Bankstown

Map of Bankstown, New South Wales Latitude, Longitude:   Zoom level: Place name:

Bankstown

Bankstown, one of the most ethnically diverse communities of Australia, has over 60 different languages spoken by the people of this suburb. It is a suburb located 20 kilometers southwest of the Sydney Central Business District. Bankstown’s population is over 26,000. More than half of the residents state that they have been born overseas. After English, the most common languages spoken were Arabic (23.1%), Vietnamese (16.2%), Mandarin (4.1%), Greek (3.8%), and Cantonese (3.7%). Bankstown was named after botanist Sir Joseph Banks, who travelled to Australia in 1770 with James Cook. Bankstown was accorded city status on May 27, 1980, when Queen Elizabeth II visited the place. The commercial area, known as Bankstown Plaza, is located beside the railway station. Here one can find a host of restaurants, eateries and cafes that came about due to the ethnic diversity of the area. Centro Bankstown, immediately northeast of the railway station, is a large shopping center. Attractions include a new Big W and Woolworths supermarket, a "Fresh Life food district", as well as various specialty shops and 1000+ new parking spaces. There are several major parks in the city which are famous destinations because of the beautiful plants and flowers found there. Bankstown City Gardens consist of many unusual types of flora found in Bankstown and the surrounding area. The park, opened to the public in 1973, consist of different areas, native, tropical, rose garden and Perennial. Paul Keating Park was built on the site of Bankstown Council's former administration building, after it was destroyed by fire on 1 July 1997.