Successful warehouse conversions are a relatively new phenomenon in Sydney. The City of Sydney retains the largest concentration of historic industrial and warehouse buildings in NSW.

Apartment  9 at 15-19 Boundary Street, a former stocking factory, is for sale through Jason Boon and Geoff Cox  https://www.rwebay.com.au/5176332/

Sydney’s warehouse trend follows a New York style to adaptively re-use large spaces for residential uses.

Warehouses usually contain industrial features such as massive concrete pylons, wooden floors, very high ceilings and large-paned industrial, metal-framed period windows, all features appreciated by purchasers.

In Sydney during the interwar period (1919-1939) warehouses were built on the fringes of populated areas due to concerns about smoke and noise.

15-19 Boundary Street is a typical example. A 1949 survey map shows the large factory site at 15-19 Boundary Street was still known as Lustre Hosiery Ltd and was adjacent to Arcola Shoes, Gestetner Pty Ltd [printing and copier machines], Amalgamated Dyers Pty Ltd, Grenville Motors,  Advanx Tyes and Rubber Company Pty Ltd, all within an industrial zone.

Lustre Hosiery employed a large number of women working manufacturing machinery to make stockings, socks, pyjamas etc. The company existed from about the 1920s to about 1960.

It advertised in the 15^th October 1928 edition of The Textile Journal of Australia. A comprehensive photographic archive and history is available in the Mitchell Library of NSW.

The site contains the skeleton of its former life and has been adaptively re-designed by Allan Jack + Cottier, architects.

Large concrete pylons are evidence of the strength of the floors required to support heavy industrial machinery. Large metal-framed windows are retained and indicate the need for natural light, a safety requirement, for women labouring on the factory floor.

This large building has a fascinating story to tell and can be “read” and understood by an interested observer.

By Andrew Woodhouse

Heritage Solutions