In 2003 the Government of New South Wales determined that the precinct would be redeveloped from shipping and stevedoring facilities to provide more commercial office space and recreational areas.

[2] Following a public competition in 2006, the East Darling Harbour area[5] was renamed in October 2007[6] in honour of Barangaroo, a Kamaraygal woman[7] who was the second wife of Bennelong, an interlocutor between the Aboriginal people and the early British colonists in New South Wales.

[2][12] Originally known as Cockle Bay Point during the early years of the Sydney colony, little activity or settlement took place in the area.

[14] From the 1850s to the 1880s the docks and shipyards in East Darling Harbour multiplied tremendously, going from a coal and ferry drop off point to a hub of commercial shipping activity.

In the 1860s storage facilities and warehouses had to be built out on Millers Point to accommodate the massive number of bulk goods flowing through the port.

Shipyards closed down in favour of storage facilities and bigger wharfs to accommodate contemporary ships with larger cargo loads were built.

The skilled ship builders were therefore out of a job and had to find work elsewhere, while more unskilled workers were needed to fill stevedoring positions.

Shipping operations were shut down for a period of time while Council decontaminated the area and exterminated disease ridden rats.

The Great Depression gave East Darling Harbour and dock areas surrounding it a poignant nickname, The Hungry Mile.

They erupted occasionally in protest, most famously refusing to load a boat with scrap metal bound for Japan on the eve of World War II.

The lack of a heavy rail link or a b-double capable road limited the port's capacity in processing in and outbound cargo.

The wharfs had been unusually free of union activity from the beginning of World War II up until the mid-1990s, with high wages and a steady stream of jobs.

In 1998 Patrick Stevedoring laid off all its workers and liquidated its assets after encountering backlash from the unions for the new workplace contracts taking advantage of the new legislation.

[citation needed] In 2003 with the stevedoring companies set to move out within three years, the Government of New South Wales designated the site for redevelopment into parklands and commercial space.

[8][20][21] In late 2006 Patrick Corporation, who leased the site from the New South Wales Government, moved their stevedoring operations to Port Botany.

Before the precinct's redevelopment, Barangaroo was a World Youth Day 2008 site used for the opening mass for an estimated 150,000 people,[22] concerts, a re-enactment of the Stations of the Cross and for the arrival of Pope Benedict XVI to Sydney.

[24] Supporting the Authority is a Design Excellence Review Panel that comprised Paul Keating (Chairman from 2005 until 2011),[25] Chris Johnson, Bridget Smyth, Oi Choong, James Weirick, Angelo Candalepas, and Leo Schofield (resigned 2011).

The City of Sydney and some architectural bodies expressed concern that the proposed designs would be out of scale with the surrounding environment, as well as causing large unwanted shadows over the immediate area, parts of Darling Harbour and possibly nearby Pyrmont.

[27]A concept plan was released by the Government in 2007 and a year later announced that it had shortlisted consortia led by Brookfield Multiplex, Lendlease and Mirvac.

In 2009, to assist with the economic viability of the project, the Government announced that the amount of commercial office space would increase by one third, allowing an additional 120,000 square metres (1,291,669 sq ft) from the initial concept plan for the A$6 billion development.

[19] In late 2009, after a further shortlisting process, the Government announced that it would not proceed with Hill Thalis' winning design, choosing instead a consortium that included lead architect Lord Rogers and developer, Lendlease, who controversially proposed a 230 metres (755 ft) tall hotel to be constructed 150 metres (492 ft) into Darling Harbour, as well as parkland and commercial offices.

Barangaroo South is the southern third of the site and acts as an extension of Sydney's CBD, with office buildings, apartments, retail outlets, public spaces and a hotel.

[32] Three commercial skyscrapers designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners form the core of this stage; known as International Towers Sydney.

[35][36] The proposal drew widespread criticism from the Lord Mayor, Clover Moore,[37][38] former Prime Minister Paul Keating,[39] and former government architect, Chris Johnson.

[40] In October 2012, Premier O'Farrell announced that the NSW Cabinet reviewed the proposal and decided that the government will enter into detailed negotiations with Crown Limited for the establishment of a casino and hotel complex at Barangaroo.

The NSW unsolicited proposal process exists to allow any organisation with unique ideas to make a submission to the government.

[52] After 1836, the original headland and foreshore was cut away to make space for wharves and stevedoring activities as Sydney became a major international port.

[54] The parkland features grassed areas, lookouts, walking and cycle paths, two new harbour coves, and tidal rock pools created from sandstone excavated directly from the Barangaroo site.

Many of the species are not to be found in commercial nurseries, so seeds and cuttings were collected from wild sites around Sydney Harbour and the Hawkesbury River.

[61] The complex serves as the city centre's western ferry hub and consists of two wharves, with provision for a third wharf in the future.