[COM] Rundle Mall Redevelopment | $30m

[The Scooter Guy]

Did you know that there used to be an escalator or two in Rundle Mall?
I found a picture of one from PictureAustralia!

[Nathan]

Increase the CBD population - problem solved...

Here, here!

Ditto!! BTW - is'nt it hear, hear!

ADELAIDE - TOWARDS A GREATER CITY SKYLINE

Yes. Yes you are right.

[dsriggs]

Has anyone tried from the golf range atop the ex David Jones building (Spotlight, JB Hi Fi)?

Yeah, you can't see anything from up there. They keep you in the middle of the roof to make sure no stray golf balls hit things they shouldn't.

[danielphin]

Did you know that there used to be an escalator or two in Rundle Mall?

Where did it go? destination-wise

The Advertiser dying?

Again, Yes.

[cruel_world00]

I definitely remember the escalators. I never used the bridge between the Toys'R'us building and Richmond, but always went up them when walking with mum and dad down the mall.

http://tinyurl.com/yzm7leh

[rhino]

I have a vague recollection of those escalators. Are there many outdoor escalators around? How well do they cope with weather?

[The Scooter Guy]

What year were the escalators removed? Was there a reason why?
Anyway, here's another picture taken from the bridge. BTW, I'm a little curious about that 'windowed' thing on the right. Is is a restaurant?

[AtD]

I have a vague recollection of those escalators. Are there many outdoor escalators around? How well do they cope with weather?

There's a few around. The south eastern corner of the convention centre, for example. I don't think it's the weather that's a problem, more likely dirt and objects finding their way into the machinery.

[monotonehell]

What year were the escalators removed? Was there a reason why?
Anyway, here's another picture taken from the bridge. BTW, I'm a little curious about that 'windowed' thing on the right. Is is a restaurant?

Used to be.. that's now the upstairs annex of ToysRUs. The part you first enter at the top of their (indoor) escalator.

The outdoor escalators used to be in the middle of the Mall, running parallel with the Mall, up to a first floor footbridge between the Richmond's balcony and what is now ToysRUs's balcony. That was coupled with the glass elevators, you can still see the mess where they chopped off the bridge.

[Somebody]

Poor old Adelaide, even good old Rundle Mall is dying :wank:. I suspect what will happen to it is it will be over-run by chain stores if it's not already - like an open air version of Westfield Tea Tree Plaza :wank: :wank:

Back when I went to Adelaide all it needed was more activity at night - it was a ghost town then :wank:

Also I saw online about Adelaide's upcoming planning strategy, it just seems like the point of improving Adelaide is to copy Melbourne when it was going on about laneways. Come on, you can do better, try to be better than Melb (Central Adelaide is already fairly pleasant to begin with) :wank:

[cruel_world00]

I never thought I'd say this, but.... too much wanking.

[jk1237]

what were all those people doing in Rundle Mall yesterday arvo and night. There were thousands, yet the Sunday Mail and a current affair say its dying. Gosh, I once thought they had reputable reporters

[deano91]

what were all those people doing in Rundle Mall yesterday arvo and night. There were thousands, yet the Sunday Mail and a current affair say its dying. Gosh, I once thought they had reputable reporters

Yeah, I work in the 3 Mobile store in Harris Scarfe and I worked the late night shopping shift last night and there were people everywhere! It was my first Friday night shift and I was expecting it to be dead so you can imagine my surprise and delight when I saw how many people were there

[The Scooter Guy]

There's a few around. The south eastern corner of the convention centre, for example. I don't think it's the weather that's a problem, more likely dirt and objects finding their way into the machinery.

Especially cigarette butts, which could ignite grease and cause an imitation of the fire at UK's Kings Cross station!

[AG]

The Advertiser is simply recycling old news now:

Call for urgent action to revive 'stalled' Rundle Mall, St

* SHERADYN HOLDERHEAD
* From: The Advertiser
* April 12, 2010 12:01AM

ADELAIDE'S premier shopping district urgently needs a shot in the arm and experts are demanding bold action to revitalise the strip.

An Advertiser investigation has revealed more than 80 empty stores in the area between the east end of Rundle St and the west end of Hindley St.

The Rundle Mall Management Authority is working on a masterplan for the mall, expected to be released near the end of the year, which will include bringing the laneways and arcades back to life, considering evening activities, covering parts of the mall and creating a defined policy for shop fronts and signage.

Management authority general manager Martin Haese said the revitalisation of the city's shopping district must be a priority for the Adelaide City Council and State Government, because there had been very little investment in the area over the past 20 years.

"I think Adelaide City Council and the State Government need to come together to do something bold," he said. "This has to be a repositioning for the next 20, 30, 40 years. "It (the mall) was really cutting-edge in the '70s, so what happens next needs to retake that space as Australia's best mall."

"Why aren't we acting? It has to come from government leadership." Mr Haese said there had been an increase in vacancy rates in the laneways, streets and arcades off the Mall.

"We always have to be proactive to ensure we don't have high vacancy rates but they are not the only acid tests for the health of a shopping area," he said.

Mr Haese said passionate discussion about renewing and upgrading the area in the business and wider community made the area an important political issue.

"I certainly believe the party or the government that gets behind Rundle Mall will win the next election," he said.

"A lot of people turned against (former Member for Adelaide) Jane Lomax-Smith due to a lack of action."

Independent retail consultant Stirling Griff agreed any revitalisation for the area needs to be supported by both the council and State Government.

"There needs to be a vision from the council and the property owners have to be behind it," he said. "Looking at the past, nothing will happen without some degree of pressure from the State Government."

The precinct was created in September 1976 and as Australia's first pedestrian street mall, it was considered a cutting-edge urban development.

It has become famous for its examples of modern sculpture, and colourful array of buskers.

But the continued growth of suburban shopping malls means Rundle Mall must now find new ways of attracting shoppers to the city centre.

The two confirmed candidates for Lord Mayor in the upcoming council elections, Anne Moran and Francis Wong, were both concerned about the vacancy rate and agreed the area was in dire need of a lift.

Ms Moran said the vacancy rate was "very worrying" but she remained positive about the potential of the area if the right amount of funds were injected.

"I would not spend too much on Victoria Square and re-route all the money into the shopping area," she said.

"I'm looking at the Renew Newcastle plan, which is probably more for on Hindley St, that looks at when you do have vacancies instead of it just sitting there, stick emerging businesses in there on short-term leases.

"When the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra went in there (Hindley St) the area went well but now has really slumped."

Ms Moran said she would also like to see Rundle Mall covered.

"Malls are almost an old-fashioned idea now," she said.

"What I'd like to see is an all-weather covering. I don't mean roofing. I think if we put some sort of shading for summer and rain proofing for winter."

The state of Rundle Mall and Hindley St "deeply concerned" Mr Wong.

"Rundle Mall is the heart of the city and it's very important to the city that it's not dead during the night. In fact it's dangerous to walk down the Mall at night," he said.

"We need to be a bit more enterprising, working with developers. Look at potential retailers and give incentives to attract people to Rundle Mall and Hindley St."

Mr Wong said he would be keen to see better use of the laneways, arcades and upper floors.

"We need to make sure people move past Rundle Mall," he said.

City of Adelaide Minister Gail Gago said she would wait for the Rundle Mall Management Authority's report.

"The SA Government is very keen to facilitate the growing vibrancy of Adelaide and will continue to work co-operatively with the Adelaide City Council and other organisations, such as the Authority, to ensure Adelaide is a well planned and vibrant city," she said.

Cotton On Kids employee Jemima Thomson said she believed a more varied mix of retail and hospitality would create a more vibrant city.

"Opening up the laneways and upper levels would bring a bit more variety to the city with more hospitality mixed in with retail," she said.

"Definitely having different shops would be nice and things on a lower price scale I think would entice more people to shop."