Cranebrook is a suburb of Greater Western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is located 50 km radially (65 km by road) WNW of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Penrith. Cranebrook is part of the Greater Western Sydney region.

Cranebrook is surrounded by the rural suburbs of Castlereagh, Llandilo and Londonderry and has come to incorporate the Mount Pleasant housing estate, long regarded as a separate suburb.

History

Cranebrook takes its name from a pioneer farmer, James McCarthy, who was granted 100 acres (400,000 m<sup>2</sup>) of land in 1804 and named it "Crane Brook farm", after the abundance of cranes in the area. James McCarthy started a cemetery in 1804. After his four-year-old daughter died, he set aside some land to bury her in what became one of the first Catholic cemeteries in Australia.

Cranebrook Post Office opened on 1 August 1886, closed in 1929, re-opened in 1934 and closed in 1957.

Geography

Cranebrook's geography is hilly and many residents on the western side enjoy views across the Nepean River to the Blue Mountains. Residents on the eastern side enjoy views across the ADI Site, an area rich in Cumberland Woodland and populated with many kangaroos.

The Northern Road separates Cranebrook (to the west) from the ADI Site (to the east), an area of land around 15 square kilometres in size. Aspects relating to the sale and development of this land have been a strong local political issue. The southern boundary of Cranebrook is Andrews Road, and the northern boundary is Smeeton Road. Nearby is McCarthys Lane Cemetery, considered the oldest Catholic cemetery in Australia. The western boundary is Castlereagh Road and Church Street.

Penrith Lakes

West of Castlereagh Rd are the Penrith Lakes, a series of flooded quarries. The quarries were formed by a quarrying conglomerate in 1979. The site supplies around 75% of Sydney's sand and crushed aggregate requirements, including about 85% of the materials for ready mixed concrete. One of these lakes is the Sydney International Regatta Centre which hosted the rowing events of the Sydney 2000 Olympics. There is also the popular Penrith Whitewater Stadium which hosted whitewater slalom events for the Sydney 2000 Olympics. The Penrith Lakes Development Corporation (PLDC) oversees implementation of the Penrith Lakes Scheme.

It is a popular misconception that these lakes are filled via the Nepean River but they are actually filled via rain water and ground water. When the Nepean River floods, the lakes system can act as a weir. A Penrith Lakes Scheme Concept Plan is currently under review to ensure the site delivers a wide range of environmental, social, cultural and economic values. PLDC has established a community advisory committee (CAC) which will meet regularly and provide advice on the ongoing planning and development of the lakes scheme.

The lakes were also a film location for the film Mad Max: Fury Road (2015).

Demographics

According to the of Population, there were 15,779 people in Cranebrook.

  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 7.0% of the population.
  • The median age of people in Cranebrook was 33, younger than the national median of 38.
  • 80.4% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were England 3.1%, New Zealand 1.6%, India 1.0%, Philippines 0.9% and China 0.6%.
  • 85.5% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Arabic 0.7%, Mandarin 0.6%, Spanish 0.6%, Maltese 0.5% and Tagalog 0.5%.
  • The most common responses for religion were No Religion 35.5%, Catholic 28.6% and Anglican 15.0%. The development includes 694 high-density dwellings, lakes and parklands.

Shortly after the Waterside development completed, a new development east of Cranebrook was established. Jordan Springs is located in 229ha of former Australian Defence Industry land and shares a boundary with Cranebrook via The Northern Road.

Politics

The state government electorates are Londonderry and Penrith. It is in the North Ward of the local government area of the City of Penrith. The Aboriginal district is the Deerubbin Local Aboriginal Land Council Area.

References

  • Penrith Lakes Development Corporation
  • Penrith WhiteWater Stadium
  • Sydney International Regatta Centre
  • St Paul's Grammar School
  • Penrith City Council – Local Suburb Profiles – Cranebrook