In little over a decade, Rouse Hill, the epicentre of which was once a golf course, has been transformed into a thriving commercial, retail and residential district with its own Town Centre, main street, Metro station, local library, primary school and high school. And by the end of this decade, its own public hospital.
The area first grabbed world attention in 2010, when the first stage of the Rouse Hill Town Centre won the Urban Land Institute’s Global Awards for Excellence. The centre, noted for its innovative street-scape design which encouraged pedestrian traffic in what was traditionally a car dependent area of Sydney and its ecologically-conscious design, was lauded for capturing the “spirit of the local community while maintaining elegance and originality”.
Metro fuelled jobs
The Rouse Hill community has continued to grow, with the owner of town centre now planning a second major expansion. The opening of the Northwest Metro line in 2019 has also spurred numerous other commercial and residential developments within walking distance of Rouse Hill Metro Station, including Deicorp’s Proximity.
The Metro line is tipped to generate a significant number of jobs in the area in coming. Along with the planned $300 million Rouse Hill Hospital, a number of retail, education and commercial developments at Rouse Hill are expected to see the number of jobs in the suburb swell from 4,200 to at least 10,000 by 2036, according to the Greater Sydney Commission. The Commission notes the new Metro line will “provide the opportunity for commercial developments and a greater proportion of knowledge-intensive jobs”.
The Hills Shire Council expects the planned Metro line connecting Rouse Hill to the new Western Sydney Airport will only spur more job growth in the employment centres along the North West corridor, which also include Norwest (an 8 minute Metro ride from Rouse Hill) and Castle Hill.
“The planned renewal around seven Sydney Metro stations will bring greater housing choice, more opportunities to work closer to home and easier access to services,” notes the Council in its Hills Future 2036 strategic plan, which foresees another 32,200 jobs being generated in the area by mid next decade.
Rouse Hill gets a health tick
Rouse Hill can also thank its success to its pedestrian friendly design and green spaces.
The restored riparian corridor along Caddies Creek, walking and cycling paths, recreational facilities and open spaces at Rouse Hill, have even won a tick from the Heart Foundation for encouraging an active lifestyle among its residents.
A study sponsored by the Heart Foundation found the precinct “rates highly in providing the broad necessary elements of healthy living: the opportunity to engage in active transport modes; an environment that is pleasantly walkable and with destinations (the Town Centre, regional and local open spaces), and so is conducive to exercise and incidental social interaction; a choice of recreation facilities; and a wide range of options to source fresh food”. “The New Rouse Hill is a significant development achievement,” the study concluded.
Iconic landmark
For good measure, Rouse Hill even has its own globally recognised landmark – the Metro rail bridge over Windsor Road.
Likened as a mini-version of Sydney’s Anzac Bridge, the bridge was awarded the Global Best engineering project of 2018 by the US-based Engineering News-Record. “A signature 270-meter-long curved cable-stayed bridge is soaring over a major road carrying 50,000 vehicles a day in Sydney—the centerpiece of a $6.1-billion Metro Northwest project that will link the city’s northwestern suburbs with its center,” the engineering publication said.
