The money will come from the sale of assets including luxury hotels and will be reserved in the New South Wales (NSW) state government’s infrastructure fund, Restart NSW.
NSW minister for transport Andrew Constance said: “Circular Quay is nestled between two Australian icons, the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House, but at the moment it’s not realising its full potential.” He said a range of options would be considered for Circular Quay, including upgrades to the ferry wharves to make them modern and accessible, all the way through to a complete revamp that could include double-storey wharves with new retail facilities.
“Circular Quay should be the jewel of Sydney Harbour and today we are committing at least $200 million to make it shine,” said NSW premier Mike Baird. “We’re working at a rapid pace to deliver Tomorrow’s Sydney and everywhere you look there are cranes in the sky and construction sites in full swing.”
The funds will be generated by the divestment of some select assets currently held by the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority (SHFA) deemed to be not of long term strategic importance. SHFA assets targeted for divestment will be the Shangri-La and Four Seasons hotels in the Sydney CBD, the Novotel and Mercure hotels at Darling Harbour and commercial offices at Darling Quarter.
Minister for finance, services and property Dominic Perrottet said: “There is absolutely no reason in the 21st century why the NSW Government needs to be the landlord for these luxury hotels.”
Construction is expected to begin in 2019.
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