Planning Parramatta's future
Heritage issues are to be a crucial part of the future development of Parramatta. The Parramatta Regional Environmental Plan (Parramatta REP), to be released for public exhibition this month, proposes special controls for critical heritage precincts.
Recognising the historical significance of Parramatta as the second most important site of European settlement in Australia, the State government announced 18 months ago the preparation of the plan by a team including Parramatta City Council, the Department of Urban Affairs and Planning and the Heritage Office. A special sub-committee of the Heritage Council has also been involved in negotiations to produce a plan which will ensure that future development acknowledges, respects and complements the heritage significance of the Parramatta region.
The plan includes a strategy and action plan and provides an integrated approach to planning the city's future based on heritage, urban design and access issues. The plan proposes rezoning in three key areas - the city centre, Harris Park and the Government precinct - and provides development objectives for Westmead, Rydalmere and Camellia.
A key element improving access to Parramatta will be the construction of a rail link between Chatswood and Parramatta. Sydney's largest rail project in 70 years, the Parramatta-Chatswood link will commence in December 1999 for completion by 2006.
Height Controls
Acknowledging the long-term targets of up to 60,000 jobs and 15,000 residents by the year 2020, the plan allows for low scale development near the river, graduating to higher development towards the south of the city concentrated around the railway station. It also calls for development north of the Parramatta River to be kept below a 15 metre height limit to create a sensitive transition to low scale residential conservation areas and to conserve historically important views from Parramatta Regional Park to North Parramatta's church spires and the hills beyond.
The historical importance of major items in Harris Park (Elizabeth Farm, Experiment Farm and Hambledon Cottage) and the views between them will be protected by the creation of an area of national significance supported by its own development control plan. The relatively intact precincts of Parramatta Regional Park and the North Parramatta Government precinct will both be rezoned, the former as an open space National Park and the latter as mixed use zones, emphasizing the reuse potential of its historic buildings and landscape.
Protecting Parramatta River
The historical significance of the region is based on the rich resources of the navigable upper reaches of the Parramatta River. The site of the present city, where salt and fresh water meet, was important to Aborigines long before European settlement. Its access from Sydney Harbour enabled Governor Phillip to discover the area's potential for agricultural production.
Accordingly, the plan establishes a river corridor and controls to ensure that furture development along its banks is in keeping with its heritage, scenic and amenity vlaues. This will provide future opportunities for access, recreation and the appreciation of the river as a resource throughout the city.
The REP can be obtained from the Department of Urban Affairs and Planning at the Information Centre, Governor Macquaire Tower in Sydney or level 8 Signature Tower, 2-10 Wentworth Street, Parramatta. It will also be on view at Parramatta Council. Public comments are invited during the exhibition period, which runs from late August to late October 1998.
