Employment lands strategy

Focuses on securing Sydney’s economic future by facilitating new business and industry opportunity, providing employment across a range of sectors and protecting land for strategic industrial activity and essential urban services.

Published
Decorative

The southern employment lands are some of the most strategically located in Australia, being of local, metropolitan, state and national economic significance. They host regional and global roles and connections, being only 3km south of Sydney’s city centre and even closer to Sydney Airport and Port Botany.

The lands are also in close proximity to 2 major planned centres, Green Square town centre to the north and Mascot station precinct to the south. The southern employment lands contain more than 300,000 jobs across a range of high-value sectors including finance, insurance, business and technical services, education, technology, media, retail, arts, entertainment and tourism services.

The 2014 employment lands study assessed the long-term demand for industrial and business-zoned employment land in the city. The study was informed by extensive consultation with landowners and occupiers, adjoining communities, business operators and organisations with a strategic interest in the area.

The employment lands strategy focuses on securing Sydney’s economic future by retaining essential employment lands and making space for more businesses and new jobs. The strategy also allows for some housing, including affordable housing, in suitable locations.

We are currently reviewing the strategy. This page will be updated when the revised strategy is finalised and adopted by Council.

Retaining and managing employment land

The NSW Government planning priority E12 recognises the importance of industrial activity and urban services to Greater Sydney, state and national economies under the eastern city district plan. It gives effect to the state government’s Greater Sydney region plan, A Metropolis of Three Cities, to retain and manage industrial and urban services land.

Planning for the employment lands

Until 2015 most of our employment lands area was zoned for industrial purposes. However changes in the Australian economy meant a more flexible approach to the range of permitted industrial and urban services was required.

In June 2015, following the employment lands study and employment lands strategy, most of the southern employment lands were rezoned to allow for a wider range of business activities and employment opportunities. Some industrial land was retained to ensure industrial activities and urban services that need to locate close to the city can continue to do so.

Planning for the southern employment lands was done in consultation with communities, landowners, government organisations and key stakeholders such as Sydney Airport and Port Botany.

Changes to planning controls were also informed by a number of technical studies including traffic and transport, urban design, affordable housing, economic and infrastructure.

The planning controls in force for the employment lands are in the Sydney Local Environmental Plan 2012 and Sydney Development Control Plan 2012.

Council report: 24 March 2015PDF · 3.14 MB · Last modified
Council and CSPC resolutions: 30 March and 26 MarchPDF · 167.31 KB · Last modified
Planning proposal: AdoptedPDF · 2.36 MB · Last modified
Planning proposal: Appendix A – Planning proposal mapsPDF · 13.13 MB · Last modified
Planning proposal: Appendix B – Employment lands studyPDF · 12.82 MB · Last modified
Planning proposal: Appendix C – Employment lands strategyPDF · 2.62 MB · Last modified
Planning proposal: Appendix E – Drafting instructionsPDF · 193.7 KB · Last modified
Planning proposal: Appendix F – Economic opportunities studyPDF · 1.53 MB · Last modified
Planning proposal: Appendix G – Traffic and transport studyPDF · 3.02 MB · Last modified
Planning proposal: Appendix H – Affordable housing needs analysisPDF · 489.83 KB · Last modified
Adopted DCP 2012 amendmentPDF · 4.37 MB · Last modified
Appendix A: Adopted DCP map amendmentPDF · 17.67 MB · Last modified
Southern employment lands urban design studyPDF · 4.15 MB · Last modified
Gateway determinationPDF · 177.71 KB · Last modified
Sydney Local Environmental Plan 2012 (Amendment No 17)PDF · 176.9 KB · Last modified
Project chronologyPDF · 88.62 KB · Last modified
Employment lands mapPDF · 1.34 MB · Last modified