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Western Sydney has recently experienced a wave of major announcements within the tertiary education sector, including a new education campus as part of the Western Sydney Aerotropolis.

The Greater Sydney Commission announced a Statement of Intent with the Vice-Chancellors of four leading NSW universities to co-anchor the STEM-focused tertiary education campus.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/613634df-32cb-41df-b8b7-6ab4cd968732.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title=" Celestino"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="333" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/613634df-32cb-41df-b8b7-6ab4cd968732.jpg?itok=91ZSxZYV" title=" Celestino" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Sydney Science Park, currently under construction, shows what the new combined university campus may look like. Source: Celestino</figcaption></figure>STEM or ‘Science, Technology, Engineering &amp; Maths’ intends to provide the region with more specialist skills and industries, including aerospace, advanced manufacturing, and agribusiness. This complements the emphasis on jobs, education, and technology around the new Western Sydney Airport at Badgerys Creek.

This will go some way to balancing education and employment opportunities away from Eastern Sydney and deliver them to the region’s rapidly growing population - which currently hosts only 16% of university places in Greater Sydney.

The four universities involved in the deal are the Universities of Wollongong, Newcastle, Western Sydney, and UNSW, which together will offer access to cutting-edge industry research, development and employment opportunities.

The first phase of the new campus is expected to be completed in 2026 coinciding with the opening of the nearby 24 hr airport, as well as the initial Aerotropolis social, employment, and housing hubs.

The Aerotropolis is turning out to be a transformative catalyst for the Western Sydney region. According to NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian, more than 250 local and international businesses are seeking to secure a place within the 10,000-hectare greenfield Aerotropolis site around the new airport.

<blockquote>
To frame these developments, it’s as if the Aerotropolis is a massive ‘maker space’ for the Sydney region, with skills, research, knowledge and facilities on hand to test and develop advanced research ideas and manufacturing processes. 
</blockquote>

To underscore the extent of development activated by these developments, around the Aerotropolis, two projects - each multi-billion-dollar investments - are under construction including the Sydney World Trade Centre and Sydney Science Park - read more <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/news/further-details-emerge-for-western-sydneys-proposed-world-trade-centre">here</a> and <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/news/western-sydney-aerotropolis-ready-for-take-off">here</a>.  

<h2>Tertiary Education Growing Across Western Sydney</h2>

The wider Western Sydney region is responding eagerly to the re-conceptualisation of Sydney as a city of <a href="https://www.greater.sydney/metropolis-of-three-cities">three, thirty-minute cities</a>. 

Here’s a summary of recent announcements covering the tertiary education sector in Western Sydney city centres. Note - Parramatta is not on this list as it is located within the 'Central River City' and is a step above these other regional centres - it is becoming a true metropolitan centre. 

BANKSTOWN

There is a 16-storey, 15,000sqm vertical campus under construction in Bankstown adjacent to the regional library for Western Sydney University, providing space for approximately 5,000 students.

WSU Vice-Chancellor Professor Barney Glover has stated that providing education facilities in CBDs close to transport is crucial to meeting expectations. In fact, WSU is considering closing their isolated suburban campus at Milperra and shifting its functions to Bankstown, Liverpool and Parramatta. 

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/liverpool_wsu_-_2500_students_-_daily_tele.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title=" WSU"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="361" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/liverpool_wsu_-_2500_students_-_daily_tele.jpg?itok=4vyHlWWu" title=" WSU" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>WSU Liverpool vertical campus. Source: WSU</figcaption></figure>To enhance this new facility, Bankstown-Lidcombe hospital may be moved into Bankstown City Centre to take advantage of the clustering synergies of knowledge-intensive industries.

Bankstown is also of course in line to anchor the south-western terminus of Sydney Metro Line 1, with an extension to Liverpool being considered in the medium-term.

LIVERPOOL

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/liverpool_health_and_academic_precinct.png" rel="gallery-all" title=" SMH"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="327" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/liverpool_health_and_academic_precinct.png?itok=qfMp0zyQ" title=" SMH" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Liverpool’s mooted $740 million Health and Academic Precinct. Source: SMH</figcaption></figure>The Liverpool Innovation Precinct Committee - which includes representatives from UNSW, Uni of Wollongong, and WSU - are part of the consortium that has proposed the $740 million Health and Academic Precinct around Liverpool Hospital.

These three universities already have embedded campuses in the precinct - by 2026, the health, research and education precinct will have a combined 30,000 jobs.

Nearby, WSU recently opened their Liverpool vertical campus, also the location of WSU’s business start-up incubator “Launch Pad”.

This complements the recent rezoning of large parts of Liverpool CBD for higher density development, which you can read more about <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/news/liverpool-rezoned-and-earmarked-as-becoming-sydneys-third-largest-cbd">here</a>. 

BLACKTOWN

Blacktown City Council recently announced they were seeking expressions of interest for a tertiary education institution to anchor a vertical campus within the council’s Warrick Lane development, currently in early planning. This is part of the council’s long-term Blacktown City Centre vision to reinvigorate the city centre of this 360,000 people-strong council area.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/blacktown_warwick_lane_including_vertical_uni_campus.png" rel="gallery-all" title=" Blacktown City Council"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="402" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/blacktown_warwick_lane_including_vertical_uni_campus.png?itok=VO-7CNOa" title=" Blacktown City Council" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Conceptual rendering of the Warrick Lane development in Blacktown City Centre - the council is seeking a tertiary institution to anchor a vertical campus on the site. Source: Blacktown City Council</figcaption></figure>Western Sydney is embracing its reinvigorated place in Greater Sydney’s strategic planning picture, bringing new opportunities closer to the region’s growing communities, and re-balancing Sydney away from its eastern bias.
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ModernBradfield

Tertiary Education STEMs take root in Western Sydney - the ‘Maker Space’ of Greater Sydney?

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Macquarie Bank has finalised negotiations with the NSW Government for air rights above a new Metro station at Martin Place, clearing the way for the bank’s ambitious commercial proposal over the station to proceed. The proposal was previously approved as part of the Department of Premier &amp; Cabinet’s unsolicited proposals process but required the negotiation of these air rights.

The agreement marks a new era in the delivery of mass transit infrastructure in Sydney, demonstrating a form of value capture. It also puts on show the focus of Sydney Metro Corporation in strategically matching new metro stations with the leveraging of land use potential. This is part of a broader trend in Sydney and other global cities; London’s Crossrail project - a suburban-rail, rapid-transit line which alleviates constraints on the Tube Metro network - employs a similar commercial arrangement to construct some of its new city centre stations, most prominently at the financial district at Canary Wharf. 

Macquarie Bank has agreed to pay $355 million for the Martin Place station air rights and will proceed to build the metro station and two commercial towers, in partnership with Lend Lease.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/buildings_cut_thru_-_metro_martin_place.png" rel="gallery-all" title="A section diagram of the proposed integrated development. "><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="466" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/buildings_cut_thru_-_metro_martin_place.png?itok=R_I01QPf" title="A section diagram of the proposed integrated development. " width="580"></a>

<figcaption>A section of the proposed integrated development showing the complexity of the site. Source: Metro Martin Place</figcaption></figure>The distinctive northern tower design responds to the challenges of protecting sunlight access to Martin Place - in fact, both towers are fully compliant with City of Sydney solar access planes which protect sunlight access to Martin Place and Hyde Park.

The north tower is approximately 170 metres tall (38 floors) with almost 80,000 sqm of premium office space. The smaller south tower, amended to provide commercially viable floor plates of 1,100 sqm, offers 39,000 sqm of premium grade office space over 28 floors. 

As a result of the deal, the Government will foot little of the $378 million cost to build the new station and its associated connecting passages.

The new station is being compared in style to New York’s WTC and Hong Kong’s IFC stations; the station will become part of a new retail and social precinct that is envisioned to be an embedded, seamless part of its locality.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/atrium_look_down_-_source_macquarie_bank.png" rel="gallery-all" title=" Macquarie Bank"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="326" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/atrium_look_down_-_source_macquarie_bank.png?itok=nMrSXMJ5" title=" Macquarie Bank" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>The sunlight-filled atrium below the north tower, providing access to the station concourses and platforms. Source: Macquarie Bank</figcaption></figure> ​​​​​The scale of the precinct is impressive, and it should be noted the level of attention afforded to the quality, legibility and experience of the pedestrian environments, both in the underground concourses and at street level. 

Grimshaw in partnership with Johnson Pilton Walker and Tzannes, are the architects responsible for the design of the station and its commercial and social precincts. The firms have a long experience in crafting quality human-scale environments.

The station connects to the T4 Bondi Junction &amp; Illawarra suburban station; it is likely to also connect to a new CBD station as part of the mooted West Metro line. Collectively, this anticipates a northern CBD mass transit interchange, relieving overcrowding at Central, Town Hall, and Wynyard stations.

<blockquote>
Acknowledging the special role Martin Place Metro Station will play in Sydney’s transport system, and the nature and exceptional prominence of its location, Macquarie Chief Executive Nicholas Moore affirms; “We recognise that we have been entrusted by the NSW Government to deliver this once-in-a-generation opportunity for the community. We are committed to delivering a new transport-led destination that is customer-centred, inclusive and comparable with the world’s great integrated urban precincts.” He goes on to say, “As a long-time resident [of Martin Place], Macquarie Bank understands and respects the historic, cultural and civic significance [of Martin Place].”
</blockquote>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/mmp-east.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title=" Macquarie Bank"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="326" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/mmp-east.jpg?itok=_BrPU7cy" title=" Macquarie Bank" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>The station will feature active street frontages, elevated terraces, and an architectural style in keeping with the heritage and grandeur of Martin Place. Source: Macquarie Bank</figcaption></figure>The development reinforces the role of the northern CBD as the financial hub of Australia and as a globally connected business precinct. The towers feature modern side-cores with large, uninterrupted floorplates ensuring flexible office design that can adapt to future needs. The proposed buildings have been awarded 6-star environmental ratings from the Green Building Council of Australia and will house workspace for 8500 people. Macquarie Bank will consolidate its operations in the northern tower, which will be connected directly with its existing heritage headquarters at 50 Martin Place. 

In the broader strategic context, this is just one - albeit prominent - example of similar projects in the pipeline; new metro stations at Victoria Cross (North Sydney), Pitt St (Town Hall), Waterloo, and Crows Nest are undergoing similar work to both embed them in their locality and leverage the transit capacity and connectivity they bring.

2500 new jobs will be created during construction and the office towers, social and retail precinct, and the station are expected to be completed shortly before Metro City &amp; South-West opens in 2024.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=boiuhoRrxkA">Fly-through of Martin Place Metro Station Integrated Development</a>
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Martin Place Metro Station's Integrated Development Clears Final Hurdle

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Last week's announcement of the <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/news/victorian-government-unveils-suburban-rail-loop-election-proposal">$50 billion, 90-kilometre long Suburban Rail Loop</a> by the Victorian State Government, has generated a flurry of opinion and counter-opinion.

As a Sydneysider, I thought I’d offer my view from outside your Melbourne bubble.

A key question is: What does the Suburban Rail Loop signal about the future of Melbourne, assuming it is built over the next 30 years?

Despite the obvious pre-election timing, this is an uncannily forward-looking plan with a range of city-shaping implications.

Firstly, there is a strong connection to existing planning strategy in that it reinforces current efforts to focus housing, jobs and additional quality of life opportunities around prominent middle-ring centres.

The idea is, of course, that this provides more ‘work and play’ options within range of more people all over the metro area. It also gives more shape to Melbourne’s relatively flat, low-density suburban sprawl. Youch.

With or without the Suburban Rail Loop, you’re already on this path: the NEICs (National Employment and Innovation Centres) and <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/news/top-20-melbourne-suburbs-with-the-largest-development-pipeline">fully stocked apartment supply</a> around suburban centres attest to this.

Basically, it looks like your Great Big City Centre - the hub of the Melbourne metro area - is getting meatier middle-ring satellites with a broader range of activities, jobs and housing - the spokes of this big hub. This is a fairly classic urban shape - a big centre orbited by suburban nodes which balance the centre’s mass, connected to it by a radial mass transit system.

Here steps into this picture the Suburban Rail Loop, cutting an arc across these radial lines and stringing together these newly-boosted suburban centres. By connecting these ‘spokes’, the rail loop forms the rim of the wheel and so better distributes passenger loads across the rail system, reducing CBD transfers and enabling cross-town trips.

With the Suburban Rail Loop, Melburnians can orbit their Great Big City Centre using mass transit, passing through a series of walkable and built up suburban nodes.

It forms a metropolitan transit grid - a metropolitan-scale ‘metro’ of sorts... About that ‘metro’: 

<h2>METRO RAIL, COMMUTER RAIL &amp; THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT</h2>

Metros rely on an interwoven network of lines to enable point to point journeys.

In contrast, Melbourne’s rail system resembles a traditional commuter rail system; its lines are arranged radially around the Great Big City Centre, shuttling large loads of people in and out.

Although Melbourne does have some large-ish suburban nodes on these radial lines, such as Box Hill, South Yarra, Caulfield, Dandenong and Footscray, it largely follows this pattern.

If you live along a line that suburban centre is on, that’s fine, but for all other journeys, the only realistic option is to drive or be driven.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/melbourne-rail-network-with-srl-web-1_-_by_philip_mallis.png" rel="gallery-all" title=" maps.philipmallis.com "><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="300" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/melbourne-rail-network-with-srl-web-1_-_by_philip_mallis.png?itok=Xc7aLLKI" title=" maps.philipmallis.com " width="580"></a>

<figcaption>This diagram by Philip Mallis shows the effect of the Suburban Rail Loop on Melbourne's radial train system. Source: maps.philipmallis.com </figcaption></figure>On top of this, post-war car-oriented growth means many suburban centres aren’t even on a train line. Chadstone, Doncaster and Monash University in Clayton spring to mind.

The Suburban Rail Loop then breaks with Melbourne’s traditional metropolitan form.

<h2>Another thing about metros - they need a compatible urban environment.</h2>

Metros are too expensive to string through low-density environments.

Largely, they need to collect enough people on foot and deposit them at points across the network, again to destinations reachable on foot.

Melbourne’s Great Big City Centre is well-suited to walking with many destinations and an amenable environment, but most of the rest of the metro area requires road-dependent collection and distribution.

A built up, walkable urban environment is compatible with, and justifies the cost and capacity of, high-frequency rail service, but is incompatible with car-dependent transport.

<h2>Why is this?</h2>

Well, roads have a low capacity. They fall over when they are asked to carry lots of people to the same place at the same time.

They require a spread out urban environment to cater to dispersed trips. Think about the scale of ramps, carparks, and feeder roads required to serve your typical Westfield shopping centre, or the ramps and arterial roads to support a motorway. Contrast this to how many people cram into stairwells at Flinders St Station to access the platforms. Then, imagine if those people were all in cars with one or two people in them - you can barely fit a single car in one of these stairwells. People on foot, by contrast, are extremely space-efficient.

Roads are flexible, excelling at carrying distributed point to point trips, but are highly space inefficient with a low inbuilt capacity. 

A car-dependent environment must necessarily be spread out or else it overwhelms the roads that support it.

<blockquote>
The urban environment is shaped by transport, and transport shapes the urban environment. Simples.
</blockquote>

The Suburban Rail Loop, therefore, applies pressure on the places it serves to be more focused, with a range of activities and housing within walking distance, to justify its cost and capacity.

This signals a shift to a more 'Urban.com.au' - at least a more urban ‘middle Melbourne’ complementing its Big Centre. Might this even put the brakes on your ever-spreading suburban footprint?

Looking to the future, perhaps <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/guides/weekly-podcast-episode-28-gogets-justin-passaportis-and-joshua-brydges">driverless cars</a> at each end of a person’s cross-town transit journey will vastly extend the catchment of these nodes.

<h2>SOME CAUTIONARY LESSONS FROM SYDNEY</h2>

From a Sydney point of view, there’s one last note I’d like to make:

By pre-emptively striking to secure a more Urban.com.au, especially in the middle-ring, your city has more control and power over the resulting built environment once this direction matures.

Rail performs best when it is positioned at the heart or direct edge of a centre, plugged into its walkable streets, while arterial roads should skirt around centres at a respectful distance with link roads striking into edge-of-centre parking (much like a suburban shopping mall).

Sydney hasn’t managed this distinction very well.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/img_00511782.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title=" Posted with Permission from an Anonymous Source"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="580" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/img_00511782.jpg?itok=aPjVFxzt" title=" Posted with Permission from an Anonymous Source" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Strathfield in the middle ring of Sydney. Poorly managing densification results in poor outcomes like this. Source: Posted with Permission from an anonymous source.</figcaption></figure>A large part of Sydney’s middle-ring looks like this - a haphazard mess of roads, density and traffic - especially outside the posh bits of the city. 

We started densifying around suburban centres decades ago, but the process has been unstructured, haphazard and often vision-less.

<blockquote>
Dense places must be walkable and have regularly-used services set into this environment. Otherwise, people will opt to drive, and with so many cars hitting the road, road network quickly become overwhelmed. Then, you have the undesirable situation where particulate matter from constant traffic enters the lungs of the people that live within its catchment. It’s not a good combo. 
</blockquote>

This has happened in many parts of Sydney, especially outside the posh areas - reinforcing another Sydney specialty - spatial inequality - and it provides a cautionary tale of what not to do.

Your city, on the other hand, has a positive vision that, coupled with good urban design, might hopefully avoid your northern neighbour’s pitfalls.

Melbourne, with Metro 1 (and hopefully Metro 2) allowing very frequent radial train service, plus a frequent Suburban Rail Loop, will have the necessary infrastructure to support enriched clusters of activity and housing, knitted into a metropolitan transit grid.

The Suburban Rail Loop is ambitious but full of potential.

Well done to you Melbourne, you are now entering a higher orbit.
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Does the Suburban Rail Loop Signal a More 'Urban.com.au'? 

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More details have emerged of the Western Sydney Aerotropolis, providing an early glimpse at the ongoing planning that will shape what is essentially a new city on the western edge of Sydney.

The Aerotropolis forms the centrepiece of the Greater Sydney Commission’s ‘<a href="https://www.greater.sydney/western-city-district-plan">Western Parkland City</a>’ and much-touted vision of the <a href="https://www.greater.sydney/metropolis-of-three-cities">Thirty Minute City</a>.

The region will support 200,000 new jobs in Western Sydney over the next 20 years, with high-level plans now well-advanced to deliver on this.

The Department of Planning has released for comment a <a href="http://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/Plans-for-your-area/Priority-Growth-Areas-and-Precincts/Western-Sydney-Aerotropolis/Key-actions-and-documents">Land Use and Implementation Plan</a> to guide the development of the 11,200 hectare site, with submissions closing on 12 October. This is the next step as laid out in the <a href="https://cities.infrastructure.gov.au/western-sydney-city-deal">Western Sydney City Deal</a>, a tri-level government arrangement to guide development on the site.

The Federal Government has provided funding and the state government has taken the lead in planning and implementation. 8 local councils have agreed to a "relationship framework" providing input to regional goals. Later this year, the NSW Government will firm up details on a new Western Sydney Aerotropolis Authority to take responsibility for master planning and development. The Greater Sydney Commission will partner with this authority, and the Sydney Metro Authority and NSW Department of Planning, to ensure the goals of the Western City District Plan are met. 

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/r0_0_4000_2249_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title=" NSW Department of Planning"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="326" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/r0_0_4000_2249_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg?itok=GpIkhBP-" title=" NSW Department of Planning" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>An artist’s impression of the Aerotropolis ‘core’. Source: NSW Department of Planning</figcaption></figure>The site envisages a super-cluster of innovation, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) industries, education and housing around the future Western Sydney Airport site.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/western_global_gateway.png" rel="gallery-all" title=" NSW Department of Planning"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="573" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/western_global_gateway.png?itok=ZIspEMlO" title=" NSW Department of Planning" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>The industries and opportunities of the Western Sydney Aerotropolis. Source: NSW Department of Planning</figcaption></figure>The scale of the plans is impressive; in addition to 200,000 jobs, the site will accommodate around 60,000 homes clustered around key social points within the site, supporting a population of more than 100,000 people.

A strict 125m height limit has been applied due to the nearby airport, however an urban environment of mixed-scale buildings will take shape.

The majority of housing is expected to be in the three to five-storey ‘walk-up’ range, with a mix of taller buildings close to transport, employment and social nodes.

The educational and residential districts will take advantage of protected and enhanced natural environments along the South Creek corridor, putting the 'park' in 'Parkland City'.

With an emphasis on recreation and active transport links, the environmental corridors will also manage flooding events.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/map_western_sydney_aerotropolis_stage_structure_plan_835x935_-_dept_of_planning.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title=" NSW Department of Planning"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="528" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/map_western_sydney_aerotropolis_stage_structure_plan_835x935_-_dept_of_planning.jpg?itok=fozf1lnc" title=" NSW Department of Planning" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Proposed precincts and their land uses, as well as the Western Sydney Airport forming the entire aerotropolis supercluster. Source: NSW Department of Planning</figcaption></figure>The entire site is divided into 9 smaller precincts;

<ul>
<li>North Luddenham</li>
	<li>Northern Gateway</li>
	<li>Rossmore</li>
	<li>Agriculture and Agribusiness</li>
	<li>Aerotropolis Core</li>
	<li>Badgerys Creek</li>
	<li>Kemps Creek</li>
	<li>Mamre Road</li>
	<li>South Creek</li>
</ul>
The Northern Cluster already has significant development underway, with the first stage of the $5 billion <a href="https://www.celestino.net.au/sydneysciencepark/residential">Sydney Science Park</a> under construction, and the new airport is also in advanced planning stages, with earth-moving on site and in progress.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/ssp-linear-park-rev-e-hr.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title=" Celestino"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="387" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/ssp-linear-park-rev-e-hr.jpg?itok=jT-ddj1s" title=" Celestino" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>This linear park and on-facing social space demonstrate the desired qualities of the built environment in the aerotropolis. Source: Celestino</figcaption></figure>In the south, as previously covered in more detail by Urban.com.au <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/news/further-details-emerge-for-western-sydneys-proposed-world-trade-centre">here</a>, <a href="http://aerotropolis.com.au/WTC%20SYDNEY">Aerotropolis Group</a> has been granted a license by <a href="https://www.wtca.org/">World Trade Centers Association</a> to establish the <a href="https://wtcsydney.com.au/company-overview/">World Trade Center Sydney</a> in Bringelly, near the Aerotropolis Core, in partnership with <a href="https://www.woodsbagot.com/news/new-world-trade-centre-sydney-proposal-focuses-on-mobility-and-sustainability/">Woods Bagot</a>.

The district is envisaged to create 43,500 jobs and inject $13 billion into the Western Sydney economy annually.

Aerotropolis Group Managing Direct and CEO Jomon Varghese summarises the strategic vision of the aerotropolis, saying "WTC Sydney... will resolve the structural problem faced by Sydney by bringing balance to our city which is historically tilted to the east." As part of the project, an international convention and exhibition centre will be built, aiming to open by 2026 in time for the beginning of operations at nearby <a href="http://westernsydneyairport.gov.au/">Western Sydney Airport</a>. 

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/wtc_profile_03.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title=" Aerotropolis Group"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="326" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/wtc_profile_03.jpg?itok=fZcblizz" title=" Aerotropolis Group" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Visualisation of World Trade Center Sydney, including its position at Bringelly Station on the future North-South Rail Link. Source: Aerotropolis Group</figcaption></figure>The Aerotropolis leverages the co-location of STEM-focused industry, educational facilities and efficient transport links to attract world-leading firms to Western Sydney.

Motorway links, passenger and freight rail links, a large scale intermodal freight terminal, and of course, the Western Sydney Airport, plug the aerotropolis into metropolitan, regional, national and global networks.  

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/infrastructure_in_and_out_of_precinct.png" rel="gallery-all" title=" NSW Department of Planning"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="798" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/infrastructure_in_and_out_of_precinct.png?itok=3lKXUDoj" title=" NSW Department of Planning" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Main transport links connecting the aerotropolis with Greater Sydney. Source: NSW Department of Planning</figcaption></figure>To better enable these co-locational synergies and give investors and business more certainty, a new Western Sydney Aerotropolis SEPP (‘State Environment Planning Policy’) - SEPPs being the primary planning instrument in NSW - defines an ‘Urban Development Zone’ with broader definitions of allowed land uses and a novel, more flexible, approach to precinct planning.   

This is a unique and transformative opportunity to shape a modern and liveable city to serve as the employment, social and connectivity centre of a region which will be home to 1.5 million people by 2036.

The Western Parkland City, along with its airport and aerotropolis, are well and truly cleared for take off. 
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Western Sydney Aerotropolis Ready for Take Off

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Parramatta is rapidly boosting its credentials as the economic and social hub of Western Sydney, with another very large commercial tower likely to join its ranks.

Scentre Group, the owner-operator of $35 billion-worth of Westfields in Australia and New Zealand, has lodged a development application amendment to alter a previous approval dating back to 2014. That scheme allowed for additional retail shopping floor at Parramatta Westfield and a 120 metre commercial tower to be constructed at the corner of Church &amp; Argyle Streets.

The fresh amendment seeks to move the commercial tower component of the project 80 metres west along Argyle Street, allowing for a significant increase in its size and improved integration with its immediate environs.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/image44a.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Westfield Tower as envisaged by Woods Bagot"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="804" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image44a.jpg?itok=xX4ms39M" title="Westfield Tower as envisaged by Woods Bagot" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Westfield Tower as envisaged by Woods Bagot</figcaption></figure>The new tower is proposed to reach 210 metres and accommodate 41 levels of premium-grade campus-style office space, offering market competitive flexible rectilinear floor plates of slightly more than 3,000 square metres per floor.

With an overall Net Lettable Area of 112,000 square metres, it will be one of the largest commercial office buildings in Australia. The tower is similar in size to Barangaroo’s International Tower 1, which is the current holder of the title.

Such is the scale of development in Parramatta that Westfield's proposal will play second fiddle to nearby <a href="https://www.parramattasquare.net.au/commercial/">6-8 Parramatta Square</a>, which will offer a still larger 125,000 square metres of premium-grade floor space upon completion in 2021.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/parramatta-square-skyline-day_-_jpw.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Johnson Pilton Walker's 6-8 Parramatta Square will offer comparable floor plates to Westfield Tower"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="773" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/parramatta-square-skyline-day_-_jpw.jpg?itok=30-ke-Ji" title="Johnson Pilton Walker's 6-8 Parramatta Square will offer comparable floor plates to Westfield Tower" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Johnson Pilton Walker's 6-8 Parramatta Square will offer comparable floor plates to Westfield Tower</figcaption></figure>Westfield Tower's proposed new location on Argyle Street would activate a currently neglected pocket of Parramatta's CBD, drawing in a continuous stream of office workers and visitors accessing both the commercial tower and Westfield itself. 

The tower lobby will be integrated into the streetscape, offering street-facing retail and cafe/restaurant premises, helping general activation.

Retail space will also be provided on the sixth floor of the development. Office workers and shoppers alike will  be able to utilise a ‘social garden’ which sits between the lobby and the sixth-floor retail precinct. 

The relocated tower would also disrupt fewer retail tenancies during construction. According to documents, the new location allows the structural supports for the tower to punch cleanly through a slice of the Myer multi-storey retail tenancy, with a negotiated use of their retail floors during construction, allowing Myer to continue trading uninterrupted.

Woods Bagot are responsible for the design of the premium-grade building which will target a five-star Green Star rating.
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Parramatta bulks up with another Barangaroo-sized commercial tower proposal

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Darling Harbour’s rejuvenation continues apace with this week’s news that the luxury hotel brand Ritz-Carlton will return to Sydney for the first time in 18 years. The six-star hotel will offer 220 rooms situated within the top half of a distinctive 61-storey tower to be built at the north-eastern corner of The Star in Pyrmont.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/ritz_carlton_hotel_the_star_2_920x900_-_by_fjmt.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="The mid-tower Sky Lobby for Ritz Carlton hotel guests will offer a spectacular vantage point over Sydney Harbour and CBD. Image: FJMT"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="272" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/ritz_carlton_hotel_the_star_2_920x900_-_by_fjmt.jpg?itok=lgyX9d3p" title="The mid-tower Sky Lobby for Ritz Carlton hotel guests will offer a spectacular vantage point over Sydney Harbour and CBD. Image: FJMT" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>The mid-tower Sky Lobby for Ritz-Carlton hotel guests will offer a spectacular vantage point over Sydney Harbour and CBD. Image: FJMT</figcaption></figure>The hotel is poised to capture a slice of surging overseas visitor numbers, as well as taking advantage of its prominent harbour-side position, and proximity to both the Sydney CBD and Darling Harbour Convention, Exhibition and entertainment venues.

The tower design adopts a memorable form as it rises to its full height of 231 metres, branching into two distinct, interlocked volumes as it subtly twists to maximise and ensure the best harbour and CBD vistas.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/star-render-1-1_-_by_scharp.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="The tower's distinctive form from Pyrmont Bay Park. Image: Scharp 3D Visualisation &amp; Property Marketing"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="387" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/star-render-1-1_-_by_scharp.jpg?itok=TIG3lKlt" title="The tower's distinctive form from Pyrmont Bay Park. Image: Scharp 3D Visualisation &amp; Property Marketing" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>The tower's distinctive form from Pyrmont Bay Park. Image: Scharp 3D Visualisation &amp; Property Marketing</figcaption></figure>Given its relative isolation, its distinctive form will create a landmark architectural statement on Sydney’s skyline , providing a bookmark to Barangaroo’s towers on the opposite shore, framing the entrance to Darling Harbour from ferries and other vessels on the harbour.

Beneath the hotel, the bottom half of the tower will acommodate around 200 apartments as well as a five-storey neighbourhood centre. This will contain a social enterprise space, reading room, function space, collaboration hub, and rooftop terrace - useful additions to community infrastructure in the area.

As part of the development, the Pirrama Rd podium of The Star will be refurbished, adding a rooftop pool and terrace, public restaurants, two gyms, and a spa &amp; wellness centre.

Fifteen food outlets will cluster around the path connecting the hotel tower to the rooftop social and leisure space, forming a ‘restaurant avenue’. No additional gambling floor space is included in the development.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/star-render-3-1_-_by_scharp.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Rooftop social and leisure space. Image: Scharp 3D Visualisation &amp; Property Marketing"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="387" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/star-render-3-1_-_by_scharp.jpg?itok=_dTwMvmG" title="Rooftop social and leisure space. Image: Scharp 3D Visualisation &amp; Property Marketing" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Rooftop social and leisure space. Image: Scharp 3D Visualisation &amp; Property Marketing</figcaption></figure>The project comes amid a spate of new developments entering the pipeline to cater to the rapidly growing visitor market. In the last year alone, visitor numbers in Sydney have increased by 5% to 14 million, 4.3 million of which were from overseas.

According to Destination NSW, visitors to the state have collectively injected $16.85 billion into the NSW economy. 

The $500 million project is a joint venture between the Star Entertainment Group and Hong Kong-based Chow Tai Fook and Far East Consortium and will generate 1000 jobs during construction and a further 500 jobs once operational.

The design team is led by architects FJMT who are also responsible for a number of prominent projects in the area, including the new Sofitel at the International Convention Centre.

The new hotel and its dramatic tower will add a new layer to the Darling Harbour precinct, consolidating the area as a premier social and business destination.

Far East Consortium is also introducing the Ritz-Carlton brand in Perth and Melbourne via developments at Elizabeth Quay and West Side Place. Both projects are currently under construction with Probuild at the helm, and architecture by Cottee Parker.
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Ritz-Carlton Tower at The Star adds to Darling Harbour's rejuvenation

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Frasers Property’s new $2.3 billion dollar beach-side community Shell Cove, is one step closer to reality with the launch of an Expressions of Interest campaign seeking a best-in-class publican to operate its focal point harbourside social tavern.

Located adjacent to the new Shell Cove Harbour and 270-berth marina, the 1,086 sqm tavern will extend over the new public boardwalk and offer unobstructed views of the Shell Cove harbour and surrounding scenery.

The Tavern is intended to combine its stunning setting with busy local patronage to create a new destination in the same spirit as iconic Sydney coastal taverns like The Pavilion at Coogee, The Clovelly Hotel, and Icebergs at Bondi.

Additionally, it will form an integral part of this new community, offering both residents and visitors the best in Australian hospitality.

The Shell Cove precinct is quickly becoming a new focal point within the Shellharbour area, which is expecting significant growth of 23% in population to 2036.

Fitting with the community-focused nature of the precinct, the Tavern has been designed to offer a full variety of social spaces for all ages.

It will include a family bistro area, informal indoor and outdoor seating spaces, private dining areas, open plan kitchen with fireplace seating, as well as a sports bar with TAB and gaming room.

The Tavern is part of the wider social and recreational heart of the Shell Cove precinct, known as The Waterside. Situated around the harbour and marina, The Waterside offers specialty shops, marina-edge restaurants, a hotel, children’s beach, water play areas, library, community centre, retail precinct, as well as hosting the Tavern.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/180115fra0826thesailsapartmentss170marinar04finalweb.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="A visualisation of Shell Cove's under construction &quot;The Waterfront&quot; town centre. "><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="326" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/180115fra0826thesailsapartmentss170marinar04finalweb.jpg?itok=nDhsdDs2" title="A visualisation of Shell Cove's under construction &quot;The Waterfront&quot; town centre. " width="580"></a>

<figcaption>A visualisation of Shell Cove's under construction "The Waterfront" town centre. Image: Frasers Property</figcaption></figure>The precinct fits Shellharbour Council’s vision to balance the area’s significant natural beauty with the needs of a growing community.

Led by Frasers Property Australia and their rich accumulated experience operating in Australia for more than 90 years, the Shell Cove precinct continues the firm’s expertise in delivering places that foster happier, healthier and more connected communities.

Reflecting this commitment to socially successful communities, Frasers Property’s Shell Cove Development Director Glenn Colquhoun highlights the firm’s focus on creating a vibrant and connected town centre, acknowledging “a town’s tavern has always been its heartbeat - a place for resident and visitors to eat, drink and relax while enjoying their surroundings.”

He goes on to note, “Shell Cove is a family focused community and the tavern will be a place for the whole family to enjoy. It’s another piece of the truly mixed-use precinct at The Waterfront, Shell Cove that will serve locals for generations to come.”

It seems Shell Cove is set to become a major regional attraction and the Tavern is it’s social nexus. The Tavern is offered as a freehold investment and is expected to be completed by 2021.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/tavern_cgi1_eastview_005_web_1.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Shell Cove's social centrepiece &quot;The Tavern&quot; cantilevers over the harbour-side boardwalk, affording patrons unobstructed views of the Illawarra Coast's world-class scenery."><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="326" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/tavern_cgi1_eastview_005_web_1.jpg?itok=A7NeBg52" title="Shell Cove's social centrepiece &quot;The Tavern&quot; cantilevers over the harbour-side boardwalk, affording patrons unobstructed views of the Illawarra Coast's world-class scenery." width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Shell Cove's social centrepiece "The Tavern" projects over the harbour-side boardwalk, affording patrons unobstructed views of the Illawarra Coast's world-class scenery. Image: Frasers Property</figcaption></figure>
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Shell Cove on NSW's Illawarra Coast a step closer to reality

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Today's Atlassian CEO Scott Farquhar and NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced the NSW Government will partner with the software company to create a major new technology and innovation precinct in the Central-Eveleigh Corridor running through inner southern Sydney.

The Premier’s announcement refocuses attention on development plans for government-owned railway land between Central and Eveleigh, and marks a strategic play to cement Sydney as Australia’s tech capital.  

In recent times technology firms have faced hurdles in securing new or additional space in Sydney. Atlassian’s 2015 bid to expand lost out to property developers whilst Google also shied away from plans to use the Rozelle Power Station as a new work space.

The announcement comes off the back of last year’s report by the Committee for Sydney and KPMG titled <a href="https://home.kpmg.com/au/en/home/insights/2017/08/scaling-fintech-opportunity-sydney-australia">Scaling the fintech opportunity for Sydney and Australia</a> which noted the number of FinTech firms in Australia had scaled from 100 in 2014 to more than 500 today, with 10,000 people directly employed.

Almost two thirds of those firms are based in Sydney.

This is a competitive strength in Sydney’s digital innovation economy and today’s announcement marks a step forward in the government’s commitment to back the growth of this vibrant economic sector. Essentially, government and industry together will deliver a new precinct as a focal point for the various tech ecosystems in Sydney and the wider Australian sector.

Up to 10,000 jobs will be located in the precinct and together with co-located firms, coworking spaces, and the Sydney University-UTS education cluster, there is potential for a globally significant tech cluster.

As outgoing Committee for Sydney CEO Tim Williams noted at the release of last year’s report, “Modern knowledge economies thrive on agglomeration, collaborative diversity and convergence and the innovation they collectively promote.”

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/image176.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Indication of the urban environment in the area earmarked for transformation"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="278" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image176.jpg?itok=lIUi41ej" title="Indication of the urban environment in the area earmarked for transformation" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Indication of the urban environment in the area earmarked for transformation</figcaption></figure>Furthermore, the urban environment in this corridor is earmarked to be transformed. The railway corridor around Eveleigh, Redfern and Central essentially a neglected and piecemeal space which constitutes a forgettable entrance to the southern CBD.

The precinct is closely located to other large-scale urban renewal precincts at Waterloo, Green Square and Zetland. It’s possible this government-tech industry partnership will build off innovative renewal precedents in Sydney and overseas like the Toronto Smart City co-developed by Google and Sidewalk Labs.

Overall this is a promising announcement about the reinvigoration of a neglected part of Sydney’s urban environment and a potentially visionary step forward for our city’s economic vibrancy and competitiveness.

Jobs for NSW chair David Thodey will lead a design and development taskforce to guide the direction of the new precinct.
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Andre Brokman

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