New wharf at Fort Denison - Muddawahnyuh

National Parks and Wildlife Service is constructing a new wharf at Fort Denison - Muddawahnyuh.

Fort Denison – Muddawahnyuh is a significant colonial-era fort in Sydney Harbour. Known as 'Mattewanya' to traditional owners, a 'Pinchgut' to convicts and colonists, it was originally a rocky outcrop before the Colonial Government fortified the island from the 1840s, with later additions including the most complete Martello Tower in the world. The fort has been a tourist attraction since the 1940s and was added to Sydney Harbour National Park in 1995.

Fort Denison – Muddawahnyuh has been closed to visitors to allow for significant conservation and repair works to the Barracks building and seawalls. We are replacing the island's existing 1940s era timber wharf with a new modern and safe wharf that will comply with accessibility standards established under the Disability Discrimination Act. The new wharf will allow people with mobility issues to safely visit Fort Denison for the first time in the island's 170-year history.

This project is being delivered as part of the largest visitor infrastructure program in national park history.

Detailed planning and design for the new wharf were carried out in 2020.

The new wharf will consist of a floating pontoon linked via a gangway and fixed bridge to Fort Denison – Muddawahnyuh. Fabrication of the pontoon in Port Macquarie has been completed and was delivered to Sydney at the end of March 2022. The pontoon will undergo fit out at Rozelle Bay in April and is expected to be installed at Fort Denison in May.

Additional service upgrades and conservation works will be undertaken at Fort Denison by The Point Group, operators of Fort Denison Dining, during 2022 before reopening.

Standard work hours will be between 7 am and 6 pm Monday to Friday, and 8 am and 1 pm on Saturday.

Night works were required during the early stages of this project and may recommence in early 2022. This enables works to be completed safely and accurately when the harbour waters are calm, and vessel traffic is light. Noise monitoring stations set up in Kirribilli and Cremorne will check any over-water noise so that it does not exceed legal levels; however, noise levels are not expected to be high.

We will keep visitors and the community informed of the progress of this project through regular updates on this webpage.

In accordance with NSW environmental and planning legislation, National Parks and Wildlife Service have carried out a thorough environmental assessment of the site with input from relevant specialists.

Heritage assessments have also been carried out, which consider the state significance of Fort Denison and the location within the buffer zone of the World Heritage Listed, Sydney Opera House.

Fort Denison venue for hire, Martello Tower colonial history, Sydney Harbour National Park. Fort Denison originally named Pinchgut.

April update 2022

April 2022

  • 03 Apr 2022
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Fort Denison Wharf Option B - view from north east.

Reopening Fort Denison

November 2021

  • 23 Nov 2021
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Piling works at Fort Denison during the day.

Fort Denison - Muddawahnyuh update

September 2021

  • 18 Oct 2021
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Fort Denison with Sydney Opera House in the background

Fort Denison - Muddawahnyuh update

July 2021

  • 15 Jul 2021
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Do you have any questions?

For further information on the project, please send us your question, and the project team will provide updates via this webpage.

Fort Denison wharf upgrade

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