Western Sydney Aerotropolis

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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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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

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