Find out about the local area, the transport options, key shopping district, restaurant and café scene, sports, recreation and fitness and local schools
Named after Princess Alexandria, the wife of King Edward VII, the suburb Alexandria dates back as far as 1868, when it was predominantly a residential area and grand old terrace houses dominated. However, in the early 1900s, a large swathe of Alexandria was rezoned for light industry and warehousing, owing to its proximity to both the rail yards and brick works. By 1943, Alexandria was the largest industrial area in Australia . There were 550 factories squeezed into 100 acres, manufacturing everything from bricks to aeroplanes.
Alexandria extends over four square kilometres and, according to the Census taken in 2001, the population was almost 5,000.
Distance from CBD: 4km.
Transport: Bus, rail and road. Train stations include Green Square , while Erskineville and St Peters train stations are also nearby. Convenient access to major road networks, including the Eastern Distributor.
Key shopping: Alexandria is the furniture mecca of Sydney, with both boutique and commercial shops in the two-storey Style at Home Homemaker Centre on cnr O’Riordan & Doody streets, and the upmarket homewares’ centre, Domayne, and boutique furniture store, Space, located across the road. Factory outlets are scattered throughout Alexandria.
Restaurants & cafes: Danks Street, in nearby Waterloo, is a trendy café and eatery strip that also accommodates several art galleries and Fratelli Fresh, an Italian grocer-wholesaler, deli and fresh produce centre.
Sports, recreation and fitness: Alexandria has three parks, Alexandria Park in the north, Perry Park in the heart of the industrial area, and the massive Sydney Park to the south - 44 hectares of open recreational space comprising a sports oval, wetlands and relics of the brickworks that once occupied the site. Alexandria is also home to Alexandria Basketball Stadium, training venue for the Sydney Kings, and three gyms: Barking Dog Fitness and Sports on Wyndham Ave , Flex Fitness Studios on Collins St , and a heated swimming pool and gym on the business estate at 180 Bourke Rd.
Schools: 0-5 years: Sydney Park Child Care Centre, Bourke St; Building Blocks Early Childhood, Bourke Rd; Alexandria Child Care Centre, Henderson Rd; Sunbeam Pre-school, Lyne St; Wunanbiri Pre-school, Belmont St. 5-12 years: Alexandria Park Community School, Park Rd. 12-18 years: Alexandria Park Community School Senior Campus, Mitchell St.