Inner South (Sydney)

Sydney’s Inner South (colloquially referred to as ‘South Sydney’) includes the suburbs directly south of Central Station or more specifically Cleveland Street and continues as far down as the airport on Botany Bay within the parameters of the M1 to the east and the Alexandra Canal & T3 train line to the west. This includes the suburbs of Redfern, Eveleigh, Alexandria, Beaconsfield, Waterloo, Zetland, Rosebery, Eastlakes (West of M1) and Mascot, consisting of 9 suburbs in total and covering postcodes 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2020. Most of the Inner South region falls within City of Sydney as well as a portion in Bayside Council and the area roughly corresponds with the Electoral District of Heffron.

The missing postcode 2019 belongs to the south-eastern suburbs of Botany and Banksmeadow which although are geographically south of Sydney CBD, fall on the eastern side of the M1. Eastlakes with the postcode of 2018 is split down the middle by the M1 with The Lakes Golf Course and Botany Dams falling east within Sydney’s South-Eastern Suburbs while the residential portion of Eastlakes with the shopping centres fall west within Sydney’s Inner South.

In a more expansive sense the Inner South can sometimes include surrounding areas such as the part of the South-Eastern Suburbs within Bayside Council as well as Port Botany in Randwick City Council and also occasionally southern portions of the Inner West such as the suburbs of Erskineville, St Peters, Sydenham and Tempe.

For statistical purposes, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) defines a region of "City and Inner South" which includes most of City of Sydney (minus Moore Park) along with with the part of Bayside Council that used to be City of Botany Bay and the part of the Inner West Council that used to be Marrickville council. This region is part of the ABS Statistical Area Level 4.

History[]

Sydney's Inner Southern history follows the Municipality Act of 1858 with the first municipality to establish itself in the region being Redfern on August 11th, 1859. The Municipality of Waterloo shortly followed being established on May 16th, 1860 and then The Municipality of Alexandria came several years later on August, 27th 1868. All three councils along with the municipalities of Darlington, Newtown and Erskineville were amalgamated into the South Sydney Council in 1968. The South Sydney Council was then dismantled in 1982 with all suburbs being amalgamated into City of Sydney Council before the revival of a larger South Sydney Council in 1989 that was comprised of all of the original suburbs with the addition of the inner eastern suburbs that had previously always been part of the eastern portion of City of Sydney. The South Sydney Council was dismantled for the second and final time on 2004 with all suburbs once again being amalgamated into City of Sydney.

The portion of Sydney's Inner South within Bayside Council was once governed by The Borough of North Botany (Mascot) which established itself March 29th, 1888 along with the separate neighbouring Borough of Botany. Both boroughs were declared municipalities in 1906. The Municipality of North Botany then changed their name to The Municipality of Mascot in 1911 for the sake of distinction. In 1949 all suburbs within The Municipality of Mascot were amalgamated into The Municipality of Botany. In 1996 The Municipality of Botany was declared The City of Botany Bay before being forcibly amalgamated with the City of Rockdale in 2016 to form the current Bayside Council.

Landmarks[]

Major commercial hubs of Sydney’s Inner Southern Suburbs are Mascot and Redfern with both having a train station and Mascot being home to Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport. A popular locality in Sydney’s Inner Southern Suburbs is Green Square which is a train station at an intersection where the four suburbs of Alexandria, Beaconsfield, Zetland and Waterloo meet.

While Sydney’s Inner Southern Suburbs don’t have a major Westfield, the region’s indoor shopping centres include East Village in Zetland, Eastlakes Shopping Centre & The Grand, Gardeners Place in Alexandria and The Homemaker Centre in Alexandria. Alexandria is a popular destination for homewares and wholesalers with its main strip being O’Riordan Street.

Transport[]

Sydney's Inner Southern Railway Line is the Airport Link completed in 2000, part of the T8 South Line which connects Central Station to Sydney Airport via Green Square and Mascot Station.

Major roads connecting Sydney’s Inner Southern Suburbs to Sydney CBD are Botany Road, Elizabeth Street and Bourke Street with Botany Road, Gardeners Road and Wentworth Avenue connecting Sydney’s Inner Southern Suburbs to Sydney’s South-Eastern Suburbs. Other main roads in Sydney's Inner Southern Suburbs include McEvoy Street, Euston Road, O’Riordan Street, King Street, Coward Street and Redfern Street.

Sporting Culture & Recreation[]

Sydney’s Inner Southern Suburbs are represented by The NRL South Sydney Rabbitohs based in Redfern which is named after the region itself.

Support for the NRL South Sydney Rabbitohs continues outside its home region in the Inner South to the neighbouring regions of the South-Eastern Suburbs in Bayside and Randwick Council as well as the southern portion of the Inner West that used to be Marrickville Council. Their junior leagues clubs (colloquially called ‘The Juniors’) are in the south-eastern suburbs of Kingsford, Maroubra and Malabar which provide entertainment and events.

Governance[]

The Inner South is predominantly governed by City of Sydney with a portion also governed by Bayside Council.

At the federal government level the Inner South mostly comes under the Federal Division of Sydney with a portion also under the Federal Division of Kingsford Smith, both of which have been held by the Australian Labor Party since their inception.

At the state government level the Inner South is predominantly within the Electoral District of Heffron with a small portion under the Electoral District of Newtown.

The political allegiances of these electorates and divisions reflect the socio-demographic profile of the region. Much like the Federal Division of Sydney and Kingsford Smith, the electorate of Heffron has also been held by the working class Australian Labor Party since it was established. The electorate of Newtown is historically more marginal with majority of this district falling within the Inner West.

Sydney’s Inner South Suburbs Listing[]

City of Sydney (Southern Side)[]

(2015) Alexandria
(2015) Beaconsfield
(2015) Eveleigh
(2016) Redfern
(2017) Waterloo
(2017) Zetland
(2018) Rosebery

Bayside Council (Northern Side)[]

(2018) Eastlakes (West of M1)
(2020) Mascot

Inner South (Sydney)

Contents

Location[]