News & Discussion: General CBD Development

[AtD]

Adelaide rents beat down trend
The Australian Financial Review, 3 Dec 09, p55
Adelaide CBD office tenants were some of the few in the world to pay increased occupancy costs in the year to September. Of the 179 markets monitored by CB Richard Ellis, rents fell in more than 130.
Rents in Hong Kong's CBD market sagged 40 per cent, New York's midtown market dipped 29 per cent and Abu Dhabi slumped 38 per cent.
By contrast, Adelaide's occupancy costs rose 4.8 per cent, putting the city in eighth place.
Other Australian markets fell, in line with the global trend: Brisbane rents dropped 20 per cent and in Perth they fell 20 per cent. Sydney's occupancy costs declined 18 per cent. Melbourne's slipped 11 per cent.
Nick Lenaghan

[Prince George]

Growth stalls, rents up, funny pair of articles to have side by side.

[AtD]

Not really, supply can't responded to demand therefore prices are climbing. Textbook market cycle.

[AG]

Growth stalls, rents up, funny pair of articles to have side by side.

The growth in developments more likely stalled due to a lack of liquidity in the financial markets or shortage of available project finance in layman's terms rather than due to a large drop in demand (the article I posted is a bit misleading), which then in turn resulted in a drop in total value of development applications. The increase in rents does not support the theory of declining demand, particularly when certain government organisations have made it well known that they are looking for office space. The decline is more reflective of supply side issues (in terms of financing) rather than demand side issues.

[AtD]

In laymen's terms: Adelaide is going strong, it's the rest of the world that's the problem.

[Wayno]

Plan to solve Torrens algal problem and flush pollution
http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/stor ... public_rss

Hi guys, yes i participated in the creation and presentation of the Torrens River & Southbank proposal. This was done as a part of my "Civic Trust" endevours, and also as an exercise in waving the the SensAdel flag in brave new lands. Howie and Monotonehell contributed too (thanks guys - kiss kiss, err i mean handshakes all round). A side benefit of the exercise was that I finally met one of my political heroes (Paul Holloway) in Old Parliament House last week - and we talked at length 1-on-1 about this proposal, as well as a few other topics (mining, pace initiative, TODs, blah) but that's a conversation for another thread.

festival-precinct.JPG (49.5 KiB) Viewed 2378 times

Invigoration of the Torrens River and the adjoining Festival Centre & Convention Centre is never really discussed (apart from as a side-kick topic when grand plans for stadia are announced), but it's something you'll be hearing more about. More detailed discussions will soon occur involving ACC and others, and while i'm not permitted to share details i can say that with the Liberal & Labour stadium 'grand edifice plans' being many years away (at best), there remains a tremendous opportunity to make improvements in the meantime. If the Libs & Labor prove to be full of air (pop), then we'll still be moving forward. Seems prudent to me.

Re. the River Torrens proposal (lower the water level, create overflow rock wier, landscaping of reclaimed land, native plantings, etc) the goal is to retain the current recreational function of the river (for rowing, paddle boats, etc) but soften the river edges and create many natural wetland nooks-and-crannies where paddle boats & canoes can explore (as opposed to the current situation where paddle boat hirers madly paddle out to the middle of the Torrens with a true sense of adventure in their hearts, only to arrive and look around wondering what to do next). Boardwalks through newly vegetated wetland areas would generate another reason for people to visit the area - and actually linger (a novel concept). Indeed, there is discussion of celebrating aboriginal heritage & culture along greater lengths of the Torrens as an educational and tourist exercise.

Re. the Southbank proposal (cafe, restaurant, bbq area, shops) the idea is to activate the currently dead facade of the Festival/Convention Centre by creating a few areas with facilities that encourage people to visit:
* BBQ Picnic Area - A few free gas BBQs and picnic seating immediately west of the Festival Centre
* A multi-level restaurant (open air cafe on top level, formal restaurant in middle, casual eating flowing out on the grass at ground level) and all overlooking the Torrens towards the KWS bridge, with Adelaide Oval & Memorial Drive in the distance.
* Shops - Various types of "booth" shops on the festival centre promenade - although i'll happily admit the business case for this part of the proposal is yet to be proven.

Happy to answer questions and take ideas further into the process.

[Omicron]

In every possible way does that plan need the participation of the Intercontinental Hotel. As a five-star accommodation and entertainment venue it relies upon restaurants, bars and public gathering spaces to encourage spending within, yet there's not a single element of its surrounds that invites people to do any of that. If additional shops are simply tacked onto the sides of unforgiving existing buildings, the whole thing will look like exactly that - barnacles clinging onto whatever surface they can find, if you will. Thriving, desirable, lively food, drink and retail outlets will absolutely benefit the hotel's bottom line, so the challenge is helping the new owners to see just how much it will benefit them to integrate with their surroundings.

[Vee]

Some great ideas from Wayno re invigoration of Festival Centre and riverbank precinct.
The current dining areas and casual eating options are tired and don't integrate very well with the surroundings/riverbank.

Agree that hirers of paddle boats on the Torrens and folk ambling along the riverbank walks could benefit from the more interesting riverbank options, boardwalks etc. This would contribute a lot to the mooted revitalization, increased visitation and spending with people staying longer and adding to the general buzz.

I hope some of these suggestions see the light of day. This area has so much more potential!

In every possible way does that plan need the participation of the Intercontinental Hotel.

Thriving, desirable, lively food, drink and retail outlets will absolutely benefit the hotel's bottom line, so the challenge is helping the new owners to see just how much it will benefit them to integrate with their surroundings.

And yes, Omi, the Hotel (as one of the the dominant landmarks) must be encouraged to participate in and add value to any new plans.
Oh, the excitement grows.

[crawf]

Off the topic, but I miss the name "Hyatt Regency"

[Omicron]

Has new signage been installed? I keep forgetting to look.

Wow, that's building-nerdy of me.

[Will]

From the City Messenger:

Building confidence bounces back

newsBusiness09 Dec 09 @ 10:10am by Jessica Whiting


New city buildings, including a $100 million office block, are a sign Adelaide developers are gaining confidence following the economic slowdown, the Property Council says.

Recently finished developments include two office towers at the southern end of King William St, and a residential and retail building on the corner of Hutt and Angas streets.

Meantime, the CMI Toyota showroom on West Tce and the Wave mixed-use building on Gilles St are both due to open in the new year.

Property Council state president Justin Hazell said the new buildings were a sign of confidence from developers.

“The fact they have managed to develop these in a tough economic climate is a credit to the developers, and indicative to the confidence that’s around in South Australia,” he said.

Developer Theo Samaras’ Kyren Group is behind the $100 million building at 400 King William St, which is about 50 per cent leased.

Tenants include Wallmans Lawyers, Satisfac Credit Union and lunch bar Stax.

Mr Samaras said he hoped to have the building, which could eventually house up to 1500 workers, 90 per cent full by February.

Features include a 600 sq m open-air terrace on the fourth floor and mirror ball lighting in the lobby.

Nearby, at 425 King William St, is the Edge office tower, which is being developed in tandem with the Wave building on Gilles St by Graf International and Adabco.

Graf International director Rick Graf said the projects, worth a combined $65 million, would be the “two most beautiful buildings in Adelaide”.

“They’re both extremely high-end, high-quality buildings,” he said.

Mr Graf said the Edge is the first commercially developed building awarded five star green star rating to be available to the general public.

It shares a base with the Wave, which when finished in January will have five floors of office space plus four floors of penthouse apartments.

Both buildings will house 900 workers plus about 20 residents in the Wave.

On the corner of Hutt and Angas streets, a new building developed by the Karidis Corporation includes nine retail spaces on the ground floor and 40 apartments.

[Will]

From the City Messenger:

City student numbers set to soar in 2010
newsEducation10 Dec 09 @ 10:20am by Jessica Whiting


ADELAIDE’S reputation as a “university city” will likely see a record number of students based in the CBD next year.

From 2010, Flinders University will operate a city campus, offering postgraduate study in several fields.

Admissions head Peter Torjul sp OK could not provide application numbers but he said there had been a “good response” from local and international students to the city base.

The courses include Public Policy, Health Services Management, Law and International Relations, Accounting, and Business Administration, plus undergraduate studies in Government and Public Management.

Carnegie Mellon University, on Victoria Square, is predicting a record intake in 2010.

Marketing manager Francesca Doyle said there had been a 30 per cent increase in applications each year since the university opened in 2006.

“Many students want to study at an American campus in Australia it’s the best of both worlds,” she says.

“We also ran strong social media campaigns on Facebook in Pakistan and the Philippines and got good results.”

Adelaide University had so far received 23,641 undergraduate applications up until November 25, slightly down on this year’s record number but an increase of 3.9 per cent over 2008.

Strategy and planning director Gary Martin said the strong interest was being driven by such factors as new programs in areas of job shortages areas like engineering, and a greater number of Commonwealth funded places.

“There is also a lot more information about university and programs available to people these days, whether it is by the internet or the coverage of higher education in the papers,” he said.

Adelaide Uni’s most popular courses in 2010 are Medicine, Dentistry and Law, with the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degree attracting 1700 first preference applications.

UniSA could not break down numbers for its City east and west campuses but a spokeswoman said first preference applications were up four per cent overall.

The first round of university offers will be available online at satac.edu.au from 6pm on January 14.

[Will]

From the Advertiser:

Call to name Torrens bridge
AARON MACDONALD
December 17, 2009 12:01am


A NEW footbridge over the Torrens River will be lifted in place today - and the Adelaide City Council is calling for submissions to name it.

The bridge will connect the North Adelaide Sports Grounds with Botanic Gardens and the rear of the Adelaide Zoo.

Three large cranes will hoist the sections of the bridge into place from 10am, and the final piece should be in place an hour later. The footbridge is currently without a name - and the council is asking for submissions from the public.

Lord Mayor Michael Harbison said the new footbridge would be ready to use soon. "The footbridge is an exciting part of the Adelaide Park Lands Trail," Mr Harbison said.

"People will be able to walk on it very soon, after some final works are completed - hopefully before the New Year."

The new bridge's construction comes as Urban Development and Planning Minister Paul Holloway this week approved a seventh grant - $300,000 - to assist the construction of the Adelaide Parklands Trail.

"We hope the trail will encourage more people to make use of this wonderful asset," he said.

"The South Australian Government continues to work closely with local government. . . to support projects that reinvigorate our public spaces."

Email your naming submissions to [email protected]

[Will]

The new Toyota CMI showroom on West Tce. Furthermore if you look close enough, you may see the new Coffey World Park rising above it:

[JamesXander]

I can only imagine the owners of the city CMI would be kicking themselves. They moved out of their location into that smaller showroom exactly during the time the government annouced the 50% tax deduction for new cars.

And they are going to move back into the new showroom as it ends! Sucks for them