September 1, 2021
George St South Pedestrianisation project
The City of Sydney is extending the pedestrian boulevard of George Street, Sydney from Bathurst Street to Railway Square. The council says George treet south, pedestrianised from Bathurst Street to Rawson Place, will create 9,000m2 of additional car-free space in the city centre. The mid-block sections between Bathurst Street and Goulburn Street are now open.
Intersection works are ongoing at Bathurst Street, Liverpool Street and Goulburn Street, as well as pedestrianisation works at the Chinatown station and blocks south of Goulburn Street (both east and west sides).
Work will predominantly be carried out during the day between 7am and 5pm (Monday to Saturday). Some noise restricted activities will occur between 5pm and 10:30pm but will not be programmed to be continuous. To manage safety requirements, a weekend of continuous works has been scheduled from 8-11 October during the Light Rail operator’s programmed maintenance closure.
The estimated construction period for the overall project is March 2021 to Mid 2022. The Chamber will liaise with the Council to explore ways to speed up the construction process.
Haymarket to transform into tech hub
Developers and investors are circling Sydney’s Haymarket and Central Station precinct for more mixed-use projects for the burgeoning future tech hub, ahead of expected growth after the pandemic.
One of the latest deals gaining attention is the potential to combine two properties in the Haymarket precinct worth about $350 million, to create a near 80-storey office tower and a potential hotel. These are 757-763 George St, and the adjoining 187 Thomas Street. Leading the tech hub will be the HQ of Australian start-up Atlassian, with a 40-level skyscraper at 8-10 Lee Street in the Central tech precinct.
COVID-19 vaccination
With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic still continuing to affect Sydney amid the latest lockdown, the Chamber strongly encourages its members to get vaccinated. The Australian Government has provided some information about vaccination translated into other languages in the below links:
