Broadway set to become a “windswept high rise canyon”
By Anne von Fehrn
Chippendale and Ultimo residents have to put up with yet another large scale development on Broadway which will include permanent closure of Jones Street and an increase in high rise buildings.
This week, the University of Technology (UTS) launched its Master Plan to extend and refurbish its scattered campus site in the Broadway and Haymarket district, assuring that the plans will create a better environment for both students and locals.
‘We are trying to make the university an open place for students and staff as well as the public,’ Patrick Woods, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Resources), said. ‘There will be an experimental cinema, new coffee shops, galleries and green spaces for the public to visit.’
But the multimillion dollar project due to begin mid this year includes the building of several new high rises up to 20 storeys. The first construction site between Wattle and Jones streets is to be finished in 2011 while the entire Master Plan aims to reach completion by 2015. In case of a slow building process, this might add up to the year 2020.
The Chippendale Residents Interest Group (CRIG) welcomes the upgrading of the campus with the aim to encourage the local community to use it. But they said local infrastructure would need to be upgraded to accommodate the massive influx of students, traffic and the doubling of the population of the district due to the Fraser’s site (former CUB site), currently under construction.
UTS is expecting to increase its student numbers by a third and add 80.000m2 to its existing campus.
‘Already local footpaths around UTS and Railway Square, as well the access to Central Station via the Devonshire Tunnel, are beyond safe capacity during peak periods,’ a spokesperson for the group said.
Patrick Woods said UTS is planning to open up the Ultimo Pedestrian Network between Central and Darling Harbour to create more flow for people. ‘We want to encourage our student and staff to use public transport or the bicycle to get to campus,’ he said.
But CRIG says this won’t be enough. ‘We call on the Redfern-Waterloo Authority, the City of Sydney, Fraser’s and UTS to co-operate to create a new pedestrian and cycle connection from Redfern Station through ‘The Block’ and over Cleveland Street, through the CUB site and UTS campus and onto Darling Harbour,’ the spokesperson said. This would encourage non-car travel and help relieve pressure on Central Station and Railway Square.
UTS is holding two community drop-in session attended by senior staff and planners to discuss the issues with residents. Those sessions will be held on
Wednesday, 4 February from 4’7pm and Saturday, 7 February from noon’2pm.
For more details on the project, view the UTS Master Plan, on display in the UTS Tower foyer from 19 January’16 February. The exhibition of the plan is open on weekdays from 10am’8pm and on weekends from 10am’4pm.
