Welcome
Welcome to the Waterloo Renewal Project
A unique urban village on Gadigal Land
As one of Australia’s largest and most significant urban renewal initiatives, the Waterloo Renewal Project aims to enhance the strength and diversity of Waterloo and the community that calls this place home.
The vision is to deliver a unique and vibrant mixed-tenure housing neighbourhood that creates significant social benefit for the community alongside much needed housing. It will deliver new homes, community spaces, parks, shops and services in a sustainable precinct, underpinned by a commitment to respect, honour and celebrate Aboriginal people and Gadigal culture.
Waterloo South is the first stage of the Waterloo Renewal Project, which is being delivered by the Waterloo Partnership and Homes NSW. Learn more about the project partners by visiting the ‘Stay in Touch’ page.
The Concept Application and Rezoning for Waterloo South is now on Public Exhibition. View information about the plans, how to make a submission and ways the team can help, by visiting the ‘Concept Application and Rezoning’ page.
Key features of Waterloo South
- Around 3,300 new homes, including 50% social and affordable housing
- Prioritising Aboriginal housing – 20% of all social and 15% of all affordable housing managed by Birribee Housing and prioritised for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander tenants
- Comfortable and accessible apartments to meet diverse community needs, including homes for families and older people
- ‘Tenure blind’ approach to building design so social, affordable and market homes are mixed together and cannot be identified by their tenure type.
- A mix of community facilities, diverse retail and essential services to support the everyday needs of the community
- George Street becomes the ‘heart’ of the neighbourhood – a welcoming, green, main street alive with daily activity
- Community use focusedon improving access to health and wellbeing, education and support services
- Welcoming spaces to celebrate and acknowledge Aboriginal culture and identity
- Carefully designed streets and public spaces to balance activation with the management of privacy, noise and safety.
- Two new public parks for everyone to enjoy – providing welcoming places to relax, play and connect with friends, neighbours and newcomers
- Tree-lined streets that are cool and easy to navigate
- More public and private outdoor spaces – pocket parks, plazas and courtyards
- New landscaping and native plants that create thriving, healthy green spaces that welcome people to connect with nature and culture and keep Waterloo South cooler
- Designed to reduce operational carbon and deliver clean, low-cost energy to homes and businesses.
- A Skills and Redeployment Centre delivered in Stage 1 offering training, skill-building and pathways to employment
- Subsidised retail spaces to foster local businesses and startups
- Prioritising Aboriginal procurement and workforce participation during construction and beyond to create job opportunities for the local community
- At least 2,000 construction jobs plus many more ongoing jobs once construction is complete.
Looking to the past to guide the future
Waterloo has always been a place of deep cultural meaning. Long before today’s streets and buildings, this land was part of a rich landscape of creeks, wetlands and sandhills cared for by the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. These waterways and natural features supported gatherings, travel routes, food, knowledge, stories and community life for thousands of years.
As the area changed over time, Waterloo and Redfern became a cultural heartland for Aboriginal families from across NSW — a place of resilience, activism and community strength.
This history is not something separate from Waterloo today — it is part of its ongoing story. The renewal of Waterloo South is an opportunity to recognise that story, respect it, and make sure it continues into the future.
Read more about how the renewal of Waterloo South will honour Gadigal Country and Aboriginal culture through the Designing with Country approach.
Our approach to the renewal of Waterloo South is guided by a Designing with Country Framework. This means working with Aboriginal traditional owners, custodians, knowledge holders, local organisations and community members to ensure that Country — its history, culture and natural systems — is embedded in the design of the neighbourhood.
Four themes have emerged from initial engagement with Elders, traditional custodians and community, which will help guide this work:
Waterloo is a place where generations of Aboriginal families have lived, gathered, organised and supported one another. The renewal is designed to reflect that sense of belonging through welcoming public spaces, yarning places, community rooms, cultural gathering areas and opportunities for Aboriginal‑led businesses and social enterprise.
Before colonisation, movement across this area followed natural lines of travel that connected inland, coastal and cultural sites. Today, these ideas help shape how people will move through Waterloo South — particularly along George Street, which will become a pedestrian‑friendly “journey line” with spaces to pause, reflect and connect.
Water shaped this landscape. Although the natural creeks and swamps no longer flow above ground, their paths still influence how water moves through the site today. The design brings this story back through planting, curved paths, rain gardens, shaded sitting areas and “ponds” — small places to gather along everyday walking routes.
The land in Waterloo shifts from higher, drier ground to flatter areas that once held wetlands. This natural “fold” in the landscape will guide the look and feel of streets and buildings — from materials and colours to planting and shade — helping different parts of the precinct feel connected to Country.
Designing With Country is not a one-off step. It is a long-term commitment to working with community, embedding cultural knowledge, and ensuring Aboriginal voices remain central throughout planning, design, construction and beyond.
The project will continue to be guided by Aboriginal voices through continued engagement with local Aboriginal organisations and residents.
By acknowledging what this place has been— and who it has been important to — we can build a neighbourhood that honours its history, strengthens cultural identity, and supports a future where everyone feels welcome and connected.
Planning applications
Waterloo South was rezoned in 2022 after many years of community and stakeholder input. That approval set the planning rules that guide the area’s future renewal.
The next steps involve a series of planning applications that will shape the detailed design of buildings and the neighbourhood over time. To learn more about the current and future planning applications, please visit the Planning page.