A huge new neighbourhood is set to come to life in Parramatta – complete with parks, riverside walks and a university campus

The NSW Government has finalised plans to transform 33 hectares of Parramatta North into a sprawling mixed-use precinct featuring around 2,000 new homes and ten hectares of public open space.

Backed by a $124.5 million investment, the mega redevelopment will reshape underused government land between the Parramatta CBD and Westmead into a new community of homes, workplaces and parks

Key features of the rezoning include:

• around 2,000 new homes, including at least 100 affordable homes
• a mix of building types ranging from two to 23 storeys, scaled sensitively in response to their natural and heritage environments
• up to 12,000 potential new jobs across health services, research, education and supporting industries
• provisions for a new university campus to support the Westmead Health and Innovation District
• new and enhanced multipurpose community facilities, including an upgraded heritage-listed recreational hall, a new First Nations pavilion adjacent to a natural riverside play space, and enhanced spectator and user amenities alongside the Green
• up to 10 hectares of public open space, including sports fields, extended riverside pathways, parks and gardens, plazas and play spaces
• a Country-centred approach to landscape design through enhanced riparian corridors, replacing native species, water-sensitive urban design and natural play spaces.

Following a period of community consultation, the redevelopment has been scaled back around the nationally significant Parramatta Female Factory and Institutions Precinct – a heritage site that deserves protection. According to the NSW Government, buildings with high or exceptional heritage significance will be retained, and development immediately surrounding the heritage site has been reduced in both height and density to preserve important sightlines and the area’s historical character. The six-hectare Parramatta Female Factory and Institutions Precinct will remain in government ownership and is not included in the rezoning.

Construction and land releases are expected to happen in stages over the next four years, progressively unlocking new housing, jobs and public spaces while maintaining the site’s significant Aboriginal and colonial heritage.

NSW Government Media Release HERE.