Leading By Example

With Sydney continuing its dominance as one of the top cities in the world in which to live, placemaking has been brought further into the limelight by both government and developers.

- Robbie Wilson

Sydney has some of the best parks of any major city in the world. From its network of parklands to its vast open spaces, the capital of New South Wales (NSW) has been designed to maximise outdoor living for its 5.3 million residents. A 50-year vision announced last year will see the entire metropolitan area under a single plan.

NSW Planning and Public Spaces Minister Rob Stokes said, “The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how we need to change the way we look at our public spaces – not as parks in a city but rather as Sydney as a city within a park.”

Placemaking is taken very seriously in this part of the world. For the uninitiated, placemaking refers to the process involved in strengthening the connection between people and the places they share.

By reimagining and then capitalising on a community's assets – including parks, waterfronts, plazas, streets, markets, and both public and private buildings – placemaking can create high-quality spaces that contribute to people's health, happiness, and wellbeing. Examples of this can include public art installations, pop-up parks, laneway activations, and food and music festivals.

With placemaking in mind, late last year the NSW government set up a new independent advisory committee for the purpose of guiding the creation of great places across the entire state.

To achieve this, four objectives were developed to ensure that Sydney remains a cultural and creative city. This is part of the Sustainable Sydney 2030 plan which entails the following: Encourage the appreciation and development of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural heritage and its expression, as there is still not enough being done to help with cultural understanding and respect as well as the economic impact that comes with a lack of employment opportunities.