It is a safe bet that no suburb in Sydney, and possibly Australia, has had such a diverse and varied history as Homebush. Originally named Liberty Plains by the then Colony’s first free settlers who were granted land in what later became known as Homebush. The vast wetlands around Homebush saw it struggle with agriculture and eventually became home to brickworks, abbatoirs and a waste dump. These industries along with upstream chemical dumping sadly saw contamination of the river and surrounding wetlands. However, in the 1980’s when Sydney won the bid to host the year 2000 Olympics Homebush was marked for development of the Olympic site and in the ensuing years saw a significant development and clean-up of the area.
The Olympics was a remaking of Homebush and surrounding suburbs as Homebush now boasts several sporting and entertainment arena’s along with a vast amount of outdoor public space. Bicentennial Park encompasses 40 hectares of open parklands and is bordered by the renewed wetlands in Parramatta River. Sydneysiders come from afar to cycle, walk or jog along its pathways, play on the adventure playground, splash in the water play area, take a moment to watch birds in the waterbird refuge or enjoy the views over the wetlands to the city from the top of the Treillage Tower. After all that activity you’re bound to be hungry so take advantage of the BBQ facilities or the café located within the park.
The development for the year 2000 saw a number of new housing apartment blocks spring up around Homebush in the lead up to the Olympics and while apartments may be what Homebush is better known for today magnificent examples of Federation houses can still be found in the suburb particularly around Abbotsford Road. Homebush has its own shopping village with a diverse group of shops to include cafes, takeaway, a supermarket, butcher and green grocers.
The shopping strip has a pleasant village atmosphere and is an easy distance to the Homebush train station. If you fancy some more serious retail therapy then Homebush has its own factory outlet centre and is just a short trip away from Flemington Markets which is home to the Sydney Growers, Produce and Flower markets. While the markets has a wholesale focus it is open to the public during certain hours so you can take advantage of the fabulous fresh produce at much cheaper prices.
There are a number of early learning and day care centres in Homebush and it is close to a selection of great primary and high schools including Homebush Primary School, Homebush Boys High School and Strathfield Girls High School.
About Rebecca Wamsteker
Rebecca is resident of postcode 2040 and mum of two busy boys. Her passion for real estate and background in data and analysis sparked the idea for her business The Agent Finder, a free service that helps connect property owners thinking selling their property with the top performing real estate agents in their area check out www.theagentfinder.com.au or you call her on 0413 900 991.
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