The New South Wales Government established the
Redfern-Waterloo Authority (RWA) on 17 January 2005, with the support of the
major political parties. In doing so, the Government demonstrated an enhanced
commitment to tackling the myriad of issues that are necessary to drive a
successful program of urban renewal.
The Built Environment Plan, which is primarily designed to
stimulate economic and social progress, has been finalised in August 2006
following an extensive period of community consultation. The Plan has been
developed in the context of some significant advances having been made over the
past one and half years, with the RWA’s urban renewal program now well
underway.
Since the RWA’s commencement, the Government has directly
facilitated the investment of nearly $300 million towards infrastructure
development in Redfern-Waterloo. Of this amount, more than $76 million has been
directly committed by the RWA itself. Some of the major infrastructure
investment already committed includes:
- $120
million to be invested by Sydney Broadcast Property in constructing a new
43,500 square metre state-of-the-art media centre at the Australian
Technology Park (ATP) – in a deal negotiated by the RWA which will create
2000 permanent jobs. - $47.5
million being invested by the RWA in a new building currently under
construction at the ATP to house National ICT Australia and the Defence,
Science and Technology Organisation, with 600 permanent jobs being
created. - $40
million being invested by Arts NSW to construct a new Contemporary
Performing Arts Centre through adaptive reuse of heritage buildings at
North Eveleigh – in conjunction with the RWA and RailCorp. - $35
million being invested by the Indigenous Land Corporation (ILC) in
purchasing and transforming the former Redfern Public School into a new
National Indigenous Development Centre – in a deal brokered by the RWA
with the ILC and the NSW Department of Education and Training. - $16
million to be invested by RWA towards the provision of affordable housing
for Aboriginal residents of Redfern-Waterloo. - $10
million to be invested by NSW Health in transforming the former Local
Redfern Court House and Police Station into a major new community health
facility – in an arrangement facilitated and supported by the RWA. - $6
million to be invested by the RWA and its subsidiary company ATP in
constructing a new pedestrian and cycle link between North
Eveleigh and the ATP. - $6
million being invested by RWA and ATP in new roads and infrastructure to
facilitate the ATP’s future development. - $4.2
million invested by NSW Police in 2005 in establishing the new Redfern
Police Station in the towers on Lawson Square, opposite Redfern Railway
Station. - $0.75
million being invested by the RWA in developing a new education and
training centre at North Eveleigh, which
includes the Yaama Dhinawan Indigenous cuisine training enterprise. - $0.3
million to be invested by RWA to refurbish the former Murawina building in
Eveleigh Street
to support Indigenous enterprises and organisations. The RWA has
established a partnership with GROW to undertake this refurbishment. - $0.25
million being invested by the RWA and RailCorp in a concept design study
for the redevelopment of Redfern Railway Station.
The list does not include some significant private sector
investment which is occurring in Redfern-Waterloo as a result of the enhanced
commercial environment generated by the Government’s urban renewal initiatives
and the release of the RWA’s draft Built Environment Plan in February this year;
nor does it include the $52 million committed by the City of Sydney for
infrastructure upgrades following the establishment of the RWA.
Redfern-Waterloo is on the road to social and economic
revitalisation and the Built Environment Plan is a key driver in this most
important process.
It is imperative that the local community is a major
beneficiary of the urban renewal program and all of the RWA’s planning is being
directed to this end. This is particularly the case with the more disadvantaged
sections of the community, where unemployment and welfare dependency are major
factors. As the Employment and Enterprise Plan states:
“The RWA’s employment and enterprise development strategy aims to
directly challenge the area’s social and economic disadvantage by fostering
jobs, educational and life opportunities and a higher standard of living.
Wealth creation is seen as an antidote to welfare dependency.”
The Redfern-Waterloo Plan is being implemented in 2006 as
part of the Government’s ten year strategy. The Plan is being developed in
stages as it is intended to be a living document, which builds upon its earlier
priorities and strategies, with community input as an ongoing feature. The
Built Environment Plan component of the overall Redfern-Waterloo Plan represents
part of Stage One of this process.
Redfern-Waterloo: On the road to renewal
The New South Wales Government established the
Redfern-Waterloo Authority (RWA) on 17 January 2005, with the support of the
major political parties. In doing so, the Government demonstrated an enhanced
commitment to tackling the myriad of issues that are necessary to drive a
successful program of urban renewal.
Redfern-Waterloo is a unique inner city area sited at the
southern gateway of the Sydney Central Business District (CBD) with significant
potential for revitalisation. Its physical attributes include its accessibility
and infrastructure; proximity to educational and health facilities; central
location within the Sydney CBD to Airport corridor; and the availability of under-utilised
government land.
The revitalisation of the area through job growth is not
inconsistent with the objectives of the NSW Government’s Metropolitan Strategy
for Sydney
because the Strategy does not identify Redfern as a population centre. The
Strategy does however advocate the concentration of jobs and activity, as well
as the provision of sufficiently zoned land for businesses in centres such as
Redfern which are within the Sydney CBD to Airport corridor and in locations
with high quality transport. This is reflected in the Built Environment Plan.
The area is characterised by cultural and ethnic diversity.
As the traditional home of the Gadigal Clan of the Eora nation, Redfern is a
centre of major significance to the Aboriginal community with a strong
association to the area.
Despite some gentrification over the past decade,
Redfern-Waterloo is less socio-economically diverse than the rest of Sydney and is
characterised by a disproportionately high level of unemployment, public
housing and social welfare dependency. Job growth and investment in the area
offers opportunities to redress imbalances evidenced by the local community.
This Built Environment Plan (Stage One) proposes a strategic
planning framework to facilitate revitalisation of the Redfern-Waterloo area
and guide future development on strategic sites by setting the parameters for
future development. It is intended to provide a holistic response to
redevelopment opportunities, deliver sustainable outcomes and support a State
Environmental Planning Policy that will provide a consolidated and consistent
planning approach to the area which meets the objectives of the
Redfern-Waterloo Authority Act.
The underlying concept for the Plan revolves around the
creation of a town centre with an economic and civic heart focused around
Redfern Railway Station and which is connected through pedestrian linkages to
residential and business hubs at the Australian Technology Park, North
Eveleigh, and Redfern and Regent Streets.
Fundamentally the Plan is aimed at ensuring that benefits
gained from redevelopment and economic prosperity are shared by the whole
community, especially local residents and businesses, by facilitating:
- the provision of around 18,000 jobs
- the construction of around 2,000 new
dwellings that will provide greater housing choice, demographic and
socio-economic mix and is supported by an affordable housing program - an upgraded Redfern Railway Station,
civic square and public domain improvements promoting better amenity,
safety and surveillance - the establishment of cultural and
community facilities - improved opportunities for the
establishment of Aboriginal enterprises and cultural facilities - high quality urban design and
architecture.