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A view of the Sydney CBD from Farm Cove

Map of the CBD

The Sydney central business district (CBD and also referred to as the City), is the main commercial centre of Sydney, the capital of New South Wales, Australia. It extends southwards for about 2 kilometres from Sydney Cove, the point of first European settlement. Its north-south axis runs from Circular Quay in the north to Central railway station in the south. Its east-west axis runs from a chain of parkland that includes Hyde Park, The Domain, Royal Botanic Gardens and Farm Cove on Sydney Harbour in the east; to Darling Harbour and the Western Distributor in the west.

The Sydney central business district is also sometimes used loosely to encompass the surrounding suburbs such as Pyrmont and Woolloomooloo.

The CBD is an area of very densely concentrated skyscrapers and other buildings, interspersed by several parks such as Wynyard Park and Hyde Park. George Street is the Sydney CBD's main north-south thoroughfare. The streets run on a slightly warped grid pattern in the southern CBD, but in the older northern CBD the streets are less logical, reflecting their random placement in the early days of the city. Other significant streets also running north-south include Pitt and Macquarie Streets. Pitt Street is the retail heart of the city which includes the Pitt Street Mall and the Sydney Tower. Macquarie Street is the legal and government centre of the city, as the state Parliament House, the Supreme Court of New South Wales and a large number of specialist medical firms are all located along or nearby Macquarie Street.

Administratively, the Sydney CBD falls under the authority of the local government area of the City of Sydney. The New South Wales state government also has authority over some aspects of the CBD, in particular through the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority. This is a body charged with managing development of certain foreshore areas of Sydney.

Central Business District of Sydney from Sydney Harbour

The Sydney CBD contains many of Australia’s tallest skyscrapers, including Governor Phillip Tower, MLC Centre and World Tower, the latter consisting predominantly of apartments. The tallest structure is Sydney Tower at 309 metres, however planning restrictions limit future developments to a height of 235 metres.

The Sydney CBD is home to some of the largest Australian companies, as well as serving as an Asia-Pacific headquarters for many large international companies. The financial services industry in particular occupies much of the available office space, with companies such as the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Citibank, Deutsche Bank, Macquarie Bank, AMP Limited, Insurance Australia Group, AON, Marsh, Allianz, HSBC, AXA and ABN Amro all having offices.

Every January, the city celebrates with the Sydney Festival. At indoor and outdoor venues, there are art, music and dance exhibitions. Australian and International theatre during the month is also featured, including Aboriginal, and Contemporary. Many of these events are free.