From eating out to working out, Westfield Bondi Junction is being transformed into a destination for dining, exercise and entertainment as well as shopping. A new social wellness club and interactive sports store will take over the space currently occupied by the David Jones Food Hall, with plans to create a high-end dining and entertainment precinct on level six of the shopping centre. Operating group Scentre’s chief executive Elliott Rusanow said Westfield shopping centres were also “potentially part of the solution” for housing as the Minns government pushes for more infill development in inner-city Sydney .
Scentre Group chief executive Elliott Rusanow at Westfield Bondi Junction. Credit: Edwina Pickles In an exclusive interview with this masthead, Rusanow said he believed most people would prefer apartments built above the shopping centre instead of nearby suburbs such as Bellevue Hill, Bondi and Edgecliff. “We have strategic landholdings around many of our Westfield destinations that are in major population growth areas, adjacent to public transport hubs and where other major infrastructure is already built,” he said.
“In conjunction with relevant planning reforms, we think we are part of, certainly, the conversation, and potentially part of the solution of where people could live in the future.” Westfield Bondi Junction will be given a makeover in the short term, with Virgin Active and Rebel Sport taking over space on level one currently occupied by David.