News & Discussion: Other Metropolitan Developments

[bm7500]

The views are great until they get built out

[AtD]

surely very few people will actually have views? just the first row of houses...

I can see your point. From what I saw of the site plan, there are height limits across the development that increase away from the city, with the apartments furthest north. But yes, nothing stopping the next developer from blocking it out completely.

[Mants]

From the Eastern Courier

Magill Rd makeover

23 Sep 08 @ 10:33am by Emily Charrison

A FARMER’S market, people living above shops, brick road paving and trams - not Melbourne’s Brunswick St but a vision for Magill Rd in a decade.

Norwood, Payneham & St Peters Council has unveiled a bold plan to put Magill Rd on par with The Parade at Norwood, including:

Creating five precincts lifestyle, traditional, terminus, landscape and organic;

Extending the city tram line to Magill Rd and linking it to The Parade;

Brick paving between Osmond Tce and Portrush Rd;

Underground powerlines;

Mosaics on street corners decorated by local artists; and

European-style housing with residents living above shops.

The Magill Rd Streetscape Framework, developed by consultants GHD and the council’s Magill Rd Precinct Committee, was endorsed this month following public consultation.

Already it has received the thumbs-up from Magill Rd traders.

“We’ve always been the poor cousins of The Parade but now things are changing,” precinct committee chairman Nabeel Najjar said. “It’s about creating an identity for the street so that people will come we know it won’t happen overnight but it will happen.”

During the consultation, traders identified a number of problems with Magill Rd, including traffic, parking and aesthetics. Mr Nabeel, who owns a coffee shop on the strip, said those issues must be addressed in the framework.

“Now that the positives and negatives have been put forward it’s clear where Magill Rd could be in 10 or 20 years and what the expectations should be.”

Committee member and Magill Rd trader Janet Belchamber, of Belchamber Legal, said: “Magill Rd has been abandoned and neglected for years but this is like a breath of fresh air and it’s great to have something concrete on paper to work towards.”

NP&SP;Council’s business and economic development manager Skana Gallery said “detailed concept plans” for each precinct were now being developed to determine the total cost of the project.

She said the council had applied for $20,000 of State Government funds to develop plans for both the lifestyle and traditional precinct, and would also lobby for a tram extension to the eastern suburbs.

“The framework provides us with the parameters and the next step is really to drill down into the detail,” Ms Gallery said.

Transport Minister Patrick Conlon’s media spokesman Sam Ion said there were no plans to extend the tramline east, although the State Govt would provide a “coast-to-coast service” from Glenelg to Semaphore, announced in June’s budget.

what an excellent vision!

for years i've been going on about Magill Road's potential and every time i drive along there, i think it could be like a King William Road or a Parade.

i feel the "makeover" has already begun, with the renovation of The Maid and Magpie, Alma and The Oriental pubs, all popular and trendy pubs (3 of my favourites in fact!)

[Mants]

here's the master plan/framework.
http://www.npsp.sa.gov.au/webdata/resou ... 8_2008.pdf

[omada]

This is the type of forward thinking that we need in SA, I like it! Magill Road has some excellent shops as it is: good second hand shops (Rockin' Rustic),antique shops, big star records..

I would like to see it happen sooner than 10 years!

[Norman]

Maybe the council can pay for the tram service... I'm sure the Government would then approve

[SRW]

Dang...

[jk1237]

great idea, however Magill Rd nowadays has a very large traffic flow, which currently ruins its high street format, similar to the traffic on Unley Road.

Interesting to see how Prospect stopped the double laned part on prospect Rd, and installed a wide medium strip with some trees. Prospect Rd is now having a little resurgence. Having only 1 lane each way slows down the cars, a wider medium strip (compared to a white line) allows pedestrian to cross the road more safely, and its just much more calmer and pleasant.

Id love Magill Rd to do this also, stuff the cars IMO. Infact Id like Unley Road to do this also - put in a small med strip, have 1 lane each way, maybe allow some permanent road side parking, and widen the footpath to allow more alfresco dining.

However the car is king of the galaxy and deleting a whole lane would never be allowed to happen

[rogue]

I like the idea, but I think that traffic will be a major obstacle as this is a major thoroughfare to and from the city. There is also constant heavy vehicle traffic that uses Magill Rd.

I don’t think Payneham Rd is currently suitable as an alternative route for those wanting to travel to the north eastern suburbs.

[Wayno]

not sure there needs to be much loss of traffic flow - aren't we simply taking about shared lanes with trams? this happens everywhere in melbourne...

maybe the tram lines could simply be "pulled over to the side" for the major stops?

[Norman]

Thing is though, most of our roads are major thoroughfares, in Melbourne the tram roads are bypassed with freeways.

[Somebody]

Thing is though, most of our roads are major thoroughfares, in Melbourne the tram roads are bypassed with freeways.

Have you ever been to Sydney Rd, or tram route 19? A relatively narrow major throughfare combined with a street tramway (2nd busiest route) and on-street car parking. Slooooow.

As to building new on-street tram routes in Adelaide - what's the point?

[crawf]

Sounds promising

[Shuz]

I like it! Adelaide needs more streets that perputrate that sense of 'linear activity' for retail & dining experiences, like King William Road. These are the sort of developments that should be actively encouraged and favoured over corporate mega-malls like Westfield Marion. The sense of community and activity are hugely attractive and establish a unique indenity for the area, lifting its profile furthermore for locals and tourists alike.

That was a distraction from my main point. Trams!

[rhino]

As to building new on-street tram routes in Adelaide - what's the point?

What's your point?

Love the plans for Magill Road by the way. When I was a kid growing up in Henley Beach, I remember how awful Henley Beach Road was in Torrensville and Thebarton. Then they started promoting it as "Thebarton Main Street" and a re-birth happened. Now it's a great place to drive through, walk through, shop at, eat, etc. This is great for Magill Road.