NSW Plots 7600 New Homes in Macquarie Park

The NSW government is planning for 7600 new homes in Sydney’s Macquarie Park as part of its 20-year strategy that is now on public exhibition.

Last month, as part of its budget announcement, the state government committed $20 million towards rezoning 12 strategic, major precincts in Sydney, including Macquarie Park.

Macquarie Park is currently home to Macquarie University, Macquarie University Hospital, Macquarie University Incubator and more than 180 large international and 200 small businesses.

While the draft place strategy does not seek to rezone land, it will guide councils, state agencies and the private sector on land use to ensure investment and infrastructure is aligned with the grwoth anticipated by the state government.

Minister for planning and public spaces Rob Stokes said future development would help Macquarie Park transition from a successful suburban business park to a vibrant commercial and residential centre.

“Our discussions with the community and businesses have shaped this proposal to create a world-class precinct that will become an economic and employment powerhouse in Sydney,” Stokes said.

“We’ve worked closely with the Greater Sydney Commission and City of Ryde Council to deliver a dynamic vision for the future of Macquarie Park through to 2041 and beyond.”

Under its strategy, the state government plans to deliver seven new residential neighbourhoods as well as 14ha of new parks, squares, plazas, cycleways and linear parks plus 2.7ha of enhanced open space.

The entire 350ha being considered for development includes land between Macquarie Centre and Ivanhoe Estate to Lachlan’s Line and Riverside Corporate Park. It is bound by Epping Road, Delhi Road, M2 Motorway and Vimiera Road and sits next to the Lane Cove National Park.

The seven neighbourhood areas, alongside the already-rezoned areas of Herring Road Precinct and North Ryde Station Precinct, will be known as North Park, Waterloo Park, Shrimptons Quarter, Macquarie Living Station, Porters Creek, Wicks Road South and North Ryde Riverside.

New commercial and retail floor space will be added to the existing 894,000sq m and 140,000sq m of space respectively that is currently available in Macquarie Park.

The state government has forecast that the additional floor space will create upwards of 20,000 new jobs in the region during the next 20 years.

Stokes said the three Sydney Metro stations delivered in 2019 at Macquarie University, Macquarie Park and North Ryde have laid the foundations for growth in the early stages of the precinct’s construction.

Member for Ryde Victor Dominello said a strong pipeline of local infrastructure, including roads, schools, public transport, open spaces and sporting facilities, would underpin the strategy.

“Macquarie Park will be transformed into a modern hub that will be the backbone of the local economy for decades to come,” Dominello said.

“The infrastructure being built in the Ryde electorate will support the continued growth of Macquarie Park as a health, education and technology jobs precinct.”

Meanwhile, a new vision for the Waterloo Estate, that proposes significant new social and affordable housing and 2.5ha of public space, has received a gateway determination to proceed to public exhibition.

The decision to put the revised proposal on public exhibition came after the Stokes called the proposal in following a stalemate in negotiations between the Land and Housing Corporation (LAHC) and the City of Sydney.

An independent advisory group was appointed by the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment to help mediate the process.

“If approved, this vision will do exactly that by providing more than 3000 new inner city homes with 30 per cent set aside for social housing and between five and ten per cent for affordable housing,” Stokes said.