Penrith City Council has nine new councillors following the 2024 Local Government elections. Different ideas have complemented the experience of Penrith’s long-serving councillors, to deliver positive results during Council’s first year of the term.
“It’s been a significant year for Penrith and its people – we are achieving great outcomes for our community, and setting ourselves up to become an even more vibrant, connected, authentic and liveable City,” Cr Carney said.
“Council has endorsed a visionary master plan to reimagine the St Marys Town Centre, completed transformational projects across the Local Government Area, strengthened our advocacy efforts, streamlined services for residents, and held popular and free events to bring everyone together.
“This important progress has been driven by the aspirations and vision of our community, and contributes to the prosperity of the City.”
In March, councillors endorsed the St Marys Town Centre Master Plan after extensive community engagement.
With the St Marys population projected to grow from 3,500 to 25,500 in the next 20 years, the place-based, evidence-based plan will turn the town centre into a strategic city centre, facilitating more than 8,360 new jobs and around 9,300 new dwellings by 2041.
In the past 12 months, Council has delivered two significant projects with other levels of government, identified as priorities in Penrith’s Our River Master Plan.
Regatta Park is livening up the western bank of the Nepean River while the Nepean Avenue pedestrian pathway completes the popular bridge-to-bridge loop of the Great River Walk on the eastern side of the river.
Council recently won a national award for the Gipps Street Recreation Precinct, which sees thousands of visitors every week, and was awarded for extending its Food Organics, Garden Organics (FOGO) waste stream to multi-unit dwellings. FOGO is now offered to all households and in the last 15 years, we have avoided $46.5M in waste levies through FOGO processing.
Penrith’s Advocacy Strategy 2025 underpins the organisation’s ongoing advocacy efforts, calling on all levels of government to deliver critical infrastructure and help build community resilience. Council’s advocacy has led to the NSW Government committing to Penrith Beach staying open for another two years, and councillors will continue to push for permanent public access to the beach, and the broader master plan for Penrith Lakes.
“There is lots happening and more to look forward to in our City. Penrith is in of one of the country’s fastest growing regions; we want to harness the opportunities that the new airport and the Sydney Metro will bring,” Cr Carney said.
For the latest Oenrith updates, visit: www.penrith.city/news
