Chair's Report

On behalf of the Board of the Western Parkland City Authority, I am pleased to present the 2020-21 Annual Report.

While 2020-21 was again a challenging year, with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the once-in-a-generation floods being felt particularly in the Western Parkland City, the Authority continued to work on building foundations for a more resilient future for our city.

We started 2020-21 with an expanded remit for the Authority, extending beyond the Aerotropolis and out to the entire Western Parkland City, covering eight local government areas. This has allowed us to not only focus on delivering a new city centre next to the Western Sydney International Airport, but connecting it with the metropolitan clusters of Penrith, Liverpool, Campbelltown-Macarthur and their surrounding regions. We are also coordinating the infrastructure that will be needed to support growth across the Western Parkland City.

With this expanded remit, the Authority began laying the foundations for what will be known as the Bradfield City Centre, in honour of visionary designer and engineer John Bradfield, backed by an investment by the NSW Government of more than $1 billion.

Just as Bradfield’s most famous project, the Sydney Harbour Bridge, opened up opportunities for a young nation, so too will this visionary development for a new generation of Australians.

The Bradfield City Centre will be Australia’s first clean-energy, hydrogen-ready, cyber-secure city, with commercial and community facilities including retail, cultural and childcare. Work on the Bradfield City Centre will support thousands of construction jobs. Over time, The Bradfield City Centre will accommodate up to 17,600 people in ongoing highly skilled jobs and help create a diversity of employment opportunities across the Western Parkland City.

The foundations we are laying are also building on the natural endowments of the Western Parkland City. With its young and aspirational workforce, the Western Parkland City can deliver the skilled people needed to become an Indo-Pacific magnet for new high-tech, high-productivity industries. The New Education and Training Model, to be piloted in the Western Parkland City over the next four years, will help attract international and local industry investment by training up local workers in the latest technology and techniques. We want to not only create more jobs, but more diverse jobs that position the Western Parkland City as a leader in the Indo-Pacific, particularly in sectors like aerospace, advanced manufacturing, defence, agribusiness and pharmaceuticals, freight and logistics, health and education.

Finally, I would like to acknowledge the work of my Board colleagues throughout 2020-21 for their strategic guidance and oversight of the work of the Authority. Their collective experience and expertise has helped to shape the vision for the Western Parkland City and will continue to be invaluable as we shift from concept to delivery in the coming years.

Jennifer Westacott AO
Chair
Western Parkland City Authority