Landscape Heritage
“Elwatan” Garden at West Pennant Hills, now the site of Oakhill College. Vestiges of the original garden remain.
33 Parallel is nearing the end of a year long comprehensive study of the Hornsby Shire’s landscape heritage in collaboration with Extent Heritage who are also undertaking the archaeological heritage study of the Shire. The study seeks to capture all cultural and natural landscapes and attributes that have heritage significance, consolidate and collate the information from previous studies, review and assess the current landscape, update the heritage schedule and inventory sheets.
Study has required ground-truthing and photographic documentation of almost 300 key sites, gardens, parks, vegetation communities, individual trees and scenic landscapes, in order to document changes to existing listed landscapes, update inventory sheets and develop landscape management principles.
The study will also provide a practical tool for Council to manage development in relation to cultural and natural landscape heritage and inform the landscape heritage content of the subsequent LEP and DCP review.
Les Smith’s orchard at West Pennant Hills. The Hills district supplied most of the nations citrus needs and by the mid-nineteenth century, Hornsby Shire had become synonymous with the growth of citrus.