$3.2 billion masterplan lodged for Rhodes waterfront site

Plans for a $3.2 billion, eight-tower waterfront precinct delivering more than 1,800 homes and expansive public open space have been submitted for Rhodes in Sydney's Inner West.

The state significant development application - submitted to the New South Wales Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) - covers a 3.1-hectare area comprising four amalgamated sites at the northern tip of the Rhodes peninsula, fronting Cavell Avenue, Averill Street and Leeds Street. The site has direct frontage to the Parramatta River.

Designed by SJB, the proposed masterplan accommodates eight residential towers and 16,000 square metres of new public open space, along with facilities for sport and water activities and a retail and dining precinct.

The project aims to unlock previously privately owned industrial land at the foreshore and establish connected walking and cycling paths along the river. SJB partner and urban designer Frankie Layson said the Rhodes Bay masterplan "integrates social infrastructure, supports an activated foreshore precinct, and calibrates height, daylight and open-space outcomes to create a high-amenity, mixed-use waterfront district."

Developer Billbergia said the masterplan builds on the 2021 Rhodes Place Strategy, a long-term planning framework to establish additional housing, workplaces, and public open space in the precinct.

Plans are anticipated to be publicly exhibited in early 2026, and construction is expected to commence in stages from late 2026, subject to approval.