THE concept plan for a 47-storey office tower above Westfield Parramatta, which will add thousands of square metres of new commercial space and support hundreds of construction jobs in Sydney’s second CBD, has been given the green light by the NSW Government.
Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Rob Stokes has approved an increase of 22 storeys to the original proposal which equated to an extra 105,000 square metres of commercial floor space.
“Parramatta’s status as Sydney’s second CBD will be further enhanced by this development. It will bring jobs to Sydney’s west and capitalise on city-shaping projects like Parramatta Light Rail and Sydney Metro West,” Mr Stokes said.
“As Minister for Planning, it is my goal to ensure we have the right development in the right place at the right time, and this proposal does that. It will add to the exciting mix of developments that are reshaping Parramatta’s skyline, such as those in Parramatta Square.
“Since 2020, the NSW Government has approved 19 State Significant projects in the Parramatta LGA, generating more than $7.9B in capital investment value and more than 5,500 jobs.”
Member for Parramatta Geoff Lee said the Westfield development was perfectly positioned near the train station and would provide 700 construction jobs and 2,200 operational jobs.
“This $670M project is a major boost to the Parramatta economy and will provide close to 3,000 jobs at a time when NSW is moving to bounce back from the COVID-19 pandemic,” Mr Lee said.
“This is part of Parramatta’s post-lockdown pandemic future. More office workers will mean more money for local businesses who are doing it tough right now.
The applicant will now need to hold a design competition for the tower. Detailed public domain street designs will be finalised after a development application is lodged.
