SoHONSW was formed in early 2008. It grew out of a number of NSW based heritage reform groups such as Wollongong Heritage Owners [WHO] which was formed in 2002. Gradually,  individual owners of NSW heritage listed properties from outside the Wollongong region contacted WHO for support and information after being treated unlawfully, unfairly, in a biased manner and/or from sheer frustration that the rights to procedural fairness any citizen of this state normally expects was not respected when it came to the heritage listing of their property.

Overwhelmingly we are normal property owners, with our major asset being our home. Most of us do not fit the image of the ogre-like  'ruthless' developers. This caricature is the 'straw man' invariably portrayed by heritage fanatics whenever owners query the genuineness or legitimacy of a heritage listing. It is a loaded term and is used forensically by heritage fanatics to discredit ordinary property owners in the mind of the wider public. It is pathetic that much of the media in NSW adopt the heritage fanatics terms without realising the implications of how the debate is being deliberately framed to hide from the public that most people affected by heritage listings are not "developers" but rather, home owners.

 

The heritage industry, whose income is based on ever expanding heritage listings irrespective of genuineness,  use emotive terms like 'greedy developer' to try and manipulate public sympathies. SoHONSW objects to the term developer being used in this manner unless the person lodging the Development Application is a bona fide 'developer for a living' ie.. developing the property for profit and not to reside there or otherwise use it themselves.  

Heritage owners involved with us come from all over NSW - the South Coast, the southern suburbs of Sydney, innner city Sydney, western Sydney, Sydney's North Shore, Central Coast, mid North Coast, Far North Coast, the Central West and Far West. We are also increasingly receiving requests for information and assistance from affected owners in South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia, Queensland and Tasmania.

Collectively and as individuals, SoHONSW members have made numerous submissions to the the Federal government and state government inquiries into heritage. We did so in order to bring about long overdue reforms, to stop heritage malpractices rife for many decades and to end heritage listing corruption.

 

Despite receiving no funding from any heritage organisations or the government, and being subjected to hostile or condescending attitude from fanatical heritage organisations and many heritage industry consultants who make their living off the current discredited heritage system, we have been remarkably successful in arguing our case for heritage reform at both the Federal and NSW government level. There are well over 200,000 owners of heritage listed properties in Australia and over 31,000 in NSW. We will no longer stand by while heritage organisations with small memberships in comparison to the number of affcted owners in NSW receive millions in taxpayers subsidies for their heritage hobby or business specialisation, while we get nothing. We will no longer stand by while heritage fanatics train and fill the heads of Council Heritage Officers with heritage propaganda, with zero critical content and zero input from owners organisations such as SoHONSW. We will no longer stand by while fanatical pro-heritage organisations get a 'gifted seat' and gifted voting rights at every heritage law, review, policy making or decision body, while we as owners get none.