10,000 new homes planned for Woollahra station – where will they be built?

The NSW government has said it will finally open a train station in the inner-city Sydney suburb of Woollahra, after a partially complete facility was abandoned in the 1970s. 

Local opposition proved too strong for the NSW government in 1972 when the Sydney Morning Herald declared that a “battle” had erupted over the Woollahra train station, in the city’s inner east. 

Primarily, efforts were led by the Preserve Woollahra Committee, that argued the station would generate too much traffic. 

As such, the partially finished station has been lying dormant for 50 years. 

But now, premier Chris Minns has said that the government will not be deterred by local opposition and will not only finish and open the station, but rezone the area to increase housing density. 

“This new train station will allow us to deliver up to ten thousand new homes right here in the heart of Sydney, close to jobs, public transport, green space and essential services,” he said. 

In announcing the move, the NSW government revealed that housing approvals in Woollahra are consistently lower than other Sydney LGAs, and the population has declined by 11 per cent over the past 50 years while the Greater Sydney region has expanded 74 per cent. 

The state’s minister for housing and homelessness, Rose Jackson, doubled down on the premier’s assertion that the plans would go ahead, stating that the current government was “not afraid to take on NIMBYs to deliver more housing where there is the space and infrastructure to support it. This new station just makes sense”. 

Works on the station are expected to begin in 2027, with completion slated for 2029, while the rezoning of the surrounding area is expected to take two years. 

How will the area accommodate new homes? 

Woollahra train station sits in a corridor that is currently deemed an R3 zone for planning purposes.  

That means that medium-density developments such as townhouses, villa homes, and terraces are the highest level of density allowed for new development.

In Woollahra station’s north and into Edgecliff, the primary zone is R3. But to the south of the station, this medium-density zone is only about two blocks wide, with the zoning quickly stepping down to R2. 

Under R2 zoning, developers and home builders are allowed to construct detached single-family homes, dual occupancies, and semi-detached housing.

The government has made it clear that higher density housing will be accommodated around the station and into Edgecliff, so these zones are set to change. 

If R4 zoning is introduced, that could allow for high-rise living, often in larger apartment complexes. 

Being an inner-city location, there’s currently not much vacant land up for grabs in the area. So development is expected to happen progressively once the changes are enacted, with existing buildings making way for newer, higher-density constructions. 

The government has said that affordable housing will also make up a proportion of development on the site with the final amount of affordable housing required to be determined as part of the rezoning process. 

Meeting opposition head-on 

Alluding to a February 2024 Productivity Commission report that said Sydney was haemorrhaging adults aged 30 to 40, Ms Jackson appealed to Woollahra residents’ emotions – and age, in announcing the decision to rezone the area. 

“For so many the Australian dream has slipped out of reach and if nothing changes our city will be one with no grandchildren,” she said. 

The government stressed that it had already assessed the area’s infrastructure and found that local schools have the capacity to accept an influx of children, and essential services could accommodate the number of new residents.  

“Sydney Water and Infrastructure NSW have confirmed there is capacity in the water and wastewater systems to accommodate the proposed 10,000 dwellings without major upgrades,” the government said. 

Mr Minns flagged that the government intended to pay for part of the construction of Woollahra train station through “value capture” on increased land value by charging a per-home amount to real estate developers that realise higher prices thanks to the station upgrade. 

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