Flemington, New South Wales

Flemington markets (Sydney Markets)

North of the railway, the bush was turned into paddocks and from 1883 was the site of a cattle saleyard, relocated from North Homebush, further east.^[9]

In 1892, Strathfield Municipality expanded west, taking in a large area incl

uding the part of Flemington south of the railway, after which homes in this part of the suburb became listed in directories under "Strathfield".^[8] The part of the suburb north of the railway was incorporated into the Municipality of Homebush (which also covered the part of modern-day Homebush north of the railway), which was eventually incorporated into Strathfield Municipality in 1947.

In the early 1970s, the Sydney Markets were built at Flemington on the site of the saleyards, to relieve the Paddy's Markets at Haymarket, in the city. The Sydney Markets at Flemington, built in 1975, became known as "Flemington Markets".^[10] Eventually, in 1992, the residential part of the suburb, south of the railway line, was officially renamed "Homebush West".^[3]

The Chinese community in Sydney has long had a strong presence in the market gardening sector in Sydney as well as the fruit and vegetable trade, which resulted in the development of a Chinatown at Haymarket. A number of these trading firms owned by members of the Chinese community developed into international conglomerates operating across the Asia-Pacific. When the markets, together with these trading firms, moved to Flemington, it brought a large ethnically Chinese presence to Flemington in the form of Chinese grocery stores, restaurants and Chinese-speaking doctors and pharmacists to service the market traders and their customers. The move of the markets coincided with the start of the wave of Vietnamese migration to Australia in the 1970s. Many of these immigrants also moved into the market garden trade. With a concentration of Chinese, Vietnamese-Chinese and Vietnamese businesses, the Flemington village centre acquired a cosmopolitan character with a southeast Asian flavour which it has retained to this day.

Ford factory site

West of Flemington markets, separated from the rest of the suburb by the A3 arterial road and the railway, the Ford car factory was built in 1935 and closed in 1994.^[11][12]

The residential area around the factory site were originally mostly built for Ford employees. The Ford factory site was part of the Borough of Rookwood, which became the Municipality of Lidcombe, which merged in turn into Auburn Council. In 1992, this area was transferred to Strathfield Council in exchange for an area to the north that was transferred to Auburn Council, in anticipation of the development of Sydney Olympic Park. A small, unpopulated strip of land in the northwest of the suburb immediately to the north of the Ford factory site, which lies between Parramatta Road and the M4 motorway, remained in Auburn Council and (after the abolition of Auburn Council) is now in Cumberland Council. Despite the change in the official name of the suburb to "Homebush West", this small unpopulated strip remains gazetted as an "urban place" under the name "Flemington".

Flemington village (southeast)

In the original, residential part of the suburb located south of the railway, the Flemington village centre is composed of a cluster of shops located on The Crescent and nearby Henley Road, beside Flemington railway station. The village is home to a variety of Asian restaurants and business reflecting the ethnic makeups of the suburb's residents as well as the large workforce involved in the fresh food trade at Flemington markets. Chinese, Vietnamese, Sri Lankan, Indian, Malaysian and Nepalese restaurants, businesses and food stores are found across the suburb.^[13][14] The village is now largely made up of low-to-medium rise apartment buildings, except for a small number of detached houses close to the boundaries with Homebush and Strathfield.

Flemington markets (Sydney Markets)

The Flemington markets occupy the whole area north of the railway, south of Parramatta Road and east of the A3, and is serviced by a commercial complex called the Sydney Markets Plaza, which includes banks and a supermarket. Officially, the locality of "Flemington" refers only to the market complex and related facilities. This area has its own postcode, 2129, separate from the 2140 postcode used by the rest of the suburb.

Welfare Street area

Further north, a small part of the suburb lies between Parramatta Road and the M4 motorway. This area is largely industrial, with a small residential area between Welfare Street and Flemington Road, which was originally housing built for state abattoir employees. The houses were inherited by the Olympic Park Authority, which controversially sold them in 2014 to private owners.^[15] The houses on Welfare Street and Flemington Road form a heritage conservation area,^[16] but are cut off from all other residential areas and are increasingly surrounded by industrial construction.^[17]

Courallie Avenue area

The part of the suburb west of the A3 road and north of the railway, which was for many years the site of the Ford factory, is largely industrial, with a small residential area on Courallie Avenue which was originally housing built for Ford employees. A recent redevelopment of the industrial area has resulted in a large estate with almost 2000 residents sharing just six street numbers on Courallie Avenue.^[18]

Arthur Street industrial area

The part of the suburb west of the A3 road and south of the railway is now almost entirely industrial. The headquarters of the large Australian retailer, Harvey Norman, is located in this area.

Nearby

Although not technically part of the suburb, the DFO Homebush factory outlet shopping centre is located just to the north of the suburb.