Where trucks once rumbled through the former WestConnex construction site at Annandale, a new community is taking shape, with the Minns Labor Government’s land and property developer Landcom breaking ground on The Joinery Annandale.
These apartments will give the essential workers who keep Sydney ticking the chance to live closer to the communities they serve, with homes offered at a discounted market rate so they don’t have to choose between an affordable home and a long commute.
The development will feature:
- a mix of apartment choices including studios, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units;
- communal space including a rooftop terrace built for connection and community;
- vibrant ground floor retail and commercial spaces; and
- car parking plus around 140 bicycle spaces and provisions for electric vehicle charging.
Surrounding the building, a landscaped central plaza will bring native greenery, shaded seating, and public art to a site that spent nearly a decade as a construction zone, transforming it into a real community space.
The NSW Government will retain ownership of the properties, with day-to-day management to be handled by an experienced operator.
The first residents will move in from 2029, with the building completed in late 2028, weather permitting. Richard Crookes Construction has been appointed as principal contractor.
The Joinery Annandale was made possible by the Minns Labor Government’s housing and planning reforms. The site was identified through the land audit, and the building was approved in December 2025 under the State Significant Development Pathway, a faster approval pathway the Government introduced to get critical housing moving.
Landcom is delivering similar projects across the state, with recent toppings out in Lismore and Bomaderry providing market Build-to-Rent and some affordable and key worker homes, as well as planning for 180 new Build-to-Rent apartments in Chatswood on the former Sydney Metro construction site.
Projects like these are the direct result of the most comprehensive set of planning and housing reforms in a generation. Housing is the number one cost-of-living concern facing NSW families, and as a result, young people are leaving our state.
When the Minns Labor Government came to office, forecasts showed NSW would build just 36,000 homes a year over the next five years.
Since 2023, the Government has delivered the biggest set of rezonings in Australia's history, including the Transport Oriented Development program, the Low and Mid-Rise Housing policy, established the Housing Delivery Authority, Development Coordination Authority, nation leading Pattern Book, and last year overhauled the state's planning legislation with the Planning System Reforms Act 2025.
Combined with a record $6.6 billion investment in 8,400 new social homes and the world-leading Pre-sale Finance Guarantee, NSW recently recorded its highest number of homes under construction in seven years, leading the nation with more than 80,000 homes currently being built.
The Joinery Annandale is part of the Government's plan to build a better NSW, with more homes, jobs, parks and services so young people, families and essential workers can live and work in the communities they choose.
Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, Paul Scully said:
"For too long, essential workers have been priced out of the local communities they serve.
"Landcom, the Government’s developer is building homes so our essential workers can actually afford to live in the city they work in.
"We changed the planning rules so homes like these at The Joinery Annandale could be built faster and this is proof that the Government’s reform are delivering more homes.”
Minister for Housing Rose Jackson said:
"Every essential worker priced out of the community they serve is a failure of the housing system we inherited, and this is what fixing it looks like.
"The Joinery Annandale means a nurse or a teacher in the Inner West does not have to choose between living near their job and being able to afford rent.
"This is what the Minns Labor Government's housing reforms were built to deliver, real homes, on the ground, for the people this state depends on."
Deputy Mayor for the Inner West Council and Labor Candidate for Balmain Philippa Scott said:
“The Inner West should be a place where the essential workers who keep our community running can afford to live close to the communities they serve.
“These 220 new homes will put nurses, teachers, police officers and firefighters closer to jobs, transport and services, while turning a former construction site into a new community in the heart of Annandale.
“The Inner West has long been a home for working people and I’m proud to see the Minns Labor Government delivering the well-located homes our community needs, while protecting what makes the Inner West such a great place to live.”
Landcom CEO, Alexander Wendler said:
“For 50 years Landcom has been making homes happen for NSW, and today we reach a major milestone in one of our landmark projects - construction is underway for new essential worker housing at Annandale.”
“This development will provide more than just much-needed housing - this will set the standard for density done well, transforming a valuable government owned site in Sydney's inner west into a vibrant part of the neighbourhood with a mix of homes, shops and public spaces.
