Georges River Council will request urgent authorisation for access to Glenlee at Lugarno to carry out inspections to assess the property for its Aboriginal and natural heritage.
The council will write to Environment and Heritage Minister Penny Sharpe to advise her that Glenlee has reportedly been sold, pending settlement.
The 25,400sqm waterfront site at 80 Boronia Parade, Lugarno includes a private jetty and boatshed.
Councillor Peter Mahoney submitted a Notice of Motion at the April 21 council meeting calling for a number of measures including requesting urgent authorisation for access to the property by Council officers and its appointed consultants for the purposes of carrying out any inspections.
The council will request the immediate protection of any Aboriginal objects and places located on the site in accordance with the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974.
Cr Mahoney also asked that a comprehensive conservation management plan for Glenlee should be prepared to guide future uses and development of the site to ensure the retention and conservation of its heritage value.
He also asked that further consultation be undertaken with the local Aboriginal community to better understand local social and intangible connections and that the Aboriginal objects held within the house be inspected to attempt to understand their provenance.
The council will also request Interim Heritage Order be placed over the moveable objects, relics and artifacts located in the house, out buildings, boat shed and on the site.
And the General Manager will write to the new owners of Glenlee to request access to the property to carry out any inspections deemed necessary to assess the property.
"With the property now having apparently been sold two weeks ago the community is justifiably concerned about the security of Aboriginal relics and artefacts which are on site, as well as the continuing lack of protection which would be afforded by an Interim Heritage Order," Cr Mahoney told the council.
"I look forward to the minister approving access to the site which will pave the way for the issue of a new IHO, as well as taking whatever urgent steps are necessary to safeguard the Aboriginal items on the property.
"Glenlee campaigners, as well as the wider community within and outside of the Georges River LGA eagerly await a positive response from the minister," he said.
Friends of Glenlee spokesperson Megan Argent said, "Glenlee remains predominantly untouched, holding promise of the discovery of highly significant archaeological findings.
"The presence of numerous middens, grinding grooves, and a sandstone rock bowl indicate a high potential of further artefacts existing on the site.
"There still has not been a formal Aboriginal Cultural Assessment carried out on Glenlee which would align with due diligence in detailing what exists on site.
"I believe the Secretary of Heritage NSW and NPWS staff should be able to access the site to conduct a full Aboriginal Cultural assessment and that the law preserving the known and undiscovered artefacts needs to be upheld."
Georges River Council has not formally been notified of the change in ownership of Glenlee.
As the property is listed as a heritage item in the Georges River LEP 2021, no demolition nor clearing of land can occur without prior development consent, the council said in a statement issued earlier this month.
Cr Mahoney's Notice of Motion was unanimously supported by the council.
