Things we’ve done
Project K-Shift is a community group based in Newtown, Enmore, and Erskineville, organising locals around the question of what our streets and public spaces are actually for, and who gets to decide.
We’re not a big organisation. We’re neighbours, renters, business owners, gardeners, and people who care about this place. What we’ve done has started small and grown: a sticker on a bin, a post-it note on a wall, a plant on a concrete island. Sometimes it leads somewhere. Sometimes it gets removed by three trucks and five police cars.
Either way, we keep going. Here’s what we’ve been up to.
The Darley Street Parklet
September 2026
On Saturday and Sunday the 19–20 September, our volunteers created a temporary community parklet on Darley Street, outside Valet café and beside the Botany View Hotel.
The activity was held to mark international PARK(ing) Day, when communities around the world temporarily transform road space into small public places. The aim was to demonstrate how a modest reallocation of road space could improve pedestrian accessibility and safety, support local businesses, strengthen community connections and add to the street life of this part of Newtown.
The parklet used hay bales, plants, tables, seating and umbrellas to create a welcoming place where people can stop, meet their neighbours and support nearby businesses. It was extremely popular with residents who almost unanimously said they’d like it to be permanent.
The Newtown Community Forest
June — July 2025
Following the activism masterclass on 24 June, community members began greening the Triangle of Shame (the concrete pedestrian island outside Newtown Station) with the vision of creating a Newtown Community Forest: a pollinator corridor and green gateway to the suburb. They even put a seat there.
The Forest took off! There was a barbecue hosted there, a soundscape and projection, and an increasing number of plants. It attracted quite a lot of social media attention beyond our small group of volunteers.
On 21 July, Transport for NSW removed the plants and the seating, citing safety concerns. Two trucks, five police cars, and several personnel were deployed. No complaint had been made. The community responded with a petition, a wake at The Town Hall hotel, and a renewed commitment to a greener Newtown.
Passion, Persistence and Plants: An Activism Masterclass
June 2025
Project K-Shift hosted an evening with ex Inner West Councillor Pauline Lockie and landscape architect Patrick Franklyn at Erskineville Town Hall, with special guest Claudette Roy, who has been greening McElhone Place in Surry Hills since 1977. The event drew a full room of locals ready to learn, plan, and act. Within hours of the evening finishing, attendees had placed plants from Patrick’s collection directly onto the Triangle of Shame outside Newtown Station.
Bin the Clearways — Vinyl Sticker Campaign
October 2025 — ongoing
Over 100 A3 vinyl stickers placed on bins across Newtown, Enmore, and Erskineville, each one reading: “Bin the clearways. This is a people way.” A small, persistent act of public communication that puts the case for reclaiming King Street from cars, one bin at a time. Stickers are available for purchase here, alongside our full explainer on clearways and why they need to go. If you see one in the wild, take a pic, post it on instagram, and tag us! @projectkshift.
Walking Back to Happiness: Fixing King Street One Step at a Time
December 2025
In December 2025, Project K-Shift brought together around 70 locals for an evening with Dr Tim Williams, one of Australia’s leading urban thinkers. The session explored what it would take to transform King Street from a car-dominated clearway into a street that genuinely serves the people who live, work, and play on it. Attendees shared ideas, priorities, and frustrations on post-it notes, laying the groundwork for K-Shift’s ongoing advocacy for a better King Street.
