DOMINIC SULLIVAN DISCUSSES TOWN CENTRE RENEWAL FOR SYDNEY REPORT

Public and Private Sectors Well Represented – Dominic Sullivan

Mr Sullivan said the report's recommendations are the findings of a Town Centre Renewal Taskforce on which he is Deputy Chair and Chair is Kerry Robinson, General Manager of Blacktown City Council.

"The report was coordinated by the Committee for Sydney and represented by over 25 organisations from the public and private sectors."

Town Centres across Sydney that are Struggling must be made Vibrant – Dominic Sullivan

Mr Sullivan said town centres across Sydney that are struggling as jobs move into major centres, like Parramatta and the Sydney CBD, must be made vibrant, economically-viable locations if Sydney is to deliver on a '30-minute city' where everyone can access services and jobs within 30 minutes of their house.

"To achieve this, the Committee is calling for the establishment of 'Town Centre Renewal Deals', a smaller version of the City Deal recently announced in Western Sydney, which would act as a partnership between State Government, the Greater Sydney Commission, local governments and major private sector stakeholders in individual town centres," Dominic Sullivan offered.

"Local governments would be able to bid for a new NSW Government 'Town Centre Renewal Challenge Fund', which would provide funding and statutory support to local authorities and communities that can demonstrate their commitment to renewal.

"The fund would undertake a competitive process to identify town centres where local government and community have a vision for achieving best practice renewal and permit a variety of town centre growth investments including affordable housing, infrastructure funding, business investment and joint venture projects," Mr Sullivan said.

The report, Re-balancing the City: Town Centre Renewal For Sydney, also establishes the key components of successful town centres, including:

• well-linked to public transport and walkable amenities.

• a diversity of people – working, living and playing in the town centre.

• local jobs and businesses, including start-ups and diverse industries.

• a vibrant night-time economy and cultural options.

• more mixed-use and denser development

• key social infrastructure including schools, libraries, health facilities, leisure facilities, child play spaces, and public open space.

Town Centres are the Heart of Local Communities – Dominic Sullivan

Dominic Sullivan explained that the Taskforce was established to create new ideas for making town centres more economically dynamic and environmental appealing, whilst also being more pedestrian-friendly and centred on public transport accessibility.

Other recommendations in the report include that:

• local government perform audits with community input to identify any obstacles to the delivery of successful town centres prior to developing their Challenge Fund bids

• special purpose Town Centre Delivery Vehicles be established to drive the redevelopment of individual town centre

• baseline data across a range of indictors be captured for use in ongoing evaluation and analysis.

Mr Sullivan said local town centres are the heart of local communities.

"A growing Sydney means we need to refocus our efforts in renewing older town centres as productive, efficient, dynamic and people-centric places."

He noted the proposed 'Town Centre Renewal Deals' are recognition of the collaboration required between communities, all levels of government and the private sector in realising our aspirations for exciting and diverse local town centres.