Parramatta Road Corridor could see Leichhardt, Taverners Hill and Kings Bay with 4500 new homes and 6800 jobs in council mega plan

A multimillion-dollar mega project that could provide thousands of jobs and houses has been revealed for three inner-city suburbs, as critics say it will turn communities into “sardine cans”.

Ariel view of Pyrmont road corridor

A mega plan to revolutionise a bustling community in Sydney's inner west, forecasting thousands of homes and even more jobs, has been revealed by a Sydney council.

Inner West Council has released blueprints for a masterplanned, $198 million revitalisation of the Parramatta Road Corridor linking Leichardt, Taverners Hill and Kings Bay.

The proposal looks to establish 4533 new homes and 6889 jobs by 2050 alongside new or improved urban plazas, walking and biking tracks, as well as transportation connecting regional and local networks to disincentive driving.

Balmain Rd artist impression

Norton Street Artist impression.

Leichardt will see the biggest increase in homes with 2259 potential new dwellings and will also boast 2810 new jobs, with Taverners Hill expected to see 1759 homes and 3445 jobs. While Kings Bay will see an additional 515 houses and 644 jobs.

However, the plan has drawn criticism from community members, with former Ashfield council member Monica Wangmann claiming the proposal will result in residence living like sardines.

“We certainly do need more public housing but you don’t have to cram it all in like they tried to do in Redfern,” she said.

“You have to rethink how you accommodate people and treat them like human beings and not sardines.

“You can’t keep doing this you can’t keep on boasting larger and larger mounds of high rise and multi-unit dwellings onto communities and no infrastructure.”

Planners for the project said a proportion of dwellings will be affordable for very low, low and moderate income households, that will push property growth.

Ariel view of Parramatta Road corridor

Pyrmont Bridge road artist impression

Council also plans to protect historic heritage of the Parramatta Road Corridor when it develops it’s multi-storey buildings.

However, Ms Wangmann, who has lived in the Inner West for more than 40 years, believes the development is “driven by the Property Council who have other vested interests, that aren‘t driven by community needs”.

“They don’t really care about heritage, they don’t care about people, it’s all about making money,” she said.

“Leave the poor inner-city alone.”

Inner West Mayor Darcy Byrne

Despite these claims, Inner West Mayor Darcy Byrne, said the plan was one the community had been involved in.

“This is a State Government decision,” he said. “Inner West Council has chosen to undertake public consultations because we want the voice of our community to be heard.”