City of Parramatta secures $170m for transformational community projects

Communities across Western Sydney are set to reap the benefits of a $170 million funding boost secured by the City of Parramatta to deliver multiple key projects, including the redevelopment of Riverside Theatres.

Council was successful in applying for 12 grants as part of the competitive round of the NSW Government’s WestInvest program, covering projects across Parramatta, North Parramatta, Westmead, Granville, Lidcombe, Silverwater, Epping and Carlingford.  

The projects, which Council put forward in response to community feedback, include multiple cycle and pedestrian links across the local government area, much-needed upgrades to community facilities and town centres, and improvements to parks and open spaces.

“The City of Parramatta is one of Australia’s fastest growing regions, and the projects that Council proposed reflect the needs of our ever-changing community,” City of Parramatta Acting CEO Bryan Hynes said.

“What we will be able to deliver with this funding will transform the lives of communities across the City of Parramatta, with a key focus on improving access to outdoor and recreation space, while also supporting jobs in Western Sydney.”

This latest round of funding is in addition to nearly $30 million secured for eight projects as part of WestInvest’s local government allocation, bringing the total investment to almost $200 million.

The much-needed transformation of Riverside Theatres topped the list of projects, with $40 million to go towards the upgrade of Western Sydney’s pre-eminent arts and cultural precinct.

Council is investing more than $100 million in the project, which includes a new 1350-seat lyric theatre, 
a newly refurbished 760-seat playhouse, a new 430-seat drama theatre, and state-of-the-art digital studio and cinema – more than doubling the centre’s capacity.

Other projects that have been awarded funding are:

• $8.7 million to upgrade five parks in Dundas (Sherwin Park, Barton Park, PH Jeffrey Reserve, Old Saleyard Reserve and Corry Court)
• $6.1 million to transform an empty space in the booming Carter Street Precinct into a community centre
• $10.6 million to connect the M4 Cycleway to the City of Canada Bay Cycleway, providing a continuous cycleway from the Parramatta CBD to Sydney CBD
• $26 million for a new active transport network that connects the Parramatta CBD, Parramatta River and Parramatta Park
• $9 million to improve safety and increase capacity for pedestrians and cyclists along Parramatta River’s eastern foreshore
• $5.6 million for the creation of a sporting and recreation precinct in North Granville, including a new natural turf football field and regional-size playground
• $971,000 for upgrades to Lake Parramatta’s swimming area, enhancing amenity, safety and useability
• $20.6 million to redevelop the Don Moore Community Centre in Carlingford into a multi-purpose community hub
• $5.3 million to reinvigorate outdoor dining, open spaces and bring much-needed shady street trees to Epping Town Centre
• $9.7 million to complete a missing link in the Finlaysons Creek Regional Cycleway, linking the M4 and Prospect Canal cycleways to the T-Way and Parramatta Valley cycleways
• $26.9 million to fund a walking and cycling network along Duck River, connecting the M4 and Parramatta Valley Cycleway off-road.