The City of Sydney has unveiled its plans to encourage business development, entertainment and retail precincts in the southern suburbs of the city.
Located along Botany Road and the north Alexandria light industrial area, the council, led by Lord Mayor Clover Moore, believe the plans will potentially create more than 15,000 jobs.
The Mayor says that the proposed changers are some of the most significant seen in the harbour city for decades, and will guide development in the rapidly growing city south.
“South Sydney is an amazing part of our city, rich with Indigenous and industrial histories – we are introducing new planning controls to ensure the area reaches its potential and thrives into the future,” she says.
“The proposed changes will drive investment in commercial floorspace, provide employment opportunities, and creative space for our community as well as affordable housing. Developers will be given floorspace and height incentives for investing in these developments, conveniently located close to transport and jobs.
“We estimate that the proposal will create more than 15,000 jobs in a wide range of industries, from office-based employment through to high-end manufacturing, helping us meet future demand for jobs in the local area.
“We will also improve the public domain with widened footpaths, new cycleways and laneways to improve the area’s walkability and access to key transport hubs, including the new Waterloo Metro Station.”
City of Sydney Director of City Planning, Development and Transport, Graham Jahn AM says the area in question of Botany Road and North Alexandria Precinct has been chosen for several reasons, but primarily location.
“These changes provide substantial new floor space and unlock the potential of areas that are strategically located between the CBD, Sydney airport and Port Botany,” he says.
“We’re investing in public spaces to breathe life into older commercial and industrial areas. We’re also establishing new planning controls that support growth and promote the economy in a centralised, but often overlooked, location.
“These areas are close to public transport, including the new Waterloo Metro, as well as amenities in and around Green Square town centre.”
The Botany Road Precinct covers 21.4 hectares to the east and west of Botany Road and is bound by Gibbons Street to the north, Cope Street to the east, McEvoy Street to the south and Garden and Wyndham streets to the west.
The North Alexandria Precinct covers 36 hectares in area and is bound by McEvoy Street to the north, Wyndham Street to the east, Bowden Street to the West, and O’Riordan and Johnston streets to the south.
Both planning proposals are seeking to amend the City of Sydney’s Local Environmental and Development Control Plans in order to build on opportunities taken on the city’s investment of open space in the area and encourage commercial and retail businesses to utilise the area. The proposals are also looking to preserve the heritage character of the areas and encourage well-designed adaptive reuse.
The City’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities were widely consulted at early stages of the proposals’ development in keeping with the area’s rich Indigenous and industrial histories.
Moore says recognising and respecting the area’s cultural, historical and political histories is an essential part of the proposal.
“We need to protect and recognise the importance of Botany Road and the surrounding area to First Nations people – not only for its connection to country but as a place central to the Aboriginal rights movement,” she says.
Both proposals will go for gateway determination in August, with public exhibition anticipated before the end of the year.
To read more about the Botany Road precinct and North Alexandria proposals, as well as their suggested amendments to the Environmental and Development Control plans, click here.
Images: Tonkin Zulaikha Greer Architects
