Why is redfern dangerous?

Fred hands out one magazine after another. He’s returned to this patch practically every morning for years now, offering the latest edition of The Big Issue to the men and women who pass him by. Fred must be 70 at least. Deep grooves line his face, which tells its own story. He fondly recalls the days when he was kept company by another man, who would sit nearby playing on his didgeridoo.

At 9 o’clock in Sydney, Redfern Station is in the throes of its morning Rush Hour. Almost by the minute, trains arrive and depart from the city centre, the outer suburbs, and to the neighbouring Surry Hills and Alexandria. The steady stream of trains transports hundreds of workers, students and businesspeople to Sydney’s southern CBD.

This commuter bustle suggests little more than another ordinary working day. Yet there is something unsettling about the scene. The aboriginal murals on the walls around the station offer a distant echo of another time. These crumbling, fading surfaces allow a hint of once-bright scenes: of animals, people, landscapes and Dreamtime legends, as painted by the indigenous people who were Redfern’s original inhabitants.

Aboriginals settled in the area around Redfern many years ago, often referring to it as ‘Eora Country’ after the area’s indigenous owners. This name can still be seen around Redfern, painted in fading red paint on walls and laneways.

If you leave the train station and follow the brightly-painted murals on the walls, you will find yourself in the heart of the district. The streets have a quiet and calm vibe, it even feels rather hip. But this wasn’t always the case. Crime, protests, drugs, alcohol. Redfern was the scene of endless, awful daily battles. Plagued with unemployment and a lack of opportunities, Redfern’s aboriginal inhabitants found little peace here. Now that they are gone, little trace of them remains. The streets are empty. The plain, colonial-era terraces seem almost lonely and the playgrounds and gyms stand unoccupied. Barely anyone is here at all.

Redfern represented, for many years, a thorn in the side of successive state and federal governments. Relocation schemes, large-scale building projects and systematic gentrification were among the sometimes cynical strategies employed to force out most of the area’s aboriginal residents. In 2004, their opposition to this process quickly escalated.

It was the closure of The Block, a collection of 21 houses on Eveleigh Street, not far from the train station, that signalled the beginning of the end. In 1973, this area – complete with social housing for hundreds of people – was granted to the aboriginals as a gift. Sadly, as time passed, the area became increasingly run down and rife with crime and drug dealing. For many Sydney-siders, Redfern developed a reputation as an unruly and dangerous ghetto. In 2004, a tragedy brought the situation to a head. A 17 year old aboriginal boy was killed while riding a bicycle during a police chase. The incident sparked the worst race-riots Australia had seen since the 60‘s. The closure and ultimate demolition of The Block followed.

Today, silence reigns on the empty plot where the aboriginal homes on The Block once stood. It is almost eerie. Yellowing advertising flyers have been stuffed into the overflowing letterboxes of long-abandoned buildings. The Block no longer exists. There is an immense mural, painted on a wall overlooking the plot, which serves as a solitary reminder of those that came before. It depicts the aboriginal flag: oversized and defiant.

The relentless Australian sun beats down, and the occasional gust blows a slight breeze across the unbuilt ground. When it does, it almost feels like a ghost, whispering tales from the dreamtime. An old pair of boxing gloves dangles from the iron grill in the window of Tony Mundine’s Boxing club & Gym, which only closed last year. With it, went two true veterans – Tony and the gym itself. Tony was a true fighter, and a man who stood up for aboriginal rights, both inside and outside the ring.

No-one fights here anymore. The old lettering of the gym’s name on the brick building is barely legible now, the bars in front of the windows are rusting away and one can only imagine the hard and sweaty battles which once took place here. Redfern has changed forever. It has become an altogether different place. A day spent in Redfern today feels like a stroll through the history of the Australian continent. You pass along the abandoned streets, alongside the storytelling murals and end up in the midst of what Redfern is now becoming: a centre of hip, contemporary culture, centred around cafes, art galleries and advertising agencies.

A short distance away from “The Block” chilled bass sounds are emanating from what appears to be a converted factory. There’s plenty going on in Henry Lee’s Café. The redbrick walls offer some shelter from the heat of the midday sun, metal bars allow a slight breeze to filter through and the sophisticated menu will hasten the heartbeats of vegetarians, vegans and clean-eating devotees alike. On the counter stand chic carafes of thirst-quenching water, garnished with cucumber, limes and mint. On each table, there is a bowl of sustainable brown sugar, and the staff speak French, Spanish and English.

Every now and then, attractive young women in yoga gear will pass through and disappear up a narrow spiral staircase to the Yoga-studio above. Everyone seems to be living in the day, just catching up with friends or doing a bit of work on the go.

Redfern has been utterly transformed. Less than a decade ago, even changing trains at Redfern station was considered slightly reckless. Today, it is a place in which advertising campaigns are created, galleries are opened and yoga sessions are held. So much has changed and in the process, a chapter from Australian history has been erased, whilst a new one is written.

Summary: Formerly one of the true “wild west” suburbs of inner Sydney, in recent years Redfern has substantially – though not fully – had its face changed by the forces of gentrification. Nowadays it’s basically an extension of neighbouring Surry Hills, with a similar burgeoning cafe and pub culture dotted amongst its array of narrow, street-facing terraces and low-rise apartment blocks.

It’s hard to match for convenience with immediate city access and comprehensive public transport, and is highly walkable/bikeable. Redfern’s also still home to significant slices of public housing, an above-average crime rate, can be noisy and traffic-heavy, and retains a mix of quirky demographics from the high and lower ends of socioeconomic society.

There’s no denying that Redfern, perhaps more than any other suburb in inner Sydney, has quite the lingering reputation it’s needed to shake.

At the peak of its dodgy powers in the 1990’s, Redfern was seen as practically a no-go zone by many Sydneysiders due to its status as a land of drug use and trade, inflammatory graffiti, fires, assault, and general violence and unpleasantness.

It’s come a long way since then, bordering on “trendy” in the present day, although it’s still a suburb in the midst of an identity change rather than being 100% sterilised by gentrification.

If Sydney was New York, then Redfern would probably be Brooklyn; it boasts similar, slightly gritty elements along with its blend of wealthy property owners, artsy types, urban-bohemian clothing, and people with mental health issues muttering to themselves as they shuffle along the streets.

Redfern is truly a suburb of contradictions, one in which you can step outside your gorgeous and charming multi-million dollar street-facing terrace home and be a mere 15 minute walk from the CBD of the largest and most desirable city in Australia – yet also may be looking directly across at highrise social housing blocks or having to pass by the occasional drug addict on your way to the office.

For some, this will be an absolute turnoff; for others, it and the local characters it entails make up part of Redfern’s present-day charm.

Much of Redfern’s history is still in plain view, and it’s a suburb with a pretty character-rich streetscape despite the occasional eyesore.

Perhaps one of the best summaries of Redfern is that one of its most appealing, historic sandstone buildings is its Courthouse; take that how you will. There are plenty of other remaining architectural examples of older times as well, which help break things up from all the new modern/standard fit outs and apartments being gradually added.

It’s largely terraces packed tightly together with the occasional boutique store or service sandwiched in along its main thoroughfares, or quieter terrace-only back streets. Many of these terraces have received facelifts and are extremely charming, with well-kept little courtyards, nameplates and stylised front gates.

Redfern’s also leafier than you might think given its central location. Many of its streets receive pretty nice overhanging tree cover, which form some lovely colours during the colder months.

Combine this with its occasional murals of social commentary and the quaint nature of the terraces in general, and it can be quite photogenic in spots.

Befitting its past, many of Redfern’s streets still contain significant social buildings and accommodations.

Around 20% of the suburb is designated as public housing, and the differences between these and the wealthier homes is stark; they’re far more utilitarian, big heavy brick complexes and towers that provide the needy with a place to lay their head.

Most of these are concentrated around or a short distance from Redfern Park – a massive and spacious public space that is tastefully done and actually really pleasant.

With its mix of statues, fountain, oval for sport and general activity, it’s a pretty popular focal communal point that draws in the full cross-section of Redfern’s inhabitants and income levels. High-earning hipsters, dog-walking same-sex couples, junkies, doctors & bankers… this is Redfern in a nutshell.

As its demographics have changed, so has Redfern’s array of amenities. As a suburb for “things to do”, it’s now very appealing for a visit.

Bourke Street on the east side runs down from Surry Hills and continues its same cafe-centric culture into Redfern proper, while central Redfern is likewise turning into a hotspot for some really good places to eat and drink.

Excellent spots for coffee, high-level boutique bakeries, medical services and more of the commonly “high-end” hangout spots and amenities continue to grow.

For those who like a drop of the good stuff, Redfern’s hard to match as well. It’s home to multiple large-scale pubs (the Norfolk, Regent, Bat & Ball, Woolpack, etc. etc.) that can be both pumping as well as cosy and welcoming, as well as smaller niche-bars and a couple of truly cool hidden little places where you won’t even be able to find the front door without knowing prior.

For shopping, Redfern has several options for daily goods, groceries and the like both within the suburb itself or next door in neighbouring Waterloo.

Coles (at the little Surry Hills Shopping Village), Woolworths, IGA and Aldi are all within easy reach, while it’s got enough smaller-scale boutique stores and the bigger brands of the city are just a walk, ride or short train trip away.

In recent years, it’s also become a bit of a popular spot for tech startups and other forward-thinking businesses as well.

For those that have been priced out of Surry Hills for office space, Redfern is the next-best-thing and there are many with cool open-plan offices converted from former homes or warehouse spaces that draw in tech and marketing workers from all over Sydney.

It’s quite a noisy suburb overall as a result. This isn’t the place you’d live if you want continual peace and quiet, as not only its popularity of an evening for drinks, but also its heavy traffic and the near-continual whine of police and ambulance sirens all play a role.

Redfern sits alongside the South Dowling Street/Eastern Distributor combo as well, meaning you’ll have to live within a small handful of its most elite central streets to be able to escape from the full brunt of traffic noise. Driving here is also as packed as one might expect, with all the issues of inner Sydney’s convoluted road layout and congestion right on your doorstep.

It’s fortunate, then, that Redfern is so well set up for those who prefer to ride their bikes. It’s highly cyclable, with consistent bike lanes/cycleways and terrain-wise mostly fairly flat other than slices of the East side.

It’s so cycle-friendly that many bikers from other suburbs will use Redfern as their preferred path into/out of the city, and entire groups dedicated to cycling around here exist as well.

Location-wise Redfern physically sits in a pretty damn idyllic spot for those looking for city living and the buzz of urban life. It’s just a stone’s throw away from Sydney city proper with the skyline always easily visible, making the prospect for city workers of living life without a car actually viable.

It’s a major transport interchange, with Redfern station (soon to receive some substantial upgrades from the government – long overdue) a key stop for express trains.

Being bisected and bordered by a number of main roads, it sees a huge array of bus services as well; given that most of its non-apartment homes only come with on-street parking, this is an essential part of getting from A to B here.

For overall atmosphere, despite its gentrification efforts Redfern is still quite gritty and dirty in places. Cigarette butts are seemingly everywhere, the skillful murals in its back streets are outnumbered by graffiti, and it’s shopping trolley-central on many front paths and lawns.

Many of its terraces, older blocks and other storefronts remain untouched and unmaintained, with paint peeling (maybe intentionally for the aesthetic in some cases?) and cracks/broken parts of walls and garbage-strewn front gardens.

There is also still a little bit of a “tense” vibe here overall.

You can’t truly walk through Redfern at any hour of the day/night and not have to at watch your back at least slightly, and while there’s a line between “snobbery” and realistically judging people, there are still quite a few people around with obvious illnesses and prone to random outbursts. While they’re mostly harmless and often-times quite friendly, it’s something to keep in mind.

The correlation between public housing and crime rate also still exists, as politically delicate as the topic might be.

Redfern still ranks well towards the top-end in Sydney per capita for home break-ins, drug offenses, disorderly conduct, domestic violence and many other important crime indicators; it’s one thing to be progressive, but it’s another entirely to deny reality.

There are countless signs attempting to reinforce its “Alcohol-Free Zones”, and there are frequently displays of aggression, shouting and other unnecessary acts against random people for no real reason.

For families, as a result Redfern is a bit of a mixed bag and a hard sell. It’s got several options for schools within its catchment area and is incredibly convenient, but not really the type of place you’d want your kids frequently walking home by themselves.

For pets, Redfern Park and its couple of other little reserves are adequate, but they don’t have dedicated off-leash areas and it’s a bit random and chaotic for animals as a result.

The other obvious issue for living in Redfern is price. It’s no longer a bargain-bin place to capitalise on a bad reputation, scoop up property and sell for a million dollars profit down the track.

In the present day, there’s not too much difference in price from Surry Hills, although it’s still possible to save yourself a couple of hundred thousand dollars due to Redfern’s lesser “brand-name” recognition when buying a home.

Redfern only has a few high-density (non-public) apartment blocks so its supply is not massive, either. These are fast approaching a million dollars on average, as they’re mostly newer and higher-end.

Medians for Redfern’s non-apartment housing sit at around $1.4 million; that’s around $300,000 less than Surry Hills and nothing to sneeze at, but still a pretty price to pay for a place with such a handful of obvious glaring issues.

Redfern’s such an eclectic suburb that it’s going to be totally alienating for some people, and entirely quirky and appealing for others. Some mix of your social views, life stage, career, and family demographics will all play a role in living here perhaps moreso than many other suburbs across Sydney.

Its convenience, upbeat and active vibe and feeling like really being a part of modern-day “SYDNEY” Sydney are all hard to deny. It’s a decent summary of the good and bad of the city all in one little burb. If you’re the type who wants to be out and about and “experiencing” Sydney all the time – eating, drinking, socialising, biking, meditating, whatever – then Redfern’s energy and vibe will no doubt appeal.

For those who want a good night’s sleep, a nice, clean, safe and well-kept environment while only encountering droll, white-collar individuals, this is not the place for you. It’s thus ironically best suited to the younger crowd, who probably won’t be able to afford living here other than in a share house.

Progressive, plant-based food stores with vegan alternatives sit alongside Taoist temples, while junkies drop syringes in back streets and wealthy gay couples walk their pugs, while the wail of sirens drone in the background.

‘Across Sydney, suburbs are defined by their past, but none have kept their history and awareness in the present as Redfern has. My mum remembers Redfern as the place that was a home away from home for her, and years later it became mine. When I first moved to Redfern as a young adult, I lived a few streets over from The Block and regularly visited the Aboriginal Medical Service – the first Aboriginal community-controlled health service in Australia – as my regular doctor, just like my mum did a generation before.

‘Things in the neighborhood look and feel a little different now, though. In the past few years, gentrification has really stepped up, with countless wine bars, fancy cafes, restaurants and high-rise apartment buildings appearing everywhere. Alongside this, though, the National Centre of Indigenous Excellence was established and the Indigenous origins and history of the area can be seen on every street. Murals depicting our history and Indigenous footy players, shops showing their solidarity with First Nations around the world, and native Indigenous ingredients proudly used across the menus of the neighborhood's best restaurants, keep our history close. Over the years, Redfern has been a constant in my life – here's a day in my town.’

9AM

‘Start the day at Carriageworks. Once railway workshops, it's now a creative hub reopening after refurbishment at the end of April. The weekly markets are great for a wander – they're full of fresh flowers, locally sourced produce and food stalls from nearby businesses like social enterprise Two Good Co and Archie Rose Distilling Co. You might spot celebrity chef Kylie Kwong dishing out her steamed veggie and warrigal greens dumplings, but don't eat too many – there's a lot more to try.’

10AM

‘Get a fresh cut at Hair By Tommy J. I've been coming here for about 10 years and there aren't many other people I would trust with my hair. They're so good that, even when I was living in other cities, I'd always make sure to stop by for a cut when transiting through Sydney.’

11AM

‘Home of possibly the best brunch in the city, Henry Lee's is a light-filled industrial cafe. While Australia is known for brunch staples like avo on toast, branch out when you're here and make sure you order the mushroom chips alongside your eggs.’

12PM

‘Walk off brunch by checking out some of the murals dotted among the streets of Redfern. However, if you get peckish along the way, pop into Good Ways Deli for a “kanga sanga”, its famous sandwich of kangaroo mortadella, salami, ham, cheese, pickles and lettuce. It also slings Aussie faves like lamingtons, cheese and Vegemite scrolls, and Anzac biccies.’

2PM

‘Grab a coffee from The Tin Humpy, a famous Indigenous-owned cafe. Owner Yvette Lever is a former pastry chef at Sydney institution The Grounds of Alexandria – so you know it's good. On the menu, you'll find native Aussie ingredients used in dishes like its lemon myrtle meringue and finger-lime jam. With a flat white and something sweet in hand, take a walk down to the award-winning Redfern Park for an arvo in the sun. If you're lucky, you might see the Rabbitohs, our local footy team, training.'

3PM

‘Take your pick of an afternoon delight in the form of some shopping with design store DEA or vintage emporium Rudi Rocket.’

5PM

‘Thirsty? Queer bar and creative space The Bearded Tit is one of my favorite spots in Sydney. Grab a packet of Twisties (an iconic Aussie snack made from puffed corn and covered in neon orange cheese dust) or a retro cubed cheese platter, and head to the caravan out the back for a beer from a local brewery or a cold Aussie pét-nat [naturally sparkling wine].’

7PM

‘Pin down a reservation at Bush, a restaurant that focuses on native and invasive species to nurture the environment. Start with some Sydney rock oysters and wattleseed damper, followed by the restaurant's iconic burger (the best in Sydney, I won't hear otherwise). The fairy bread and butter pudding for dessert is an absolute must-have, it is pure nostalgia.’

9PM

‘You've got to have a nightcap at Arcadia Liquors. Back in the day, I brought all my first dates here as it's the ideal bar for such an occasion. It's got good drinks, low light, cozy vibes and, most importantly, it's right next to the train station if the date doesn't work out.’

10PM

‘Finish by swinging by a Redfern institution, “the greatest convenience store on earth’, to take home some snacks and to also say “hello” to its owner and local celebrity Hazem Sedda. He's been running the Redfern Convenience Store since he was a teenager and has transformed it into something special. If you're lucky, you might take the prize for “customer of the day” on his Instagram page.’

• Redfern is on Gadigal land in the Eora Nation.

• 10 minutes from Sydney Harbour.

• 13,213: the population of Redfern (2016).

• 2.1%: the percentage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders living in Redfern.

• Blak is a term used by Indigenous Australians, first used by Aboriginal artist Destiny Deacon.

Grab an easy dinner? Ron's Upstairs. ‘Step upstairs to dine on one of Sydney's best set menus. Think: rotisserie chicken, saganaki and grilled seafood.’

Head with a big group of friends? The Sunshine Inn. ‘Cheap and cheerful gastropub out front and fancy food and cocktails out back. With $10 burgers on a Sunday and a daily happy hour, your friends will thank you.’

At the peak of its dodgy powers in the 1990's, Redfern was seen as practically a no-go zone by many Sydneysiders due to its status as a land of drug use and trade, inflammatory graffiti, fires, assault, and general violence and unpleasantness.