As our page followers know, we do not shy away from critique of developments that threaten the Jerrinja cultural landscape. It is our cultural obligation to protect Country. It is also our legislated mandate to protect and promote Jerrinja culture and heritage. When we post, we do so as a positive duty and in good faith, and we are unapologetic about adding our voice to public discussion, especially about developments that impact our unceded ancestral lands.
The proposal (DA25/1446, for those inclined to look it up) by Scots College for another boarding campus at the Reganville property on Culburra Road is likely one such development. The problem is, that despite the Development Application having been lodged in April this year, internal and external referrals occurring through May, and all documentation being available on Council’s DA tracker, we can only say “likely”. Why? Because there is no Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Assessment. Not even a due diligence assessment. Not even the bare, bare minimum.
It would be too easy for this to be a post about Scots College. This is, after all, one of the chief beneficiaries of Warren Halloran, and now of the Halloran Trust. The site of the infamous “rewilding” debacle. It could be a post about the inherent privilege and entitlement of private schools, of old money. We could, rightly, also take aim at Shoalhaven City Council (as we have done offline), for the manner in which we even came to find out about this development in the first place. There is a lot to be outraged about.
But instead, this post is directed behind the scenes. While the majority of our commentary is reserved for development proponents (and recently, one in particular), there are others in the system that both enable, and significantly benefit from, harmful developments. One company in particular has their fingerprints all over literally every development we are currently advocating against.
Allen Price is a conglomerate formed from Allen Price Scarrats and Cowman Stoddart. They sell themselves as offering surveying, town planning, civil engineering - everything proponents could wish for. Apparently, this expertise cancels out the need for pre-lodgement advice from local government prior to submitting major DAs such as this one, which may have resulted in them being told they needed to consider Aboriginal cultural heritage.
But then again, you’d think they might have known that without being told. Given their *extensive* involvement, as mentioned, in projects which have significant impacts on the Jerrinja cultural landscape, given just how many Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Assessments they themselves have commissioned, how familiar they are with the due diligence requirements under the NPW Act, given they are very involved in a project just downstream on the Crookhaven River and therefore know full well the likelihood of impacts on cultural heritage…
We could go on. But we don’t need to. The point is, Allen Price lodged this DA, they chose to include what they deemed important. We can go onto the DA tracker and see what colour powdercoating the doorframes will have on the dorms, but we can’t see what if any cultural heritage impacts there will be, because they didn’t see that as important.
Yes, we do trust that Council will make them go back and do the job properly. No, they shouldn’t have to.
Allen Price was approached for comment prior to this post, and did not even have the courtesy to respond.
This post first appeared on our Facebook page on 8th August 2025. ABC Illawarra subsequently picked up the story, with a news article being aired on 13th August. Allen Price did not respond to ABC's request for comment either.
