[COM] Adelaide Oval Redevelopment

[believesinadsy]

Hello to all, have just decided to join Sensational Adelaide after reading the comments made by others over the previous few months. Can I quickly say before I comment on the thread, that it is encouraging to read views from others that are for the most part either constructive criticism or overall encouragement for our great city.

In relation to the Adelaide Oval redevelopment/riverbank redevelopment, I believe that this area has the potential to truly create a fantastic entertainment precinct - and in turn rejuvenate Adelaide's nightlife (which is already pretty good, but just needs a few more sprinkles around the place). It will allow for year round activities in the city, or be it that, bring alot more people into the city over the cooler months whilst there are big games and events at the AO.

Cheers
Chris
(Long time reader, first time postee)

[Mants]

With the current buzz around the city generated by the festivals, Adelaide is already one of Australia's premier cities.

The Adelaide Oval and Riverbank developments will cement this further and help put Adelaide back on the map.

how do you mean "put Adelaide back on the map" arent you arguing that Adelaide already is a premier city? a renovated stadium and a bit of landscaped land alongside the Torrens will not make Adelaide great. It's about the people who live hear and what they do to contribute to the life and culture at ground level. Small businesses promoting local designers, bars, restaurants, public art...these are the things which will make Adelaide great.

[Waewick]

I think it is a start - a re-birth to use a crappy cliche

Talking to some guys from Brisbane they were saying that a number of initiatives made Brisbane realise it's potential and improve the general attitude of the area

saying that 20 years of mining boom and a population out of control also helps.

[spiller]

With the current buzz around the city generated by the festivals, Adelaide is already one of Australia's premier cities.

The Adelaide Oval and Riverbank developments will cement this further and help put Adelaide back on the map.

how do you mean "put Adelaide back on the map" arent you arguing that Adelaide already is a premier city? a renovated stadium and a bit of landscaped land alongside the Torrens will not make Adelaide great. It's about the people who live hear and what they do to contribute to the life and culture at ground level. Small businesses promoting local designers, bars, restaurants, public art...these are the things which will make Adelaide great.

that's an understatement if ever ive seen one. all of it. This is a MASSIVE development, not just because of the changes to the landscape and the actual pyhiscal aspect of the development, but also in regards to what it will do for city atmopshere on game day. Yes, this upgrade is largely for the people of Adelaide to enjoy, but a big part of it is to also promote travel to Adelaide from interstate because currently very few people come to Adelaide to watch AFL football due to the time/difficulty associated with getting from their CBD hotel to AAMI Stadium. Obviously this travel also has economic benefits because these visitors are spending money in our city. So, actually, I would say that this development will put Adelaide back on the map, not mentioning the other planned developments.

[crawf]

With the current buzz around the city generated by the festivals, Adelaide is already one of Australia's premier cities.

The Adelaide Oval and Riverbank developments will cement this further and help put Adelaide back on the map.

how do you mean "put Adelaide back on the map" arent you arguing that Adelaide already is a premier city? a renovated stadium and a bit of landscaped land alongside the Torrens will not make Adelaide great.

It's about the people who live hear and what they do to contribute to the life and culture at ground level. Small businesses promoting local designers, bars, restaurants, public art...these are the things which will make Adelaide great.

Adelaide is a premier city around this time of the year, it's the colder months that are the problem and poor tourism marketing. So with a redeveloped Adelaide Oval stadium, Convention Centre, Casino Expansion and overhaul of the Riverbank Precinct, it will attract thousands of people to the city during winter and help put Adelaide back on the map as all year round destination.

AFL Games could become a tourist drawcard for the city, and a redeveloped Adelaide Oval could also attract Victorian teams to play some home games there. Which again will attract more people to the city on weekends.

Things like the 'Renew Adelaide' initiative are great for our city, but we need a much bigger boost to show the rest of Australia that Adelaide is once again open for business. And this isn't including the resources and defence boom...

[silverscreen]

I can almost hear people p--ing themselves with excitement. A casino and AFL-led recovery at last. We're saved, the world will beat a path to our door. It's pathetic. What about a reality check & getting the big winners (AFL & SACA) to put their hands into their deep pockets instead of handing everything to them on a plate, no questions asked. I'm happy to see football in the City but not at any cost, not while trashing the parklands and not while the Oval users stand to gain big bucks while keeping all their options on their own property at West Lakes. It's not fair trade. We're being dudded & either wont or cant see it. The big boys just might come up with a more generous deal over the next few days but whatever happens they'll be aiming to keep all the revenue from catering, & carparking at the Oval & not in the City. They don't actually care about City & North Adelaide traders - they want every spend on their own premises - after all that's good business.

[spiller]

silverscreen, you want to see football in the city but not at any cost? are you kidding yourself? do you think $550M developments grow on trees? I know im going to upset people by saying this, but you pay tax regardless, why get so huffy because the government is putting up a very substantial sum of money for this development? Surely they are allocating tax payer's money to other areas, heck they are spending 1.7b on a hospital. I'm sick of everyone whinging about the cost to tax payer's without actually specifying where the money could be better allocated. Its whinging just to whinge. And as for SACA and SANFL (not AFL because they dont "own" anything here) the deal was that they effectively both halve their power in order for this to go ahead (SACA giving up full rights to AO, SANFL moving from west lakes which they own, to AO which they will share). And you're right, they dont care about north adelaide and city traders because its none of their business, but they dont need to care because the location of the ground takes care of itself in that regard. 50,000 people might not go to the city or north adelaide for a drink/dinner before or after the game, but even if say 10,000 do, that's 10,000 more people than if footy remains at West Lakes (sadly I dont think the Lakes Resort can cater for that amount )

[Waewick]

I am going to be very very interested in what the SANFL do with AAMI and it's surrounds.

you would imagine it will sell off some ofthe parking around the stadia and decrease it's capacity.

[Wayno]

Hello to all, have just decided to join Sensational Adelaide after reading the comments made by others over the previous few months. Can I quickly say before I comment on the thread, that it is encouraging to read views from others that are for the most part either constructive criticism or overall encouragement for our great city.

Welcome Chris to the most heated discussion thread on S-A!

[believesinadsy]

Hello to all, have just decided to join Sensational Adelaide after reading the comments made by others over the previous few months. Can I quickly say before I comment on the thread, that it is encouraging to read views from others that are for the most part either constructive criticism or overall encouragement for our great city.

Welcome Chris to the most heated discussion thread on S-A!

Thanks mate
Looking forward to seeing where it takes me haha.

[Will]

From the Advertiser:

State Cabinet approves Adelaide Oval deal

From: AdelaideNow February 28, 2011 2:08PM

THE SACA board will meet tonight to sign off on a deal aimed at getting AFL football back to Adelaide Oval within four years.

The SANFL and football club boards will meet tomorrow.

The meetings follow a formal Cabinet agreement this morning to the deal which will see cricket and football party to a long-term lease for use of the redeveloped oval under the control of the Stadium Management Authority.

Infrastructure Minister Patrick Conlon said a formal announcement about the details of the agreement, including previews of the proposed stadium, would be announced on Wednesday.

Asked if he was confident the codes would agree to the final deal, Mr Conlon said: "I would not be standing here in front of all these cameras if I weren't confident.

"I am confident because we have done everything to meet the desires of the parties."

Mr Conlon said the Government had talked to the codes about a very long lease of the oval to the Stadium Management Authority.

"Cabinet has signed off on the governance and tenure arrangements for the oval which would appear to satisfy cricket and football in their needs there," he said.

"We hope we can then take the next step and go to the Adelaide City Council."

Mr Conlon described the Cabinet decision as a very significant step

[Mants]

maybe i have a different idea as to what makes a city "great"
dont get me wrong, the redevelopment is a positive thing, but i don't think AO, along with the other development in the area, will be the miracle fix to the tourism industry's problems. sure, plenty of victorians will come over to attend a match, but very few foreigners will travel to adelaide to attend an AFL match, however, our fringe festival has a worldwide reputation as being
the biggest after edinburgh. i wont reiterate what i said in my previous post, but we should focus on bringing more major events, festivals, exhibitions and the like to the city and surrounds. how many musicians and exhibitions seem to always bypass adelaide? having a new casino and convention centre wont really make us stand out like an all year round destination either, nearly all affluent cities have these things. we want to be individual and unique. sure it is important to have a nice stadium with modern facilities which is accessible. but think about adelaide at this time of year. people love it because of things like the fringe, WOMAD, etc. not because of the casino or a convention centre. people like something different and authentic which they cant experience at home!

[Matt]

I think the fact that an extra 30,000 to 45,000 people in the city on match days will help.

That amount of people who ordinarily wouldn't be there, will hopefully bring life and vibrancy in itself - be they at the game, eating out before or after, drinking in bars, or even just making their way through the city to and from the game.

It brings atmosphere and excitement and a sense of occasion which Adelaide seems to lack. The revamped casino and this mooted restaurant/cafe strip along the river will also help provide a sticking point for these people, providing that it's done the right way.

I think people actually making use of Adelaide and enjoying the river will do wonders for the city's mojo and, in turn, it's reputation interstate.

Maybe I'm being overly optimistic.

[Vee]

maybe i have a different idea as to what makes a city "great"
... however, our fringe festival has a worldwide reputation as being the biggest after edinburgh.

... but we should focus on bringing more major events, festivals, exhibitions and the like to the city and surrounds.

... we want to be individual and unique.

I think the fact that an extra 30,000 to 45,000 people in the city on match days will help.
That amount of people who ordinarily wouldn't be there, will hopefully bring life and vibrancy in itself ...

It brings atmosphere and excitement and a sense of occasion ...

... people actually making use of Adelaide and enjoying the river will do wonders for the city's mojo and, in turn, it's reputation interstate.

Mants and Matt, your views (snippets above) do not conflict as Adelaide can promote and extend the number and range of world class / national festivals and events and the vibrancy this brings and also accommodate top notch sporting / cultural events at an upgraded Adelaide Oval and Riverbank precinct and the excitement and atmosphere that pervades the city during such events.

I support the government in facilitating the AO redevelopment and planning for the Riverbank and Convention Centre upgrade. It's vital that we recapture and elevate our mojo (as Matt has said) and enhance our city's reputation with all the benefits this will bring.

Adelaide and South Australia does things well - look at the Festival Fringe, Tour Down Under, Clipsal and a host of other events/festivals. Our Convention Centre punches above its weight and its expansion is overdue. The new Film precinct at Glenside should be able to add to the mix.

I would like to see the events and festivals spread more evenly throughout the calendar year as February-March is just too hectic. The Film Festival would be excellent during the colder months of the year rather than its current slot in an overcrowded market. The Sea and the Vines is amazing. It would be great to see a greater variety of offerings for all ages at Easter. Oakbank picnic racing carnival is OK for racing buffs but the city needs an exciting alternative for this period for residents and visitors.

The AO redevelopment is an exciting prospect. AO is a gem (city / Park Lands location, heritage, feel and vibe). Look at the kudos earnt for the upgrade showcased during the Ashes.
We can't afford delays and cost blowouts to put this in jeopardy.

[Waewick]

just imagine if they had of acted a bit quicker and we would have had construction and completion at an earlier timeframe.

saying that - given the general population can't agree it isn't suprising that those boards couldn't either.