Entertainment · Books & Arts · 3 hrs ago
Powerhouse Parramatta museum set to open amid funding and governance concerns
Powerhouse Parramatta is due to open on 7 November in western Sydney, about 20km from central Sydney.
It is a new arts, design, science and technology museum, part of the broader Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences.
The A$915m building has large, column-free galleries and opens with five exhibitions, including displays about space travel and flight.
A 23-day opening festival will feature performances, talks and workshops, with 65% of its program free.
The project has faced criticism over its cost and concerns that the new site has taken attention from the museum’s Ultimo location, which closed in 2024 and is being renovated.
An investigation is examining governance and procurement allegations after chief executive Lisa Havilah left her role in August; the allegations have not been publicly detailed.
The museum is set to open while the inquiry continues, but it is not clear whether its findings will be made public.
Powerhouse Parramatta, a new arts, design, science and technology museum in western Sydney, is due to open on 7 November.
The museum cost A$915m, and its funding, governance and procurement have drawn scrutiny.
Chief executive Lisa Havilah stepped down in August while allegations were investigated.
More than 750 people have signed a petition calling for Havilah to be reinstated.
The opening includes five exhibitions and a 23-day festival, with 65% of the festival program free.
- Who
- Powerhouse Parramatta, part of the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences.
- What
- The new museum is due to open to the public. Its opening includes five exhibitions and a 23-day festival.
- When
- 7 November 2026.
- Where
- Parramatta, in Sydney’s western suburbs, on the banks of the Parramatta River.
- Why
- The state government selected Parramatta to distribute the city’s cultural assets more equitably across the population.
NSW government
Critics of the Parramatta project and supporters of the Ultimo site
Location
NSW government
The government said the new site would distribute cultural assets more equitably across the population.
Critics of the Parramatta project and supporters of the Ultimo site
Critics say the new project has neglected the Ultimo site.
Ultimo site
NSW government
The government is undertaking a A$300m heritage revitalisation of the closed site.
Critics of the Parramatta project and supporters of the Ultimo site
Critics have called its closure a cultural tragedy, and a petition has been launched to save it.
The Parramatta outpost was announced.
Parramatta was selected as the new site for the museum.
The Ultimo building closed and began a A$300m heritage revitalisation.
Lisa Havilah stepped down while allegations were investigated.
A petition calling for Havilah’s reinstatement was launched.
Powerhouse Parramatta is due to open to the public.
- Construction cost
- A$915m
- Opening date
- 7 November 2026
- Opening exhibitions
- 5
- Opening festival
- 23 days; 65% of the program is free
- Petition signatories
- More than 750
- Ultimo heritage revitalisation
- A$300m
3 sources
What people are saying
governance and procurement
It’s a globally unprecedented museum demolition
the whole of Parramatta would be under water