St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Cathedral (Agia Sofia) in South Dowling Street, Paddington, was built in 1927 following the influx of Greek immigrants to Australia in the mid-to-late nineteenth century. Named after the Byzantine Saint Sophia or Holy Wisdom Church in Constantinople, the Cathedral served as a religious and social centre for the newly arriving Greek community (many from Asia Minor, Ipiros, Kastellorizo, the Peloponnese, Kythera, Macedonia, Crete and throughout Greece). This significant site is State Heritage Listed as the first purpose-built Greek Orthodox cathedral in NSW.

At almost a century old, the building was displaying extensive signs of structural distress to the facade, foundations and internal elements and was in need of remediation. Under the direction of Bill Moisidis of Bellmont Facade Engineering and approval of the New South Wales Heritage Authority, a consolidated programme for structural repairs, internal painting and facade repairs was developed to restore the Cathedral and once again open its doors to Sydney's Orthodox faithful. 

The repair works included the following:

Foundational stability
The external floor pavement was removed throughout the exterior ground forecourt, to resolve the unevenness and hazardous nature of the ground forecourt. Bricks were laid down to resolve this issue, bringing new life and strength to the site.

Concrete & Render Repairs
Complex repairs requiring extensive propping were made to specified areas experiencing concrete spalling including the entablature of the front facade, corbels, ledges, slab edges, soffits and the rooftop parapet, on all elevations of the building and other reinforced concrete surfaces of the facade. The internal concrete slab forming the roof of the entrance portico was replaced.

Facade Coating
New external grade elastomeric membrane coating was applied to all previously painted masonry elements of the façade including walls, horizontal ledges, parapets and corbels, which required being coated and detailed with fabric reinforced elastomeric waterproof membranes. Soffits and timber doors were coated with suitable systems.