Sandstone care in Narrabeen

Narrabeen sits between the ocean and Narrabeen Lagoon, a body of water of about 2.2 square kilometres fed by Deep, Middle, Mullet, Narrabeen and Nareen creeks. Pittwater Road is the main street, and the Ocean Street bridge, built in 1925, crosses near the lagoon entrance. Walkers and cyclists use the 8.6-kilometre Narrabeen Lagoon Trail, and Berry Reserve and Jamieson Park sit on the lagoon shore. Much of the housing near Pittwater Road and Ocean Street is in strata blocks, and units made up most recent sales. Stone here is modest in scale: sandstone entry steps and low front walls on apartment buildings, flagged paths beside older cottages, and edging along gardens that slope toward the lagoon.

Narrabeen's stone sits between two kinds of water, and each leaves a different mark. Buildings closer to the beach catch salt carried inland on onshore breezes, which dries as a pale crust in the pores of sandstone steps and slowly loosens the surface grains. On the lagoon side the air is gentler but wetter, and paths under garden trees stay damp after rain, giving green algae and black mould an easy start. Sand is the third factor. It is carried up entry stairs on shoes and ground into the stone by foot traffic, which dulls the surface and wears the front edge of each tread. Apartment entries that face south often show all three problems at once.

Narrabeen is administered by Northern Beaches Council, and because the suburb sat within the former Warringah Council area, its heritage items are listed in the Warringah Local Environmental Plan 2011 rather than the Pittwater plan. Our research turned up no heritage conservation area covering Narrabeen, but individual items can be listed anywhere, so look up your address on that schedule before restoration work. For the many strata buildings, the rules are clearer. Under the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 the owners corporation maintains common property such as entry steps and front walls (section 106), and a lot owner cannot carry out work on it without authorisation (section 111). Our quote and instructions go through the strata manager or committee.

Outside peak hours, the drive from Double Bay to Narrabeen takes 40 to 50 minutes, and Pittwater Road traffic can stretch that. Street parking near the beach and the shops is limited, so for apartment work we ask the building manager about a loading space or visitor bay and plan to bring hoses and machines through a single entry. Common areas stay usable during the clean: we work one section of a stair or path at a time, put out signage and keep a dry route for residents. All rinse water is bunded and vacuumed so nothing runs into the gutters, which in this suburb drain toward the lagoon or the beach. Sealing usually follows on a second, dry day.