MEDIA RELEASE - 14 FEBRUARY 2011

Valentine’s Day 2011 will be marked as the final death knell for the demolition and removal of any trace of Richie Benaud’s family home and history.

Although already having demolished Richie Benaud’s childhood family home in January 2011, Parramatta City Council considered on 14 February 2011 the proposal from the developer to construct a detached 2 storey dual occupancy development with Torrens title subdivision.

This proposal meant that not only the family home but also the backyard of where Richie Benaud developed and practiced his internationally renowned googly, topspinner and flipper and other cricket skills would no longer exist. As a former Australian captain, an international cricketer, as a member of the Australian and ICC Cricket Halls of Fame, Richie Benaud’s family home is widely regarded as a cultural heritage item.

However, 12 Parramatta City Councillors voted to accept the proposal for the 2 new detached 2 storey dual occupancy houses (with the only difference between them being whether or not to erect a plaque or not), and only 1 Councillor voting against the developer’s proposal.

“I could not support the architectural merit of this proposal given its architectural context of the immediate neighbourhood and the historic context of the previous world famous owner-family,” said Clr Chiang Lim, the only Councillor to have voted against the proposal.

“Despite the potential to work with the new owner/developer and achieve a win-win solution for himself, the neighbourhood, Australians and especially generations of cricket tragics globally, this instead has been a heartbreaking result,” sid Clr Lim.

The Benaud family sold their family home in 2003 to David Borger, a former Lord Mayor of Parramatta and the current NSW State Minister for Western Sydney. The property was recently sold to the current developer. “As a local councillor, as a Lord Mayor, as a Member of Parliament, or as a Minister of the Crown, David Borger should have initiated a heritage status application which would have enhanced the property’s value, not diminish it,” said Clr Lim.

“A plaque on the wall will never satisfy the tremendous value that is Richie Benaud. From this point onwards, pro-heritage Councillors and governments cannot now look me in the eye and say that they value and protect heritage when they have all failed to save this one,” said Clr Lim.

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For any further information, please contact Clr Chiang Lim,
Parramatta City Council on 0427 277 299 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it