Residents of a prime Sydney waterfront location fear their quiet suburb will be turned into a building site as the next stage of a major rail project gets under way at Lavender Bay.
The $9.6 billion line under Sydney Harbour is the next part of construction of the Sydney Metro from Chatswood to Sydenham.
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Tunnel boring is scheduled for next year, with Blues Point nominated as the northern acess point to the harbour.
About 8000 tonnes of soil will be excavated at the site, adjacent to Harry Seidler's Blues Point Tower, to create a shaft for the tunnel boring machines.
The tender for removal of the soil has yet to be awarded but a Transport for NSW spokeswoman said the waste would be put on barges or trucked away.
Local residents are concerned about the construction creating traffic chaos, disruptive noise and damaging the environment.
"We might have to sell," Blues Point Tower resident Frances Mullally said.
Ms Mullally, who has lived in the tower for six years with her son Finn, raised concerns the construction work would hinder views.
![Blues Point Tower residents Frances Mullally and son Finn have grave concerns about building work.](/web/20170114030316im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/q/m/b/v/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtplro.png/1484302534632.jpg)
Residents have also complained that the narrow Blues Point Road would become a logjam of heavy vehicles and the newly upgraded McMahons Point Wharf will be used as a dock for barges.
There are also concerns about the "temporary" 2100-square-metre building site proposed for Blues Point Reserve, directly in front of the tower and popular with tourists and locals.
![Claudia Tyson holds a friend's baby at Blues Point Reserve, which will be affected by excavation for the Sydney Metro.](/web/20170114030316im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/q/m/b/t/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtplro.png/1484302534632.jpg)
"That's our favourite spot and it would be dreadful if it was to go," Claudia Tyson said.
A local real estate agent told Fairfax Media that the construction will significantly impact on local traffic but it would be too early to say whether the tunnelling would affect property values in the area.
![A tourist takes in the view from Blues Point Reserve.](/web/20170114030316im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/q/m/b/w/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtplro.png/1484302534632.jpg)
A number of submissions about the project sent to Transport for NSW were extremely critical of the planned use of Blues Point as a dive site for the project with McMahons Point residents saying the construction "will impact the right to live in peace and enjoyment, the pedestrian safety for the elderly and children and animals in the area",
Concerns about how a proposed tunnel "ventilation and service facility" would affect the acoustics of a music and theatre centre owned by private girls' school Monte Sant' Angelo have also been raised.
The North Sydney school's director of finance and resources Glenn Ollerton said they were engaged in "ongoing discussion and in negotiation" with Transport for NSW.
Major construction sites for the Sydney Metro will be set up at either end of the tunnel in Chatswood and Marrickville and at Barangaroo.
A spokeswoman for North Sydney Council has allayed fears that the landscaped garden created by artist Wendy Whiteley in Lavender Bay would be destroyed, saying: "Wendy's Secret Garden and Wyatt Park are expected to be unaffected."
She said North Sydney Council supports the Sydney Metro project as it will "improve access to North Sydney CBD and Crows Nest village".