Parramatta Square has been recognised as one of the best managed public spaces in the region by winning the Place Governance award at the 2024 Place Leaders Asia Pacific Awards in Darwin overnight.
One of the City’s iconic public spaces, Parramatta Square has transformed the central business district since opening in 2022 with several major organisations calling it home.
It is the second time that Parramatta Square has won the Place Governance award, after winning the category in 2022 for the Parramatta Square Place Plan.
City of Parramatta Lord Mayor Cr Martin Zaiter said the award win cements Parramatta Square as the place to be.
“Parramatta Square has become a destination in its own right alongside our community and civic hub PHIVE and Parramatta Town Hall,” Cr Zaiter said.
“During 2024, we had more than 7.6 million visits to Parramatta Square.
“Whether you’ve explored major events like Parramatta Lanes, cheered on your favourite sports stars at live sites like during FIFA’s 2023 Women’s World Cup or grabbed a bite to eat from a café like Publique, Parramatta Square is one of the City’s most popular locations.”
The Place Governance award honours governance or policy models that demonstrate leadership in the sustainable management of places. It recognises initiatives that establish transparent decision-making, accountability, and strong collaboration among stakeholders. These leaders not only sustain places for the long-term benefit of all users but have also ensured that these spaces remain resilient and adaptable to future challenges.
City of Parramatta has been working in partnership with key data analysis companies, Place Score and Place Intelligence, to produce a range of metrics informing management decisions for Parramatta Square in consultation with other key stakeholders and users of the Square. The award submission was completed in partnership with both data providers.
“This is a credit to our wonderful staff who make this visionary public infrastructure a thriving place for our community to gather and celebrate,” Cr Zaiter said.
“This award shows that we’re well on our way to Parramatta CBD becoming the Headquarters District and our City earning its reputation for nation-leading governance.
“I thank Place Leaders Asia Pacific for this prestigious acknowledgement and commend Walker Corporation for delivering this multi-billion-dollar urban renewal project.”
Parramatta Square contains four premium A-Grade commercial towers with 240,000 square metres of new office and retail space around 10,000 square metres of public domain. It is home to big name corporations and organisations such as National Australia Bank (NAB), ABC, Walker Corporation, NSW Government and Western Sydney University’s city campus
PHIVE and Parramatta Town Hall are key community and civic hubs at Parramatta Square while public art, such as Place of the Eels by Sean Cordiero and Claire Healy and Reko Rennie’s Where the Eels Lie Down, and the Dharug Circle have been installed to tell the story of the City over thousands of years, completing a 20-year vision for the City.