The City of Sydney has approved design plans for the renewal of Belmore Park in Haymarket, New South Wales, with construction scheduled to begin in 2028. Council endorsed the proposal at its most recent meeting, advancing a long-running effort to reimagine one of Central Sydney’s most historically layered public green spaces.

What the Belmore Park upgrade includes

The upgrade will deliver improved lighting, expanded lawn areas, additional seating, new garden beds and simplified paths through the park alongside Eddy Avenue. A new paved space with amphitheatre seating is central to the proposal, designed to support music and dance performances, community gatherings, demonstrations and markets — programming that reflects the park’s longstanding role as a site of civic assembly.

The dilapidated bandstand, built in 1910 and a recognised heritage element of the park, will be removed and reinterpreted through the design of a new play space at the centre of the site. All mature and healthy trees will be retained as part of the concept, including three Moreton Bay figs along the Eddy Avenue frontage believed to be survivors of the original 1880s park layout. Wider, clearly marked paths will also improve movement for people walking and cycling through the precinct.

“Upgrading Belmore Park was identified as an integral part of our broader revitalisation of the Haymarket precinct, following extensive consultation with the community about the area’s future,” says Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore. “This pocket of green in Central Sydney could be so much more. Our new design really taps into the park’s potential, with better lighting, larger lawn areas and an event space making it altogether a more welcoming place to visit.”

Part of a broader Haymarket revitalisation

The approval follows a community consultation period held between March and April 2026, which invited public submissions on the concept design for the park’s renewal. More than 1,150 people had previously contributed to the community’s vision for the broader Haymarket area, informing the revitalisation strategy and public domain plan that frame the park upgrade. Community feedback identified improved safety, sightlines and park entrances as priorities, alongside reinterpretation of the bandstand and more considered use of lighting.

The Belmore Park renewal sits within the City’s Haymarket and Chinatown Revitalisation Strategy, published in January 2024, which outlines priorities across five areas: renewal of the heart, planning and heritage, public domain and public art, culture and events, and collaboration and partnerships. The park upgrade forms part of a wider public domain push that also includes restoration of the historic Chinatown gates and upgrades to paving, lighting and shopfronts on Dixon Street.

The dilapidated bandstand will be removed and remembered in the design of a new play space, set to become a jewel at the centre of the park. Making travel through the park smoother for people walking and riding is also a priority with a wider, clearly marked path among the planned improvements.

The park is significant for many in the local community and an important part of the diverse cultural heritage of the area. Earmarked for public recreation in 1868, the park withstood significant changes in the first decades of the 20th century to build transport infrastructure for Sydney, including the development of Central Station and associated railway and tramway networks.

The design will now be refined ahead of the 2028 construction start.

Main image: Belmore Park, Sydney, Credit: City of Sydney

Architecture & Design Team

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