Pyrmont Decline

Urban Growth and Decline in Pyrmont:

Issue: Implications for sustainability, social justice and equality associated with the urban consolidation in Pyrmont (i.e. How economically and environmentally sustainable are the impacts of the issue and who are the winners and losers)

Thesis: With a rapid increase in population, scarcity of inner city land, and the need to provide economic and environmentally sustainable urban dwellings, Pyrmont has undergone renewal and consolidation, which has encouraged high-income, high-density living. However this has created a widening social gap between the rich and the poor.

Introducing Pyrmont:

Pyrmont is a component of the City of Sydney, which is a capital council that is accountable for the commercial, financial,

environmental and cultural aspects of the region. With 50% of people aged between 20-34 (young professionals), it would be suitable to characterise the population of this community by its age structure. As Pyrmont undertook one of Australia’s most large-scale urban renewal projects, the transformation that was embarked on has led to a thriving commercial, business and residential precent that has accommodated this booming and diverse population. (Helen McIsaac, Glyn Trethewy, Sue van Zuylen, 2007, Chapter 9.3)

The redevelopment of the area and immense transformation has led to a population of over 20,000 people and is set to rise further in the future with the completion of the project. Pyrmont is considered the highest density living area with 11,618 within a km2. (ABS, 2012, page 1). This recent influx is due to its close proximity to the CBD (2km away), easy accessibility to transportation and sense of a close- knit community that has a diverse composition of people. Also following in the footsteps of this redevelopment, the 2012 census states that the area has become much more multicultural, with only 35% of residents being born in Australia.

Situated within the heartland of Pyrmont, there exists a variety of medium-density housing types (34.5%), high-rise apartments (70.2%), designs for harbour side parks and vast open spaces as well as a large influx of white-collar industries and over 3,396 businesses. (Helen McIsaac, Glyn Trethewy, Sue van Zuylen, 2007, Chapter 9.3)
Map of Pyrmont:

Primary Sources:
Field Sketch 1

Field Sketch 2

Aim of Fieldwork:
With a rapid increase in population, scarcity of inner city land, and the need to provide economic and environmentally sustainable urban dwellings, Pyrmont has undergone renewal and consolidation, which has encouraged high-income, high-density living. However this has created a widening social gap between the rich and the poor.

Primary information includes fieldwork, observations and surveys that were conducted on the excursion, along with hand-drawn sketches and photographs that were taken of the Pyrmont area.

This information will be used to help reference and support my observations.

Secondary research includes using the web as the most prominent source, as well as textbooks that document the history and future plans of the area. Hand-outs given out in class of completed surveys will also be used as a starting point for gathering statistics as they are concise and easy slot into to the RAP. With the utilisation of both of these resource types, the compiled RAP will be a reliable collection, consisting of a diversity of findings and information.

Nature of the Issue:

Pyrmont was not always a contemporary, well-developed and up to date region, but was once the heartland of a thriving industrial manufacturing export site. Dating back to the 19th century, Pyrmont was thought to be a “slum” region, with urban decay picking up after the World War II as older residents took to the suburbs and industries were forced to shut down due to a lack of work. (PH, 2008, page

1)
Attracted by the convenience of inner city living close to their jobs, the incoming groups of young high-income earners soon become entrenched in the area, and have led to a widening of the social gap between the rich and the poor.

(Helen McIsaac, Glyn Trethewy, Sue van Zuylen, 2007, Chapter 9.3). The blue and white-collar workers and the new and long-term residents had all without a doubt been cut down the middle.

After Pyrmont’s peak in the 1940’s, the population of this working class sector began to decline, due to a combination of the technology revolution in the 1990’s, a decrease in the demand for sea transportation, and the classification of Pyrmont as a low socio- economic area.

The information age and advances in communication technology set the foundation for Pyrmont’s step into the next millennium. The area had now undergone major urban renewal, with large technology and media companies, such as Channel 7, Channel 10 and Fairfax Media setting up their state, domestic and international headquarters here (SHFA, 2013, Page

1).
This new urban design enterprise has led to the creation of one of Sydney’s largest white-collar technology hubs, but has also led to the recent explosive growth in property prices, reduced street parking and traffic congestion. With these continued pressures, many of the original tenants will no longer be able to sustain a lifestyle that they have been accustomed to, within the area where they were either born or bred.
With the demise of almost all of the heavy industrial activity in the area, those buildings have been replaced by low and high-rise residential and commercial developments, and continue to contribute to the growing scarcity of land. As a result of this, the need to consolidate upwards to support the expanding population has risen steeply, with a significant increase in high-rise buildings. Along with the incursion of these new buildings, the occupancy price has increased disproportionally as well, meaning that in economic terms, the area is becoming a high-income residential area, that will contain minimal numbers of original housing tenants. (Inner Sydney Voice, 2013, Page 1)
Findings:
With a rapid increase in population, scarcity of inner city land, and the need to provide economic and environmentally sustainable urban dwellings, Pyrmont has undergone renewal and consolidation, which has encouraged high-income, high-density living. However this has created a widening social gap between the rich and the poor.
Following the loss of its heavy industrial manufacturing export base, the Pyrmont area underwent a period of urban decay, before evolving and achieving major urban renewal. Today it is a flourishing and booming community situated on the edge of the city centre. (PH, 2008, page 1).

Through an analysis of the primary information, it became clear that although we are able to see the transformations and benefits that have been brought about by such developments, the change in the demographic characteristics of the population is an aspect that has led to much controversy.
As blue-collar employment has declined, and has been replaced with an incursion of white-collar workers, we have seen a high proportion of long-term residents being forced to exit the area. (Hackdays, 2009, Page 1)
This departure of blue-collar workers has come about as a result of the price increases imposed by severe and drastic redevelopment schemes, which mandated open spaces and inner city parklands as part of the development of high-rise apartments and commercial buildings and estates.
The need to build upwards and make use of the valuable air-space resources, has meant that the cost of living in the area has increased dramatically, with property prices for new buildings being determined by the views and amenities that they offer. (Geographical Issues, 2013, Page 1-3)
However, the original residents or those from a lower socio-economic background were not overlooked due to their age or financial status. Attempts at equality have been made by the state government, who have administered the Better Cities urban renewal program through City West Housing Pty Ltd, an organisation that specializes in developing better quality public housing for the less fortunate residents of the area.
Like all substantial refurbishment and redevelopment projects, the Pyrmont scheme generated a number of issues, such as the sparking of a rapidly expanding population with detrimental effects on the local economy and environment. This leaves us having to address the topics of environmental and social sustainability. (Syndey, Year Unknown, Page 1) With Australia’s national population booming and diversifying, the range of additional infrastructure being required was key to the generation of new businesses and higher density urban consolidation.
The Pyrmont area also endured a fast growth and change in the transportation sector, which has facilitated economic growth, trade, and domestic investment. Car usage and multiple car ownership is a common facet that is often associated with the outer Sydney suburbs, however, due to the close proximity of the Pyrmont area to the CBD, this area tends to steer away from extensive car usage.

Ferries, light-rail, buses and rail networks are all easily accessible and were part of the original plan by the government and local city council to improve facilities and link regional areas together for improved access. The speed of bringing these new transportation hubs to fruition, was vital to supporting the ever increasing consumer demand for goods and services that the new entrants to the area required. (Skwirk, 2008, Page 1)
But in spite of all this, there is a question of how sustainable all this growth can be. For example, for many years the monorail was one of Sydney’s largest tourist attractions that assisted local trade to grow and expand. However, in recent times we have seen a huge reduction in its usage, to the point where it became economically unviable. The bottom line is that nothing is ever constant or permanent.
As our cities are continuously expanding - upwards as well as outwards – our natural environment bears the cost of this urban overheating. More and more space and natural resources are required for the construction of houses and the transformation of heavy manufacturing industries into modern commercial businesses which ultimately lead to a scarcity of inner-city green land.
Over many lifetimes, Australia has been a country of great biodiversity, however the disruption of ecosystems and damage to natural habitats that comes with urban consolidation, the amount of diversified land surrounding city centres is being dramatically reduced. (Environment and Heritage, Year Unknown, Page 1)
As well as the issue of land clearing, a growing and increasing population means that there are additional costs associated with infrastructure, sewage disposal, energy consumption and pollution, all of which are being subjected to a much higher usage.
Pyrmont’s rapid increase in population density and the increasing scarcity of land that can accommodate this growing population has meant that many resource allocations priorities have had to be reconsidered. The overriding goal is that a balance needs to be struck between catering for the original residents, the new entrants to the area, sustainable amounts of open spaces and the provision of facilities such as transportation, sewage and retail amenities. While many of these objectives may conflict with each other, the long-term goal for Pyrmont must include at some level, the wishes of the people as well as a sustainable environment that can be enjoyed by all.
Recommendations:
To the NSW Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority.
Whilst the benefits of the Pyrmont redevelopment and transformation scheme have been clear to many, there are some concerns that a number of tenants living in the Housing Commission buildings have begun to experience the negative impacts of this program on their rental costs and access to street parking.
With the recent explosive growth in property prices, City West Housing have sought to reassess the rents paid by the tenants, particularly at a time when the unemployment rates for these unskilled or semi-skilled workers have been steadily rising in and around the Pyrmont area.
As the remit for City West Housing is to provide affordable homes for many of the area’s original residents, we are requesting that the Authority reviews decoupling the links between general property prices and those in Government assisted properties.
Without this, the continued pressure of rising rents will mean that shortly, many of these tenants will no longer be able to live in the area where they were either born or bred.
Additionally, with the influx of wealthier young professionals, the numbers of street parking slots available have reduced significantly. With the increased demand, tenants are also facing higher permit prices which restricts their options for having suitable transportation for work and leisure activities. We therefore request that the Authority makes available a suitable number of permit parking spaces available nearby with any annual increases pegged to CPI rather than those that are driven solely by demand.
Kind regards,