Connecting Central
Mark Saint Pol, Julia McLachlan, Werner Venter, Hugo van Niekerk, Luke Coughlan, Gavin Cook

Returning Sydney to Central Station

Historically, tar and tracks have eroded the public domain surrounding Central Station and have devalued much of its charm, creating exposed environments where people no longer feel safe or welcome.
To be treasured among the world’s grand stations, Central must become a lively, memorable destination, that reflects Sydney’s identity as a diverse and vibrant City as Part of Nature. Buildings and infrastructure cannot be dividers of public space but should support people and landscape connections that build vitality.
To start this journey, we elevated the Grand Concourse roof, providing access to a new public park above the station platforms. An extensive landscape deck with nature areas, food gardens and stalls, provides a sunny, protected vantage point with unique vistas of the Sydney skyline. The concourse invites nature, light, and air inside, creating a spectacular landscape conservatory.
The rooftop park reconnects Surry Hills to the CBD, while landscaped roof decks over the tram ramps connect Belmore Park up to the Station Podium and onto the Central Plaza tech hub making it the new green anchor tenant for the neighbourhood, providing access to desirable and healthy inner-city living. The northern façade of the station is activated to overlook a pedestrianized plaza as a much-needed Central Square for celebrations and civic events.
The Connecting Central project embraces the public domain as the green heart of Central Sydney, catalysing a revolution in city-making and sending out a connecting blue / green lattice of multifunctional infrastructure that turns public facilities into vibrant places for people.