The Chief Secretary's Building (originally and still commonly known as the Colonial Secretary's Building) is a heritage-listed state government administration building of the Victorian Free Classical architectural style located at 121 Macquarie Street, 65 Bridge Street, and at 44–50 Phillip Street in the Sydney central business district of New South Wales, Australia. The ornate five-storey public building was designed by Colonial Architect James Barnet and built in two stages, the first stages being levels one to four completed between 1873 and 1881, with Walter Liberty Vernon completing the second stage between 1894 and 1896 when the mansard at level five and the dome were added.
The sandstone building was the seat of colonial administration, has been used continuously by the Government of New South Wales, and even today holds the office of the Governor of New South Wales. Its main occupant is the Industrial Relations Commission of New South Wales; several of the larger rooms are now courtrooms.
History In 1856 New South Wales was a granted responsible government. This important step in self government brought with it a number of new portfolios requiring new office space as well as a greater need for the departmental head and his staff to be located in approximately the same space. At this time the several departments were located in a number of buildings some hired and some still housed in the domestic buildings constructed in the earliest days of the colony.
During the later years of the nineteenth century, while some former responsibilities were removed from the authority of the Colonial Secretary, it remained a pre-eminently prestigious and important political position. The Premier and the Colonial Secretary were usually one or, in coalition governments where the Premier chose another portfolio, such as Lands, the post of Colonial Secretary usually was held by the head of the coalition party.
It was against this high-profile role of the Colonial Secretary as well as the expansion of that and several other departments and the escalating costs of rental properties such as those in Phillip and Young Streets and that the construction proposal and plans were formed for the new building for the Chief Secretary. The site of the building was highly symbolic of the elevation in status of the office. Further up Bridge Street, it formed a significant element of the most important political and administrative offices. In close proximity to Government House, the gates to that residence being across the road, it was in close to Parliament House and overlooked the Treasury Building. Its position halfway between Parliament and Government House, was both practical and illustrative of the respective relationships of those offices.
From 1860s to 1890s
By 1869 sufficient finance had been raised to construct a new and worthy building for the office of the Chief Secretary of the colony as well as providing offices for the Works Department. James Barnet, the Colonial Architect, designed an impressive multi-storied building to occupy the six lots in an L-shaped portion of the block fronting bridge Street in the period. The drawings were prepared in the period of July 1869 to mid 1870. For this work Barnet was paid nineteen pounds and ten shillings.
The first tender for the work, excavation and masonry, was let in 1873 to the McCredie Brothers. However, by mid 1874, only a little over had been spent out of an estimated expenditure. By mid-1875 over had been spent on the new building. By this time tenders had been let for marble and timber floors. By mid 1876 the expenditure on the building had risen to and by mid-1877 to . By 1878 it was obvious that the building was going to considerably exceed the original estimates for its construction costs. By June of that year over had been spent, above the original estimate. This figure did not encompass the thirty-five thousand pounds it was estimated would be required for the finishing trades.
The last works on the buildings included the commissioning and erection of statues by Giovanni Fontana and the completion of the finishing trades. In 1880 it was reported that work on the Colonial Secretary's Building was completed at a final cost of It was noted, though, that the finishing trades were still ongoing at that time, having spent over 42,620 pounds upon them. These works were completed the following year. As early as 1882 alterations, their extant and nature unknown, were carried out in the building to a cost of . It is clear that, as the various officials and their departments took possession of their new quarters, a period of settling in and adjustment was required for the building. More alterations were required in 1883 at a cost of and in 1884 for . From 1885 to 1888 repairs of apparently a minor nature were required.
The modifications made to the building in the first years of its existence suggest that the original plan was not comprehensive in addressing the needs of the various departments that were to occupy it. By the end of the 1880s space within the building was at a premium. Several of the occupants complained to the effect that, despite the construction of the building, they were in little better situation than had been the case prior to its existence. The Commissioner for Roads complained that he was inconvenience having so many officers so far away. The Engineer-in-Chief for the Harbours and River complained that he had insufficient office accommodation and the Acting Engineer-in-Chief for Railways complained that he lost time because his staff were so widely distributed in various offices. The only option was to extend the ten-year-old building.
In November 1889 the Acting Engineer-in-Chief prepared a sketch of a proposed extension to the existing Chief Secretary's Building. It encompassed a building of six storeys fronting Phillip Street to with a depth of and a lane at the back. The building was designed to house the Railway Commissioners and the clerical staff of the public Works Department on the ground and first floors. The principal consideration for the new building was economy. The Acting Engineer-in-Chief pointed out that the work was to be done quickly, the tenders let as soon as possible and the project to be kept under . By February 1890 an estimate of just over had been prepared for the work. Tenders were called in March of the same year for the resumption of the terrace houses and yards that occupied the site of the proposed extension to the building. The tender for what became known as the first contract, the six storey building, was let in April 1890. By mid-1890 the expenditure on the new building amounted to while alterations and repairs in the existing structure came to over . In July 1890, while work continued on the first extension to the Chief Secretary's Building, approval was given for the construction of an extension to this only partially constructed building.
From 1890s to 1990s This extension was considered necessary largely because of the needs of the Public Works Department. The new building generally was designed to house that department and would free the Board room of the office which was then occupied by the Public Works Committee. The extensions comprised a new range that was to connect to the southern line of the new building having a frontage of to Phillip Street and an eastern extension to the lane of . The cost of this new work was estimated to be and it involved the resumption and demolition of more terraces along Phillip Street. The tender for the second contract was let in September 1890. A further modification to the work was the decision to link the new (and extended) building to the existing building by means of a more substantial link than the originally designed iron footbridges. Eventually it would be a five-storey addition. By mid-1891 the land required to be resumed for the new work had been bought at a cost of and expenditure on the additions under construction amounted to . As well, over had been spent on alterations and repairs in the existing building. Despite this massive outlay consideration was given to yet a third extension to the south of the new wing or, more precisely, what measures could be taken to avoid this additional project. This was investigated by Vernon because even with the additional work the Public Works Department could not be accommodated in the building.
To avoid a costly solution, Vernon proposed raising the height of the existing building to create virtually two new floors. Vernon was concerned that the vertical addition to the building would imbalance it in relation to the Bridge Street elevation. Vernon estimated would cost approximately although savings were to be made by substituting a less expensive timber and slate roof for the concrete dome roof than in the contract. Fallick and Murgatroyd were contracted to carry out the new stage of work. By mid-1892 had been spent on the various works which were finally completed in 1893 for a total cost of . Fire had always been a constant worry and therefore an extensive Mansard roof and central dome was added providing additional accommodation and adding to the architectural completeness of the building.
For the few final years of the nineteenth century and for most of the following twentieth century work within the Chief Secretary's Building was confined to altering and adding as the need arose. There were no planned programs of extension or renovation. The interiors of the building began to reflect this ad hoc approach to office accommodation which in turn illustrate the changing roles of the various departments housed within the building. Minor alterations, particularly the provision of ladies lavatories, demonstrate a changing pattern with the workforce that serviced the departments. The period of the 1920s was the most active in terms of work carried out on the building. Plans were prepared for a private stair for the Minister for Health in 1920, for a roof over the bridge connecting the old and new buildings in 1924, extensions to the ladies room on the ground floor in 1927 as well as several other minor conversions and alterations. After World War II improvements were made to the building to bring it in line with modern standards and requirements. The construction of the State Office Block in the 1960s and the subsequent relocation of the Public Works Departments there allowed the Chief Secretary's Building to be renovated and re-used for several new purposes.
Through the later 1960s and to 1971 the Chief Secretary's Building underwent major changes to accommodate new occupants principally the Divorce Courts, including accommodation for judges, the Opera House Trust, the Commissioner for Western Lands and the Valuer General's Department. By the 1980s the value of the building had come to be appreciated as a significant item of the city's environmental and historic landscape. To this end, as a bicentennial project, a million dollar project was set in motion to restore the stonework of the building. This work was completed in 1990 at a cost of approximately A$2 million.Jackson Teece Chesterman Willis 1994:26
Description
In its existing configuration the Chief Secretary's Building consists of two major directly linked components. At Macquarie, Bridge and Phillip Streets – a four-storey sandstone building, with a copper and slate roof mansard and a copper clad dome. At Phillip Street – a five-storey sandstone building with copper roofed mansards.