[2] The complex was built to rehouse public tenants who had been displaced after a controversial redevelopment of the historic Rocks suburb during the 1960s and 70s.

The terraces and town houses they used to call home are owned by the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority (SHFA), who receive rent from the tenants living in the building.

[8] A decision to sell the building was made in 2015 by the Baird Coalition government, thereby placing it under risk of demolition due to a lack of any heritage protection.

[16][17] In July 2017, the Land and Environment Court ruled the decision by the state’s then-heritage minister Mark Speakman not to place the Sirius public housing complex on the State Heritage Register was “invalid and of no legal effect.” The court determined the government’s claim of financial loss did not constitute “financial hardship” and that the minister failed to consider the building’s heritage significance in his decision.

(Save Our Sirius Foundation)[26] was formed by people and organisations campaigning to save Sirius and its residents and is supported by the National Trust of Australia, the Australian Institute of Architects, the Millers Point Residents Action Group, Friends of Millers Point, Millers Point Public Housing Tenants Group, Unions NSW, CFMEU, and Jack Mundey, the Green Ban campaigner who helped save The Rocks from redevelopment in the 1970s.

Previous NSW chapter president of the Australian Institute of Architects, Shaun Carter, is chairman of the Save Our Sirius Foundation.

[14][24] The S.O.S Foundation suggested that Sirius could be saved if Lendlease were to purchase the building and develop some of its apartments for social and affordable housing.

[24] Various public protests supported the inclusion of the building on the State heritage Register, including a petition, a crowd funded legal challenge, whose organisers aim to have the Minister's decision annulled;[28][29][30] a rally;[15] and a green ban announced by the Construction Forestry Mining & Energy Union (CFMEU), under which no company associated with union will be involved with any proposed demolition of the building.

The NSW Housing Minister, Melinda Pavey, announced that the building had been sold for A$150 million to Sirius Developments Pty Ltd, which was owned by private investment firm JDH Capital, subsequently identified as a shell company for Sirius Developments, set up for the deal by Jean-Dominique Huynh, and apparently without the requisite experience delivering a project "of a similar scale".

[34] On release $435 million worth of apartments were sold by developer JDH Capital in one weekend at a rate of $118,000 per square metre.

[37] In 2017, a book by John Dunn, Ben Peake and Amiera Piscopo documenting the story of the building and its residents was published by Piper Press.