{"id":782964,"date":"2026-07-06T16:26:31","date_gmt":"2026-07-06T16:26:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/782964\/"},"modified":"2026-07-06T16:26:31","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T16:26:31","slug":"sydneys-hidden-landmark-due-for-demolition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/782964\/","title":{"rendered":"Sydney\u2019s hidden landmark due for demolition"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tourists may think the Opera House<\/a> and the Harbour Bridge <\/a>are the beating heart of Sydney<\/a>, but that\u2019s not the case for many Sydneysiders<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

There is another heritage building smack-dab in the middle of the CBD that has captured the hearts of many \u2013 the Woolworths<\/a> building in Town Hall<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Woolworths<\/p>\n

The Woolworths Building in Sydney’s CBD is due to be demolished.\u00a0Edwina Pickles<\/p>\n

\"Display<\/p>\n

The landmark has been standing in the same spot for decades.\u00a0Bruce Milton Miller<\/p>\n

Built in 1929 for the Bebarfalds furniture retailer, it was later leased to Woolworths, with the supermarket occupying the space for almost 100 years. It is now owned by the City of Sydney<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But now, the Sydney<\/a> landmark is in danger of being demolished, due to fast-tracked plans for a new Town Hall Square that is predicted to cost well over $150 million.<\/p>\n

Millions of locals<\/a> and tourists<\/a> alike stream past the unsuspecting Woolworths store, with just as many going in for their essentials \u2013 whether it be a reasonably-priced drink on a hot day, a band-aid for their aching feet from exploring the city all day, or getting their groceries before heading home after work.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cDemolition of the Woolworths<\/a> building and a number of others would rip out what should remain the commercial heart of the city,\u201d Paul Nicolaou, Executive Director of Business Sydney<\/a>, told nine.com.au.<\/p>\n

\u201cLosing the commercial heart of the city, including the Woolworths outlet, would be a backward step when we need to encourage more people to live in the city.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nicolaou and Business Sydney call on New South Wales\u2019 Premier Chris Minns to intervene and stop the City of Sydney\u2019s plan for the site.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith proper planning, there is every reason to think the CBD could support a permanent population of up to 300,000 people,\u201d Nicolaou said.<\/p>\n

\"Town<\/p>\n

Woolworths Town Hall has been at the heart of Sydney’s commercial centre for generations.\u00a0David James Bartho<\/p>\n

\"Paul<\/p>\n

Paul Nicolaou of Business Sydney says the plans will be detrimental to Sydney’s lifestyle.\u00a0Business Sydney<\/p>\n

\u201cThey will need the services that are currently found in the buildings set for demolition but could be lost forever.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

One such small business is Australian Opal Cutters and Pearl Divers, owned by Jason Blaiklock. <\/p>\n

The shop \u2013 located in Park House, next to the Woolworths building \u2013 has been in his family for four generations, alongside many other shoemakers, tailors, and craftsmen who have been conducting business in what was Sydney\u2019s first \u201cvertical mall\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Portrait<\/p>\n

Jason Blaiklock’s family has been operating their Opal and Pearl cutting business from the site for four generations.\u00a0Jacky Ghossein <\/p>\n

Blaiklock and many other businesses impacted by the demolition plans formed the Save Our City Shops Alliance<\/a> and are rallying to cancel it outright.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe proposed demolition would have a devastating impact on long-standing local businesses, workers and customers who rely on this precinct every day,\u201d he told nine.com.au.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf these buildings are demolished, established businesses like mine will be forced out, jobs will be put at risk, and customers will lose access to essential services they use every day.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Coronation<\/p>\n

The surrounding buildings are also set to be demolished under the plan.\u00a0Andrew Taylor<\/p>\n

Having created a campaign and website to call on the NSW Government to intervene in the plans, their website reads, \u201cWhen you destroy a block, you don\u2019t just lose a building; you lose a network of families, expertise, and decades of trust.\u201d<\/p>\n

The surrounding buildings and businesses have become integral to the lives of Sydneysiders, with many of them passionate about delaying or even cancelling the demolition, which was originally expected to be slated for 2035.<\/p>\n

\"Sydney's<\/p>\n

Sydney’s Park House once housed the city’s first “vertical mall”, but it is now set to be demolished alongside the Woolworths buulding next to it.\u00a0oldandlost.blog<\/p>\n

\u201cSince 1930, Woolworths Town Hall has been a key part of the Sydney CBD, acting as a major economic driver that employs over 300 team members and brings vital foot traffic to surrounding small businesses,\u201d a spokesperson from Woolworths Group told nine.com.au.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith Woolworths as the CBD\u2019s only full-line supermarket and BIG W as its only discount department store, this precinct is vital for giving residents, workers, and commuters access to affordable essentials as Sydneysiders face rising living costs.<\/p>\n

\"Woolworths<\/p>\n

Woolworths in Sydney Town Hall has been serving the community for decades.\u00a0PETER MORRIS<\/p>\n

\"WOOLWORTHS<\/p>\n

Then or now, people stop by the central location for a number of reasons.\u00a0PETER MORRIS<\/p>\n

\u201cLike many of our customers and neighbours, we also share concerns about the disruption a major project like this would bring to the heart of the city.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, Lord Mayor of Sydney Clover Moore AO maintains this project will be beneficial for the future of Sydney.<\/p>\n

\u201cLike other major cities around the world, we need large, lively, welcoming civic spaces for the growing number of people living in and visiting Sydney,\u201d she told nine.com.au in a statement.<\/p>\n

\u201cDescribed as the city\u2019s living room, a central, public square will be the heart of the city.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The new town square will be framed by George, Pitt and Park streets, with work beginning in 2027, focusing on upgrading the area between St Andrew\u2019s Cathedral and the Sydney Town Hall with new paving, furniture and lighting.<\/p>\n

She said plans for a civic square next to Town Hall date back to the 19th Century, with the project being \u201ckept alive through each successive Council for more than 40 years<\/p>\n

\"Clover<\/p>\n

Clover Moore, Lord Mayor of Sydney, says the plans have been in motion for decades.\u00a0AAP<\/p>\n

\"Intersection<\/p>\n

Woolworths and Town Hall as it looked on July 30, 1984.\u00a0Bruce Milton Miller<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile we have heard concerns from some specific vested interests in recent weeks, decades of planning, development and conversation leave me confident the community overwhelmingly supports this exciting project.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cCity building takes time. There will always be critics ready to rally against vision and transformation.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Plan<\/p>\n

The plan for the $200m Town Hall square is moving ahead.\u00a0nna<\/p>\n

The proposed Town Hall Square is part of three the City of Sydney envisions as part of its future, with Circular Quay and Central Station also set to have their own squares.<\/p>\n

Moore added, \u201cWe are confident any concerns will dissipate once this wonderful new civic space is complete and taken over by the community.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tourists may think the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge are the beating heart of Sydney, but that\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":782965,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[64,63,99],"class_list":["post-782964","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-business"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782964","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=782964"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782964\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/782965"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=782964"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=782964"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=782964"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}