Former hotel site – retail, commercial and residential redevelopment in Lawson.
Major refurbishment:
Linden Observatory, education centre, Linden.
“Beverley” prominent corner building, Katoomba St, Katoomba.
Video shop, Katoomba.
Rebuilding fire-damaged outbuilding, Blackheath.
Landscaped garden, nursing home, Katoomba.
Landscaped grounds - refreshment rooms, Faulconbridge.
Several guest houses, Blackheath.
The Tin Shed, store and parking area, Lithgow.
Subdivisions:
50 unit Seniors Living project and 21 lot subdivision, Mulgoa.
Old Great Western Highway, Katoomba
Guesthouse, Medlow Bath
North Millthorpe LES rural residential subdivision.
Residence, Railway Parade, Leura – into 2 lots.
Multi-unit residential:
University Western Sydney - housing in conservation area, Bathurst.
27 townhouses on constrained infill site, Lithgow.
25 unit residential development adjacent to State significance heritage item and archaeological solutions, Katoomba.
Residential
Armstrong St, Wentworth Falls - landscape refurbishment.
Cemetery:
Cemetery office and service yard, Penrith.
HERITAGE INVENTORY
Broken Hill City Council:
Parks, sportsgrounds & Willyama Common, Broken Hill.
Botanic Gardens Trust:
S170 heritage register of Farm Cove, Mt Tomah & Mt Annan Botanic Gardens, in association with International Conservation Services.
Archival recording:
Estate agent’s cottage, Littlefields Road, Mulgoa.
New Ivanhoe Hotel, Blackheath.
CIVIC DESIGN & WORKS
Landscape design projects involving civic spaces these have included assessment of existing landscape elements (vegetation, soil, heritage items, degradation and other impacts):
Wolgan Valley Resort, Emirates Airlines:
Re-creation of landscaped setting for 1830s rural dwelling employing sustainable resource management in conjunction with Ian Kiernan.
Interpretive displays for original 1832 homestead using site items.
Design of heritage landscape and garden interpretation for old Wolgan homestead.
Blue Mountains City Council:
Lilianfels Park, Katoomba - detailed layout and construction details for refurbishment of prominent open space.
Landscaping works for public indoor pool proposal on a site of remnant threatened vegetation community, Valley Heights.
Ian Kiernan, Clean up Australia director:
“Westham”: re-creation of landscaped setting for O’Connell 1830s rural dwelling employing sustainable resource management
Lachlan Shire Council:
Condobolin SRA (recreation & open space precinct) Plan of Management and landscape refurbishment, in association with Barnson Pty Ltd.
Penrith City Council:
Memory Park, refurbishment, High St, Penrith, Plan of Management.
River Road Reserve, Emu Plains, Plan of Management.
Cemetery office, Penrith General Cemetery.
Lithgow City Council:
“Greening Lithgow” project design consultant for enhancing open space uses, recreational and habitat linkages. 10 year strategy (Tidy Towns collaboration).
Department of Social Security (now Centrelink), Lithgow - new garden beds and carpark design.
Strathlone Park, Lithgow - Council-constructed playground after on-site community consultation.
Junction Park, Wallerawang - preparation of detailed layout plan for Wallerawang Tidy Towns Committee.
Eskbank House, Lithgow - heritage site analysis and landscape strategies for the Lithgow & District Historical Society as managers of the site.
Testimonials
$3M residential development in Katoomba
Aaron.Smith - HOUSING NSW. 30 November 2009 09:01
Zackary Stansall <Zackary_Stansall@coffey.com>,
Adam Adair <Adam_Adair@coffey.com>,
Craig Smith <Craig.Smith@resitech.nsw.gov.au
All,
Please see the favourable response from Blue Mountains Council below. I would like to thank Ian for taking this on, ultimately resulting in faster than expected turnaround by Council.
Kind regards,
Aaron Smith
Planning Co-ordinator for Western Sydney Regions
Program Management Office (PMO)
Housing NSW
223-239 Liverpool Road
Ashfield NSW 2131
Postal: Locked Bag 4001, Ashfield BC1800
Direct Dial: (02) 8753 9526
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(02) 8753 9526
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Major extensions to heritage Item – with council for over a year, applicants threatened with withdrawing application or refusal.
Dear Ian,
We wish to thank you for a wonderful report for [our property]. We are delighted to have such a great overview of the house history. We loved your creativity, and now, being fully convinced that it will all disappear into the sky, and completely blend with the surrounding development, we think perhaps we should have gone ahead with our original, 3-storey idea... (he, he).
You must be some sort of a magician, because you and Frank achieved such a great result, without any further amendments required, in such a short time - we received the approval last Thursday, on Friday we went to the Council to provide the builder's details, picked up the plans, had them approved by the Water Board, and in the process - which took 2 or 3 hours – experienced all the weird weather, the rain and the hail, then impenetrable fog, and then suddenly it all cleared up and ended in a sunny afternoon - much like our experience with this DA, after the initial difficulties and unforeseen delays, once it started happening it all fell into place at once.
Once the renovations are done, we'll invite you to come and see what you've contributed to, you'll be very proud.
We'll be putting the fee into your account this afternoon.
Regards,
Vesna & Damir
SHOP REFURBISHMENT, The Mall Leura
Shops 4 & 5 Hunters Arcade
16-18 Cross Street
Double Bay NSW 2028
153 The Mall
Leura NSW 2780
Blue Mountains
Paddington Artist Market (every Saturday)
Oxford St, Paddington, Sydney Australia
Dear Ian,
I have been meaning to write to you earlier and praise on your amazing report. It was a pleasure to read your fine work.
It would be much appreciated if you could send us the document containing the history of the building. Reading snippets of Mrs Leeder made me most curious as what happened to the building after her.
Regards
Elizabeth
HILL END HISTORIC SITE - INTERPRETATION STRATEGY AND PLAN.
Hello Ian,
Thank you for your efforts on the Hill End interps. Strategy and Plan. It’s a very practical and useful document, and well under way in its implementation.
Reviewing the budget report it seems as though we have some funds remaining. I have sourced cost to purchase signage hardware and graphic design for interp. Signage for; Valentines Mine, Golden Gully and the Roasting Pits.
Can you please inform me of your availability and resources to provide your costing to provide text and images for this signage. As per usual the timeframe is tight and therefore the turnaround is to be very quick.
Regards Lew
Lew Bezzina
Manager - Hill End Historic Site
Macquarie Area, Western Rivers Region
Parks & Wildlife Division
Department of Environment & Climate Change