PeterD5

Park Road is part of the 195-lot "Tempe Park" subdivision (DP750) auctioned on 5th November 1881 by Watkin & Watkin. The road is a generous 50' wide and originally contained 62 allotments: Lots 120 - 147 west of Henry Street (then known as Centre Street) and Lots 38 - 71 east towards the Princes Highway (then Cook's River Road). Each allotment had a 30' frontage and were 110' deep with access to rear lanes which are 20' wide. Sales of the lots were slow given the Illawarra Railway did not open until 1884 and the Cook's River tramway was delayed until 1900. Today, approximately 20 original size lots remain, although not all with original dwellings. Victorian and Federation style semi-detached homes were constructed on several lots and, as a result, these have since been sub-divided in two. Many original homes remain, however in 1995, Lots 55 - 71 were acquired by the government and converted into parkland.

We bought our dream home in Sydenham back in 2013 - and for significantly less than equivalent homes in neighbouring Marrickville. Why? Sydenham is pretty much at the end of Sydney Airport's main north-south runway. That said, our house is double-brick and double glazed. Our rangehood sounds louder than a jumbo, and if you play soft music or have the TV on, you don't hear the planes at all. Outside is a little different. You do need to pause for 8 seconds or so, but that gives you the opportunity to look up in the hope of seeing a majestic 747 or the super-sized A380 gracing the skies. Things are improving with airline technology anyway. The new 787s are noticeably quiet compared to any other aircraft. Personally, I think we're very lucky to live so close to the airport. It's about $20 to International in a cab, and $30 to Domestic. Cheaper than two people taking the train.
Speaking of trains, how lucky are we to be a short wander to a junction station on 3 lines? Using the Illawarra line, it takes 7 minutes to get to Central and the train comes every 10 minutes. The Bankstown and East Hills lines come in-between, so there is no need to consult a timetable for a venture into the city. One stop in the opposite direction gets you into the heart of Marrickville's Illawarra Road and its excellent restaurants. Buses will take you anywhere the train won't. There is even the M30 which runs between Sydenham and Mosman. We rarely use our car now. Maybe a quick run on a weekend up to Marrickville Metro, although a stroll up to St Peters Fruit World satisfied most culinary needs.
There is an abundance of parks and recreational facilities both in Sydenham and its neighbouring suburbs. Sydenham Green has an off-leash dog park and barbecue facilities, and council has recently approved an upgrade to the entire site to make it even better, including a community garden.
Living in Sydenham is all about the community. Neighbours talk to each other, get to know each other, share with each other and help each other. It's when your neighbour drops off some home grown fruit 'just because' or when you have the boys next door over for a meal. We swap recipes and gardening tips. We stop each other in the street or across the fence for a chat.
We moved to Sydenham because we wanted to live close to the city without the hefty price tag, but we stay because this suburb is now very much our home.