City shaping projects hit milestones

Council’s vision to drive transformation of the Penrith City Centre by using its own landholdings and capitalising on significant private investment in the CBD has reached key milestones this month.

Concept plans for City Park have been unveiled to the public for the first time. City Park will deliver a vibrant, contemporary, and green open space in the heart of Penrith’s City Centre.

Informed by the ideas and input provided by the community during consultation in 2019, the design was prepared by award-winning landscape architects JMD Design. The concept design responds to the community’s desire to bring nature into the city centre.　

Key features include large trees to provide shade, a sensory garden, water features, as well as natural landscaping to transform the space into an urban retreat in line with Council’s Cooling the City Strategy.

The preliminary design also provides space for people to meet, eat, be active and celebrate together with these aspects set to stimulate the day and night time economy by attracting residents, visitors and investors.　　

Penrith Mayor Ross Fowler OAM said the concept design was an important milestone and offers an exciting glimpse of the future of Penrith’s City Centre.　　

"City Park will unlock the City Centre precinct to major opportunities and alongside other city-shaping projects…will strengthen Penrith’s position as Western Sydney’s most liveable city."　

Councillor Fowler said that over the next 7-10 years, both private development and Council initiated development activities will generate around 20,000 square metres of quality office accommodation into the Penrith City Centre.

Development of the former Council Chambers into modern commercial office accommodation is one example of those opportunities. In a prime location opposite the future City Park and adjacent to existing quality office space, the potential of the 2,533sqm site is high. Council has recently appointed an external Development Manager to guide Council through the design excellence and DA phases of the project.

The innovative design proposed for Soper Place, also in Penrith’s CBD, will incorporate commercial space with dining and entertainment opportunities as well as car parking.

In addition to the City Centre improvements, Council’s revitalisation of Regatta Park continues to move forward. The detailed designs for the $24 million upgrade have been endorsed by Council, with construction expected to begin in early 2021. Council’s long-held plans to maximise the potential of Regatta Park will give a further boost to this well-loved part of Penrith which is already complemented by the popular Yandhai Nepean Crossing, the expanding east bank dining precinct and the redevelopment of Emu Hall.

The detailed design of City Park is progressing over the coming months and further community consultation will take place in late 2020. Construction is due to start in late 2021 and the project set to be complete by early 2023. Click here to view the concept design and find out more about City Park.

Image: The recently unveiled concept design for City Park