2020-21 Priority: Plan for the Western Parkland City's infrastructure needs and its economic development

Achievement: Catalysing future outcomes in the Aerotropolis

In June 2021 the Premier and Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney announced more than $1 billion in funding for the Bradfield City Centre. Of this funding, $975.5 million has been committed for critical enabling infrastructure that will pave the way for the sustainable future development of the Bradfield City Centre.

Almost $1 billion for critical enabling infrastructure

This infrastructure includes roads, utilities, amenities, sustainability initiatives and other supporting infrastructure in the proposed Bradfield City Centre. This investment is estimated to catalyse between $5 billion and $14 billion in private sector development. The development of the Bradfield City Centre as a world-class city precinct will support up to 17,600 highly skilled jobs in advanced industries alone, with the flow on creation of many more supporting jobs in the Bradfield City Centre.

Achievement: Kicking off development with the First Building

Another feature of the NSW Government’s funding package for the Bradfield City Centre was support for the ‘First Building’. This includes capital investment for a $24.9 million high-tech facility which will house $22.9 million worth of shared-use equipment for research institutions and industry to collaborate.

As the name suggests, the First Building will be the inaugural development in the Bradfield City Centre. It will be a multi-purpose building for early activation of the Bradfield City Centre, with flexibility to be repurposed over time. It will also include a space for the community to visit and see the construction of the city.

This will enable the Authority to establish an on-site presence and test the commercial model for a shared technology platform to attract global manufacturers to co-locate and collaborate with local supply chains.

Funding will be provided for not only the building but for the advanced manufacturing technology that it will house as well. This will trial the concept of a planned Advanced Manufacturing Research Facility, which will support the growth of future facing industries in areas such as defence, space and aerospace, construction technologies, mining technology and logistics technology.

The NSW Government investment into these critical industrial assets will provide an opportunity to lower the cost and risk to individual businesses of adopting new manufacturing processes. It will act as a focal point for industry and researchers to come together to support the dissemination of knowledge throughout the industry while advancing existing research toward commercialisation. This investment will in turn create more diverse jobs for the Western Parkland City and help drive economic growth.

Achievement: New skills and training model to supercharge the Western Parkland City’s workforce

The NSW Government also announced $37.4 million in funding over five financial years for the Authority to develop, pilot and evaluate the New Education and Training Model (NETM) in the Western Parkland City. This new model will help to lay the foundations for a highly-skilled workforce to attract international advanced industries and support the continued growth of the Western Parkland City’s already strong manufacturing base.

100 micro-credentials across 7,000 courses for 3,000 students in the Western Parkland City

Under the model, industry and training providers will partner to deliver micro-credentials that rapidly skill up their workforce. Paired with the Advanced Manufacturing Research Facility, the NETM will be able to train staff in the use of new technologies and techniques quickly and easily, making the Western Parkland City a focal point for jobs and investment.

The funding announced in June 2021 will deliver more than 100 micro-credentials for 3,000 students undertaking 7,000 courses over the course of the pilot. The NETM pilot will focus on key emerging industries in the  Western Parkland City, including advanced manufacturing, transport and logistics, defence, aerospace and agribusiness.

Achievement: Creating the first City Blueprint and Economic Development Roadmap for the Western Parkland City

The Authority is developing a City Blueprint for the Western Parkland City, looking at current infrastructure and planning commitments and investments and focusing on how best to tackle critical issues and barriers, optimise opportunities and address gaps. The City Blueprint will map out the growth potential of the Western Parkland City and make recommendations on the infrastructure needs to support that growth.

Accompanying the Blueprint, the Western Parkland City Economic Development Roadmap builds on the work of each of the eight councils and several NSW Government industry development plans for economic growth.

These documents will be key technical inputs into future state-wide strategies.

Achievement: Accelerating utility delivery

The Authority is leading an Australian-first collaborative project for an innovative approach to multi-utility services. This project will make the Western Parkland City more efficient and cost-effective by planning the installation of new water, electricity, gas and digital pipelines, in conjunction with new and upgraded transport corridors.

In early 2021, the Authority established the Utility Leadership Group (ULG) as a new forum for CEOs and senior leaders of Sydney Water, Endeavour Energy, TransGrid, Jemena Gas Networks, Transport for NSW, Sydney Metro, Western Sydney Airport and the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment to work together on better ways to masterplan our utilities.

Australian-first project to make our city more efficient

Realising this new concept of multi-utility and transport corridors, as part of the vision for the Western Parkland City, will help to:

• deliver better outcomes for corridors, where greening, transport and utility services, are designed upfront enabling coordinated delivery over time;
• make more efficient use of high value land, avoid the need for the costly relocation of pipelines when new roads are constructed and reduce impacts on local communities;
• avoid, minimise and better manage the disruptive impacts of maintaining pipelines when they are located under roads with heavy traffic; and
• encourage new operational synergies between utility services, delivering benefits to customers and developers.

The Authority's work will help to develop new ways to drive early investment in multi-utility and transport corridors in the Aerotropolis.