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What other heritage things need to be restored to Adelaide Railway Station?

RetroGamer87 wrote:What other heritage things need to be restored to Adelaide Railway Station?

This is just my observational opinion, but the sealed spaces (such as on the left in my photo above) should be opened up for all, or at least put to good use.

A bigger item and a pipe dream of sorts would be to return the casino floor to ARS.

ChillyPhilly wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 12, 2023 8:20 am

RetroGamer87 wrote:What other heritage things need to be restored to Adelaide Railway Station?

This is just my observational opinion, but the sealed spaces (such as on the left in my photo above) should be opened up for all, or at least put to good use.

A bigger item and a pipe dream of sorts would be to return the casino floor to ARS.

A small Coles, Woolworths or IGA in the Adelaide Railway Station concourse area maybe or daresay one or open it up to fast food joints. I am actually gobsmacked why something the likes of Subway hasn't opened there as the traffic is good

Eurostar wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 12, 2023 12:20 pm

ChillyPhilly wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 12, 2023 8:20 am

RetroGamer87 wrote:What other heritage things need to be restored to Adelaide Railway Station?

This is just my observational opinion, but the sealed spaces (such as on the left in my photo above) should be opened up for all, or at least put to good use.

A bigger item and a pipe dream of sorts would be to return the casino floor to ARS.

A small Coles, Woolworths or IGA in the Adelaide Railway Station concourse area maybe or daresay one or open it up to fast food joints. I am actually gobsmacked why something the likes of Subway hasn't opened there as the traffic is good

They're trying to make it less tacky and more faithful to its heritage, a fast-food outlet hardly helps with that. Also, there's a HJs, McDonald's and KFC all within about 300m on Hindley Street.

“Works to remove the air bridge connecting Adelaide Casino to Adelaide Railway Station…”

Bit of a rich description. The air bridge links the Casino to the Intercontinental, it doesn’t even connect to the station part of ARS (does it?)

RetroGamer87 wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 12, 2023 12:39 am

What other heritage things need to be restored to Adelaide Railway Station?

Replacing the Convention Centre carparks with platforms for regional & interstate trains.

Eurostar wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 12, 2023 12:20 pm

A small Coles, Woolworths or IGA in the Adelaide Railway Station concourse area

I'm really hoping this is what eventually happens to the larger retail space which is still vacant - I can't see that it wouldn't do a great trade and would be so convenient for picking a few bits up on the way home.

It would need to be sympathetic to the architecture of the station, but I can think of a couple of really good examples from heritage stations in the UK where this has been successful.

dsriggs wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 14, 2023 2:30 am

RetroGamer87 wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 12, 2023 12:39 am

What other heritage things need to be restored to Adelaide Railway Station?

Replacing the Convention Centre carparks with platforms for regional & interstate trains.

Big yes to this. As a bare minimum, this should be a new ARS entrance.

Llessur2002 wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 14, 2023 9:25 am

Eurostar wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 12, 2023 12:20 pm

A small Coles, Woolworths or IGA in the Adelaide Railway Station concourse area

I'm really hoping this is what eventually happens to the larger retail space which is still vacant - I can't see that it wouldn't do a great trade and would be so convenient for picking a few bits up on the way home.

It would need to be sympathetic to the architecture of the station, but I can think of a couple of really good examples from heritage stations in the UK where this has been successful.

Woolworths in Southern Cross Railway Station is successful, and usually open until 11pm. It is small, but has a decent range of quick food, snacks, light meals, small bakery offerings and a cafe. Even at quieter times, it adds a fair bit of foot traffic to the area.

The challenge for those retail spaces in incorporating a supermarket would be how to deliver stock to the stores. Are there any road access points nearby that wouldn't need extensive demolition?

Next plan should involve burying the tracks and have the concourse go deeper underground. Prep the station for underground rail, fast-track electrification of Outer Harbour/Port Dock. Then remediate the North Terrace frontage of the Convention Centre so that it actually has a North Terrace frontage.

Norman wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 14, 2023 11:22 am

The challenge for those retail spaces in incorporating a supermarket would be how to deliver stock to the stores. Are there any road access points nearby that wouldn't need extensive demolition?

Coincidentally there were tradies in there this morning measuring up. No idea what for, might just be another exhibition.

Llessur2002 wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 15, 2023 11:45 am

Norman wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 14, 2023 11:22 am

The challenge for those retail spaces in incorporating a supermarket would be how to deliver stock to the stores. Are there any road access points nearby that wouldn't need extensive demolition?

Coincidentally there were tradies in there this morning measuring up. No idea what for, might just be another exhibition.

Wasn't there an issue with the roof leaking a month or so ago?

rev wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 15, 2023 12:41 pm

Wasn't there an issue with the roof leaking a month or so ago?

Not in that retail tenancy which is just the ground floor/basement of the main station/casino building - the (multiple) leaks are dotted around the platform/turnstyle area underneath the convention centre.

The tradies were in the largest of the empty retail units between the Guardsman and the new tunnel to the footbridge. It's a pretty large unit and all the 'for lease' signs were taken down months ago so I'm just curious to see what, if anything, is in the pipeline for it.

It's hard to think of much that would be a good fit for the station - the commuter-focused food/drink offering seems to be pretty saturated now and I'd be surprised if anyone tried anything more substantial along those lines given the Guardsman's apparent inability to make opening outside of peak commuter/Oval traffic periods profitable. I would have thought the same would be true for most retail units - why would you open there when there are so many other options with much higher day-long footfall?

I can only really think of a supermarket of some sort or possibly some sort of very high-end or specialty retail - but I don't think the latter would bring much to the station other than tidying up an empty unit.

I think people need to remember this is a functioning railway station and not a museum. Fill the retail spaces with something - anything - that is going to be useful to commuters or draw people in.

I’m concerned about the loss of video screens from the air bridge demolition. People need to know when their trains are departing and it’s really inconvenient to tourists and the occasional commuter for these to be removed. There should be electronic signage EVERYWHERE.

The state of the platform area is also extremely embarrassing. Leaky roof, terrible signage/way finding, lousy announcements, terribly tacky advertising on every available space with no coherence. This area has remained essentially unchanged since the ASER project in the 80s, it’s shocking. So much can and needs to be done to bring it up to scratch.

EDIT: just saw the post that the screens have been temporarily relocated until a new location is found. I still remain concerned about the lack of electronic departure signage.

jordan85 wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 21, 2023 11:35 am

Fill the retail spaces with something - anything - that is going to be useful to commuters or draw people in.

That was pretty much my point. What would work in the station environment? I can only think of a supermarket or similar or potentially another food & drink offering.

Maybe a specialty retailer that would attract people from outside the station because they offer something that can't be bought elsewhere (although I can't think of any particular examples). I just can't see a random retail outlet succeeding here.