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Riverwood

Priority growth areas and precincts

Riverwood

At a glance

  • Revised rezoning proposal now finalised
  • We exhibited the revised proposal between 8 March and 8 April 2024
  • 420 homes including new social housing
  • Changes to density and building forms to support new residential flat building
  • Realignment of Virginia Place with a shared cycleway and pedestrian path
  • Potential for future local retail shops and a supermarket

State-shaping precinct: precincts that typically create substantial, additional economic value, and are led by multiple agencies in partnership with local council. These require a significant level of whole-of-NSW government leadership.

Overview

Riverwood is home to a strong and growing community. It offers easy access to public transport and open space.

Riverwood Estate is close to Riverwood station, giving people access to jobs in the Sydney CBD and around the airport. It currently has about 1,000 social housing dwellings, private homes and council-owned land on more than 30 ha.

The Minister for Planning declared Riverwood a state-significant precinct (SSP) on 5 March 2021. This means that the NSW Government will lead the rezoning for the precinct.

Homes NSW prepared a revised proposal for a section of the entire estate, covering an area of 1.6 ha in the north-east of the site. The revised proposal includes about 420 new homes, of which 50% will be social and affordable housing. The department exhibited the revised rezoning proposal from 8 March to 8 April 2024.

What's happening now

We have reviewed the feedback we received during the exhibition period and considered this as we finalised the plan. Find out more about how we have responded to feedback by reading the Riverwood Estate SSP.

The finalised, revised proposal supports earlier delivery of homes. It includes new social and affordable homes for the Riverwood Estate that can be supported with suitable infrastructure and community facilities.

What's happened so far

In 2022, the NSW Land and Housing Corporation (now part of Home NSW) sought approval for new planning controls to support the renewal of Riverwood. The rezoning proposal was exhibited from 12 August to 25 September 2022.

The Study Requirements – Riverwood Estate SSP (PDF, 727 KB) includes preparing a place framework to embed planning for Country and an overall design that suits the site in the studies and assessment.

The rezoning proposal aimed to transform the 30-hectare site to create 3,900 social and private homes over the next 15 to 20 years and add 5 ha of new and improved open space.

The department worked with City of Canterbury–Bankstown and Georges River councils to review the proposal. This was to ensure that we deliver NSW Government priorities for revitalised social housing in line with a plan that suits the local environment, community and economy.

As part of this process, Homes NSW prepared a response to submissions, which includes changes to the original rezoning proposal.

For more information go to the NSW Land and Housing Corporation's Riverwood Estate renewal.

Timeline

  1. Original proposal exhibition

    12 August to 25 September 2022

  2. Exhibition of revised proposal

    8 March to 8 April 2024

    Feedback from the exhibition will inform the final rezoning package and new planning controls for the precinct.

  3. Finalisation

    Mid 2024

    Rezoning finalised.