Parramatta’s new Metro precinct is set to accommodate 470 build-to-rent apartments and 500 student units under revised plans for development above and around the future station.
A consortium led by Gamuda Engineering, involving Gamuda and MTR Corporation, has secured the $880 million contract to design and build the station, surrounding precinct and integrated developments.
The proposal lifts the number of residential units at the site from 111 under the concept plan approved in March 2025 to 970, including the student accommodation. The designs remain subject to further development and planning approval, with final proposals to be placed on public exhibition.
Four buildings are planned across the site between Church, Macquarie and George streets: a 43-storey build-to-rent tower containing 470 apartments, a 29-storey commercial tower, a 24-storey student accommodation building with 500 units and an eight-storey hotel.
Transport Minister John Graham said the project had moved beyond tunnelling and excavation.
The precinct will be built around a landscaped park forming part of Parramatta’s planned Civic Link, which will connect the city centre with the new Powerhouse Museum and the Parramatta River foreshore
“We’ve finished the tunnelling and the station box, now we’re powering into the next phase, which is building the station and the hundreds of homes that will come with it,” Mr Graham said.
“These plans give a great snapshot of the future of Parramatta – hundreds of homes, student accommodation, office space, and vibrant public spaces all footsteps from rapid public transport that will get you to the Sydney CBD in 20 minutes.”
The precinct will be built around a landscaped park forming part of Parramatta’s planned Civic Link, which will connect the city centre with the new Powerhouse Museum and the Parramatta River foreshore. Pedestrian laneways will provide links to existing rail, light rail and bus services.
Mr Graham said the government was seeking to extract more value from the Metro project through development around its stations.
“By boosting housing, we are maximising the benefits of this once-in-a-generation transport investment,” he said.
Planning and Public Spaces Minister Paul Scully said locating housing near major transport links, employment and services was “sensible city planning”.
“Increasing the number of homes on this site from 111 to 970 homes shows what is possible when we take a considered approach to planning around new infrastructure,” Mr Scully said.
“The Minns Labor Government is committed to unlocking housing supply in the right locations, and Parramatta’s city centre, sitting alongside a new metro station, in an area surrounded by jobs, green space and services is exactly the right location for a mix of homes, student accommodation, and commercial space.”
He said the proposed park and its connections to surrounding attractions would give the development a public role beyond its residential and commercial uses.
“This precinct will also deliver genuine public benefit, with a new landscaped park connecting into Parramatta’s Civic Link, the Powerhouse Museum and the river foreshore, giving the community a real destination as well as new homes,” Mr Scully said.
Construction of the station is scheduled to begin in mid-2027 and is expected to be completed for the planned opening of Sydney Metro West in 2032.
The contract follows three years of excavation and structural work by a workforce of up to 2,196 people. The completed station box is 192 metres long, 25 metres wide and 28 metres deep.
The work also involved what the government described as the largest archaeological investigation undertaken in NSW. More than 100,000 artefacts were recovered, including Aboriginal material linked to the Burramattagal clan of the Darug Nation and remains of convict huts dating to about 1790.
“The fascinating archaeological discoveries tell the stories of Parramatta’s past, while the Metro station plans tell the story its future,” Mr Graham said.
Member for Parramatta Donna Davis said the development would combine transport with housing, offices and hotel accommodation.
“Parramatta Metro will bring together the key elements to support our thriving city with hotel rooms, commercial office space and housing confirmed to be built above the new metro station,” Ms Davis said.
“Great cities buzz and this focus on housing, jobs and tourism above the Metro will cement Parramatta as a destination to live, work, study and explore.”
The state government is also procuring integrated station developments at Sydney Olympic Park and Pyrmont, with contracts expected to be awarded by the end of 2026.
Planning changes associated with Metro West are expected to allow tens of thousands of additional homes across several precincts, including 8,500 at Bays West, 7,300 around Wentworth Park in Pyrmont, 15,000 at Sydney Olympic Park and 18,000 each at Burwood North and North Strathfield.
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