rev wrote:stumpjumper wrote:
I don't object to the building of new hospital facilities, but I object to the appropriation of Parklands to build them on, and I object to the loss of the fundamental form of the city.
Parklands weren't dug up to build the new hospital.
It was a former railyards site full of contaminated soil. The nearest parklands are across the road.
I like former Mayor Harbison's idea of a hugely expanded Torrens Lake in the area where the new development is taking place.
Adelaide doesn't have the balls or the vision to do anything drastic like that. Sadly all we will get is a hospital, a few buildings for the universities, and an expanded casino. Maybe an office building or something. Of course add some car parking as well.
They are touting the riverbank precinct as some monumental change for Adelaide. It's a monumental let down.
Yet again Adelaide fails to seize the opportunity to go big and outside the box.
There is plenty of room elsewhere to build the medical and other facilities.The government would just have to pay for it.
The hospital and uni buildings should have been built elsewhere.
The whole riverbank area from the wier to King William st should have been massively redeveloped, expanded and turned into a huge entertainment and night life precinct.
Something to actually change the face of Adelaide and create all that vibrancy they keep bullshiting us on about.
Rev, usually I like your posts, however this is a pathetic and ill-informed rant.
You speak as if money grows on trees. An entertainment and nightlife precinct would need to be financially viable to get off the ground. The location of the new RAH is isolated and too far away from existing shopping and entertainment areas of the CBD. There is also the problem of the area being located under the flight path. This would curb the height of potential buildings thereby impacting the viability of the precinct. Furthermore, even if it did get off the ground, we do not have the population to sustain multiple nightlife and entertainment precincts. This new precinct would remove people from existing precincts like the East End, resulting in a quieter CBD, or it could become the Docklands of Adelaide; shiny yet devoid of people.
I do not think that building the Southern Hemisphere's largest Biomedical precinct to represent a "let down". This precinct will help the economy grow and attract further investment. Not to mention help attract and retain the best and brightest in the medical and research fields.
And despite your suggestions of otherwise, all these projects - the new RAH, SAHMRI, SAHMRI2, The new Medical School, The UniSA Cancer Building, the new Convention Centre, the footbridge, the new Adelaide Oval, new casino and redevelopment of the Hajek Plaza have, and will change the face of the city.
I agree, that SA needs to be bold and think outside the box, however suggesting that building a world class biomedical precinct is not representative of this, is wrong and immature.