Sunken garden and new amenities for Penrith’s City Park

Creating a welcoming green space for the community, Penrith’s City Park is installing a 78-metre sunken rain garden with native trees, shrubs and plants along with constructing a new amenities building.

Spanning the length of City Park along Henry Street, the garden is designed to capture rainfall and water runoff which will help to reduce water waste.

Pedestrian bridges over the garden will allow people to make their way in and out of the park while enjoying a bird’s eye view of the garden below.

The amenities building will feature a green roof, an adult changing facility, ambulant toilet, accessible and unisex toilets with baby change tables, and pergola.

Penrith Mayor Tricia Hitchen noted “City Park will help to create a cooler City Centre while also being the perfect spot to enjoy lunch, a walk, or meeting up with friends.

“Workers and recent visitors to the CBD may have noticed all the other work going on at City Park with footpath and kerb works on Station and Henry Streets complete and an upgrade to Allen Place laneway underway.”

“The water features and fog fountains are also under construction off-site and are expected to be installed in the coming months.”

This project is funded by Penrith City Council and the NSW Government through the Public Spaces Legacy Program.

The NSW Public Spaces Legacy Program is an investment in high quality public open space. Together with the NSW Government, Council is delivering vital infrastructure for communities to love the place they live. The NSW Government is contributing $4 million to the City Park project.

NSW Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully said the City Park project will deliver a green oasis in the heart of the Penrith CBD and added “the NSW Government is committed to increasing the tree canopy across the Sydney basin and providing green open spaces and parklands for the community to come together and enjoy.

“As temperatures continue to rise during hotter months, the community needs more spaces for recreation that are cool.”

“The NSW Government is finalising a guide for creating cool public open spaces that provide comfort for the community to enjoy during hot weather, like here at City Park.”

City Park is expected to open at the end of 2023.

Find out more at yoursaypenrith.com.au/penrith-city-park

Image top: Penrith City Council General Manager Andrew Moore, Penrith Mayor Tricia Hitchen, and Member for Penrith Karen McKeown OAM MP in front of the 78-metre sunken rain garden which is a key feature of Penrith’s City Park; Image above: Member for Penrith Karen McKeown and Penrith Mayor Tricia Hitchen in front of the City Park amenities building which will feature a green roof and pergola.