The A to Z of 2205: Brodie Spark Drive, Wolli Creek

Brodie Spark Drive is the main road along which the Wolli Creek development has taken place. It goes around the back of Tempe House, and is named after the man who had Tempe House built between 1834 - a836, Alexanber Brodie Spark.

For an eight-part tour around Wolli Creek/Tempe House, have a look here: my Sydney Daily Photo blog. I have also posted about it and the Cooks River previously on this site. See here.

Below: The roundabout intersection of Brodie Spark Drive and Arncliffe St, looking towards the Princes Highway. In the centre is a sculpture named Wolli Dancing.
Below: Wolli Dancing.

Below: An indication of apartment prices in 2008 (photo taken 4 August 2008)
Below: Looking along the Princes Highway
Below: From the Princes Highway end. The light industry in the area is changing or folding.
Below: Brick wall
Below: The vacant area below has been a scrap metal dealer's site, now gone.
Below: The sign points along Arncliffe St, which is narrow and has a much increased volume of traffic. There is no dedicated cycleway, and I would be ver wary of cycling along here. I've only ever seen one or two bikes in my time.
Below: From 1884 to 1983, Tempe House was occupied by Catholic nuns, the Magdalen Sisters, and the church dates from that time. It is now de-commissioned as a church. It is meant to function as some kind of community facility, but as yet, nothing seems to have happened there - it is always locked and off-limits.

Below: Tempe House and Magdalen Chapel
Below: The apartment development at the back, linked with the back of Tempe House.

Below: From Brodie Spark Drive, the back of Temoe House was visible beyond the swimming pool until frosted glass was installed to prevent the look-through.

The A to Z of 2205: Booth St, Arncliffe

Named after Thomas Booth, an early settler and local landowner.(The Origins of Street Names in the Municipality of Rockdale, compiled by Alderman Ron Rathbone, 1990)

Below: From Thompson St end



Below: The Meriton apartment development at then end of Booth St
Below: The rise after you come around the corner from Thompson St

Below: Bus depot and Jetmaster gas log fires in Martin St

Below: Playground of Al-Zahra Islamic College

Photos taken 10 Aug 2008

The A to Z of 2205: Bonar St, Wolli Creek to Arncliffe

Named after Andrew Bonar, Chairman of the Australian Trust Company, a land development company. (The Origins of Street Names in the Municipality of Rockdale, compiled by Alderman Ron Rathbone, 1990)

Below: Looking up Bonar St from Lusty St, Wolli Creek, showing the Meriton apartment development

Below: From the intersection of Thompson St looking back towards Lusty St


The next three photos are from Jan 2001 when the development was just beginning.
Below: Looking from Thompson St across to Bonar St

Below: Building that was in Bonar St
Below: Also from Thompson St towards Bonar St
Below: From the Thompson St intersection looking along Bonar St towards Arncliffe. The apartments are behind me now.

Below: Looking back along Bonar St towards Thompson St intersection



Below: Looking along Bonar St towards the bend it takes to the left.

Below: Looking towards Wollongong Rd.

Below: The former Streets factory at the corner of Bonar St and Hirst St. It is now occupied by someone called One-Ten Enterprises, and seems to consist of a warehouse for bailed up, and often overflowing rags.









Below: Street sign at the Wollongong Rd end. Sadly, the bowling club is now derelict. I had heard there were plans by Rockdale Council to turn it into a youth centre (much needed) but nothing has happened.

Below: The abandoned Arncliffe Scots bowling club



Below: Inside the clubhouse

Below: From Wollongong Rd




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Photos taken 10 Aug 2008 and January 2001

The A to Z of 2205: Arncliffe St Arncliffe to Wolli Creek

Arncliffe St is a street mainly of light industry and car workshops etc. Many of the car yards on the Princes Highway back on to Arncliffe St. It is narrow. Recently the Wolli Creek end has been re-developed with multi-storey apartments. At first I thought that surely the road must be widened to cope with the increase in traffic. No! Then there was a breakdown in undergound services uner the road (water and electricity, I think) and it was dug up for months on end. I think it is a case study in how NOT to undertake a development. I am not necessarily troubled by re-use of land for alternative purposes, but such developments cause unnecessary inconvenience and seem designed to benefit the developers more than anyone else.

Starting at the Wolli Creek end

Below: Looking from Brodie Spark Drive up Arncliffe St from the Wolli Creek end
Below: "Proximity" is the high rise development fronting Arncliffe St. The amazing thing is that this narrow road, which carries a large amount of the traffic into and out of Arncliffe is also a designated "cycle route" ! They have to be joking.
Below: Proximity, by developer Multiplex. Two bedroom apartments routinely cost over $400 000
Below: What is this? A Substation?
Below: Warehouse building currently used for indoor Go-Kart racing


Below: Looking towards Brodie Spark Drive at Wolli Creek, 'Proximity' on the left.


Below: Morris McMahon was the site of a prolonged industrial dispute in 2003
Below: There used to be houses, however, there are only two left, and they have been converted to other purposes. One is a sandwich and lunch shop servicing the factories in the area, and this one.
Below: Looking towards the Arncliffe end. On the right, the other house, now afood outlet, and across the railway line the Al-Zahra mosque
Below: Looking from the corner of Allen St
Below: On the station side of Arncliffe St, near Burrows St, looking along Arncliffe St. Allen St corner is in the middle. This is the station's commuter car park
Below: Looking in the oppositie direction from the previous shot.
Below: From the corner of Allen St. Empress resewrve is on the left. The green box near the letter box is a mail collection box for the postie to pick up from.

Below: The station from the commuter car park
Below: The park at the end of the carpark, behind Arncliffe Scots. The walkway extends from the end of Arnclife St where it meets Burrows St to the station overpass.


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Photos taken 03 and 04 August 2008