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South Eveleigh Train Workshop

Priority growth areas and precincts

Building shell in Redfern, Sydney CBD NSW. Credit: NSW Department of Planning and Environment / Salty Dingo

At a glance

  • Celebration of the heritage and local character of the area
  • Creation of innovation employment to strengthen the NSW economy
  • Enhanced public domain

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.

South Eveleigh Train Workshop overview

The South Eveleigh Train Workshop (heritage-listed as the Large Erecting Shop) is located in the north-western corner of the South Eveleigh precinct (PDF, 615 KB), previously known as the Australian Technology Park.

The South Eveleigh Precinct has an overall area of approximately 14 hectares and occupies the southern side of the Eveleigh Railway Workshops. The precinct has been progressively redeveloped since the mid-1990s enabling a mix of commercial and retail uses.

The workshop is heritage-listed as part of the Eveleigh Railway Workshops. It was completed in 1899 and played a pivotal role in the maintenance and erection of steam locomotives for over 70 years.

The workshop has most recently been used to store heritage locomotives and equipment. Transport for NSW (TfNSW) has announced plans to relocate remaining locomotives and equipment to facilities at Chullora.

View precinct map

Rezoning proposal

TfNSW prepared a rezoning proposal which sought to change the planning controls that apply to the workshop to allow it to be adaptively reused for a mix of commercial and retail uses. The proposal was exhibited for public comment between 13 October and 24 November 2022.

The department was responsible for gathering submissions and assessing the rezoning proposal. The rezoning proposal was finalised on 9 June 2023.

The rezoning will support the conservation and revitalisation of the workshop and the delivery of new employment floor space supporting up to 1,000 jobs, while ensuring that its history and heritage significance is respected.

You can view the rezoning proposal, submissions received during public exhibition, TfNSW’s response to those submissions, and the department’s assessment on the NSW Planning Portal.

What happens next

The development application for the adaptive reuse of the workshop will be guided by the new planning controls and assessed by the department as State significant development (SSD).

The community will have the opportunity to provide feedback on the SSD application, which must be approved before construction can begin.

More information on the SSD application is available on the Major Projects section of the NSW Planning Portal.

Timeline

  1. Study requirements

    May 2022

    The study requirements will guide TfNSW investigations into proposed new planning controls for the workshop and help them prepare a draft planning proposal for consideration.

  2. Proposal preparation

    Mid 2022

    TfNSW as applicant will prepare a draft rezoning proposal supported by technical documentation.

  3. Proposal exhibition

    13 Oct 2022 - 24 Nov 2022

    The rezoning proposal aims to deliver a mixed-use development with commercial and retail uses.

  4. Proposal finalised

    June 2023

    TfNSW will amend their rezoning proposal based on the community feedback which is then assessed by the department and recommended to the Minster for Planning for determination.

    If approved all future development applications are assessed against the new planning controls.