Sydney's brutalist icon, Sirius, has been listed on the World Monument Fund's 2018 Watch List.

The WMF is an independent organisation that advocates for the preservation of historical sites. It has called on the NSW government to take the recommendation of its heritage experts into account, and list Sirius on the NSW Heritage Register to protect it from demolition and to preserve its social and cultural heritage.

Image. World Monument Fund.

"The Sirius Building was the product of environmental and social activism that left its mark on Sydney during the 1970s," a statement from the WMF says. 

"The Sirius Building was built in Millers Point as public housing for local community members. It has since become an iconic sight along the approach to the Sydney Harbour Bridge, with a rising, pyramidal composition of stacked concrete boxes topped by rooftop gardens."

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Sirius was designed by architect Tao Gofers for the New South Wales Housing Commission, and contains 79 units, some which have unobstructed views of the harbor and the Sydney Opera House. Though most of Sirius's residents have moved out in preparation for the government's sale of the building, two remain.

Millers Point is one of Sydney’s oldest neighborhoods. Originally a key maritime center, the suburb later contained public housing, but as Sydney has expanded Millers Point has become prime real estate, says the WMF.

In July last year, the Minister of Environment and Heritage rejected the Heritage Council's recommendation to list Sirius for its architectural and heritage significance. The Minister said heritage protection would diminish the building’s expected sale price, and place "undue financial hardship" on the government. 

In July 2017, the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales said this rationale was invalid and ordered the state government to reconsider. The government has appealed the ruling. 

Advocates for Sirius are calling for the building to be preserved as public housing, saying it can be done in a cost effective way.

Click here to read about all 25 sites on the WMF's 2018 watchlist.

Read more about Sirius:

Sirius stands as court rules against NSW government

Government puts social housing ahead of Sirius preservation

Brutalist landmark awaits heritage decision