Community
7 November, 2025
Berrima Gaol submissions to close soon
Local residents only have a few days left to comment on the ‘adaptive re-use’ plans for Berrima Gaol.
Local residents only have a few days left to comment on the ‘adaptive re-use’ plans for Berrima Gaol.
The public exhibition period will close next Wednesday, November 12.
The proposed Berrima Hotel (also known as The Berrima Quarter) is a State Significant Development and will be determined by the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces or the Independent Planning Commission.
The proposal from Blue Sox Investments Pty Ltd includes:
· Boutique accommodation including 55 hotel rooms;
· Restaurant, bar and lounge area;
· Meeting rooms and a function space;
· Hotel administration, commercial and retail spaces;
· Guest services including spa, wellness centre and gym;
· Landscaped areas and gardens;
· 195 space carpark for guests and staff to the south of the gaol wall with provision to be used for temporary community events.
The application and associated documents are available for viewing on the NSW Planning Portal website under major projects.
Members of the public also have access to correspondence on the proposal from a range of agencies including Wingecarribee Shire Council and Heritage NSW.
As previously reported, Blue Sox purchased the site in 2022 at a cost of $7 million with plans to turn it into a “lively community hub”.
If the proposal is approved, there is expected to be another 12 months of detailed design work before construction commences.
Construction would take approximately two years with possible completion in 2029-30.
The Berrima Gaol – more recently known as the Berrima Correctional Centre – was opened in 1839.
It held maximum and minimum security prisoners – both male and female – and was used as a prisoner camp during World War 1.
The correctional centre was closed in 2020 as it was no longer fit-for-purpose and was considered surplus to Corrective Service NSW’s requirements.
The applicant’s vision for the site is to breathe new life into the former gaol, to acknowledge the layered history, celebrate the historical significance and open the grounds for local residents and visitors to experience the iconic buildings and surrounding landscaping.
The proposal has been met with a mixed response from local residents.
While some people are in favour of the proposal if the site’s historical significance is protected, others say it ignores community interests.
Proponents say continued community feedback will help shape the project moving forward.
Community group Berrima Heritage Matters has described the Blue Sox proposal as “inappropriate overdevelopment” and is urging local residents to join the campaign against it by lodging a submission or signing an ePetition.
In particular the group says the size of the block of 49 hotel rooms proposed outside the western wall “is out of scale and completely disregards the heritage of the walls, the gaol (and its curtilage) and the village”.
It says redevelopment of the site should be appropriate to Berrima and “within the walls of the gaol”.
“We reiterate that we know the gaol needs to be redeveloped but the Blue Sox proposal is the wrong one for the gaol and for Berrima,” it says.
The ePetition calls on the NSW Legislative Assembly to urge the Minister for Planning to refuse the Blue Sox application.
It had 477 signatories as of early Friday morning.
To view the proposal and to make a submission visit www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/major-projects and search for Berrima Hotel.
For more information about the applicant’s vision for the site, visit www.theberrimagaol.com.au
To sign the ePetition, go to the NSW Parliament website and follow the links to Legislative Assembly>Petitioning the Assembly>ePetitions or alternatively go to https://tinyurl.com/2dnmyqv3
Read More: Berrima, Southern Highlands