The state’s first city deal – which had been 18 months in the making - was signed by the mayors of eight Western Sydney councils, dubbed the Western Parklands City, and NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
At the heart of the deal is the Badgerys Creek Aerotropolis – an advanced manufacturing, research, medical, education and commercial hub – at the door of the new Western Sydney Airport.
And the deal’s lifeline is the much-anticipated North South Rail Link connecting St Marys to the Aerotropolis. The NSW and federal governments committed $100M for a business case on the full line including the route, station locations and scoping study.
Rapid bus services will also link Liverpool, Penrith and Campbelltown to the Aerotropolis by the time the airport opens.
Of the Aerotropolis, Mr Turnbull said: “It will create tens of thousands of jobs in the aviation, aerospace and defence industries, jobs that will flow into other sectors such as education, agribusiness, health, hospitality and retail. We see the potential for a STEM-focused university, vocational facilities and high schools, all with links to smart industry, growing inside the Aerotropolis.”
In a joint statement, the mayors of Camden, Campbelltown, Liverpool, Penrith, Wollondilly, Blue Mountains, Hawkesbury and Fairfield said:
“We will continue working together over the coming months to clarify more details which will flow from this deal and ensure our communities will benefit from this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to a create a smart city that is more liveable, more productive, more skilled and more innovative.”
Federal shadow infrastructure minister, Anthony Albanese, criticised the North South Rail Link plan for excluding a link from the Macarthur region to the airport and failing to extend to Rouse Hill in the north-west.
He commended the community and local councils for advocating for the rail line to the airport which would create thousands of jobs.
“But to achieve the project’s full potential, the people of Western Sydney must be able to access those jobs via reliable public transport,” Mr Albanese said.
Welcoming the deal, Western Sydney University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Barney Glover, said the university had been working to achieve the bold educational, economical and livability objectives outlined in the deal.
“The deal coincides with the opening of our campus in the Liverpool. These students will be critical to supporting the type of innovation the Prime Minister and Premier are looking to see at the Aerotropolis, and throughout the Western Parklands City.
“The deal also aligns exceptionally well with the University’s commitment to a health and medical research facility in Campbelltown.”
Remarking on the historic change the City Deal would deliver, Mr Turnbull said: “I know that we will look back on this deal in a decade’s time - when the airport is operating, when the Aerotropolis is educating and employing a new generation of Australians, when this is one of the most livable and connected communities in the nation - and we’ll recognise we began a great endeavor; to ensure the prosperity, the livability and the sustainability of the Western Parkland City and its people for generations to come.”
Details of how the Western Sydney City Deal will be implemented are expected to be released later this year.
What the deal means for Western Sydney:
• A North South Rail Link from St Marys to Badgerys Creek.
• An Aerotropolis to drive new investment and attract high value jobs to the region.
• New planning regime to cut development costs and boost housing supply.
• A $150m Western Parkland City Liveability Program to deliver community facilities.
• New STEM-focussed education facilities to train skilled workers needed for the Aerotropolis.
• A 5G strategy with plans to implement a trial led by a telecommunications carrier.
• A feasibility study into an agribusiness precinct for the Western Parkland City.
