Pyrmont/Ultimo Sydney

The City West Development Corporation was established by the NSW Government to bring about the urban renewal of Pyrmont and Ultimo as part of the Commonwealth Government’s ‘Building Better Cities’ program.

The HillPDA Team was appointed to address the economic implications of using Commonwealth funding and land disposals (over a 15-year-period) to fund infrastructure, a light rail corridor, affordable housing and the Star City Casino. To address this challenge, the HillPDA Team prepared one of Australia’s first comprehensive discounted cash flow models created for an inner city redevelopment of this scale and complexity.

The model was prepared to capture the change in property values through the property cycle and the escalation of infrastructure costs over the project life. The model demonstrated the viability of the project and was used by NSW Treasury to identify the project’s infrastructure demands in addition to appropriate funding options and payback periods. The model enabled the successful agreement and attainment of funding from the State and Commonwealth Governments under the ‘Building Better Cities’ scheme.

Today, Pyrmont and Ultimo have become urban renewal success stories, evolving into vibrant urban precincts providing new parks and foreshore promenades, housing, leisure and entertainment facilities as well as employment opportunities.

Summary of Services: Urban Renewal, Development Feasibility