Lidcombe: Carter Street Precinct to have primary school, 6200 homes

A masterplan for a bustling neighbourhood with thousands of new homes in the centre of Sydney has been revealed but a question mark hangs over public transport for the community.

A masterplan for a bustling neighbourhood with 6200 homes and primary school at Lidcombe’s Carter Street Precinct has been revealed.

The State Government said the precinct, next to Sydney Olympic Park, would be transformed into a green and vibrant community with the finalisation of its masterplan, which includes three hectares of open space, a primary school site, widening of Hill Rd, a community centre and an extra 700 homes near the proposed Sydney Metro West station at Olympic Park.

The Planning Department’s deputy secretary for place and infrastructure in greater Sydney, Brett Whitworth, said the new masterplan would give the area the ingredients to become a thriving precinct with a quick connection to Sydney Olympic Park and the future Sydney Metro West.

Lidcombe’s Carter Street Precinct will feature three hectares of open space.

“Carter Street will be a wonderful place to raise a family, centred around three hectares of open space connected to a primary school, a vibrant village centre and pedestrian and cycle paths linking to the existing network and to Sydney Olympic Park,” Mr Whitworth said.

He said height limits would vary across the precinct with higher buildings closer to the future Metro station to allow more homes within walking distance of public transport.

“The extra heights allowed for some buildings will be offset by a reduction in car spaces to reduce traffic and encourage public transport use,’’ he said.

More than 6000 residents will call the Carter Street Precinct home.

“Among the features to encourage walking and cycling, there is a tree-lined pedestrian ‘spine’ running east-west through the precinct.’’

“Our new development framework ensures each building will have an individual architectural

character, all set in a leafy precinct crisscrossed by cycleways and pedestrian pathways,” Mr

Whitworth said.

He said building 10m or higher would be designed by architects selected by a design excellence panel after reviewing submissions to “ensure this neighbourhood is both very liveable and aesthetically pleasing’’.

Despite the Metro station, business leaders and community groups have called for stage two of the Parramatta Light Rail to be delivered to serve communities such as Carter Street and existing suburbs of Wentworth Point and Melrose Park where the population is exploding.

However, last month, Transport Minister Andrew Constance indicated trams would not proceed through those communities.

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