[U/C] 88 O'Connell Street | 63m | 13, 13 and 15 Levels | Mixed Use

[Waewick]

it will be interesting to see what the final design will be.

[monotonehell]

it will be interesting to see what the final design will be.

My money's on, "Two pointy tits and a sponge layer cake."

[Waewick]

probably not far off.

[ghs]

Good to see it going ahead.

Now that Mike Rann has won the election the development of Adelaide Oval will go ahead which will
result in the oval drawing good crowds pretty much all year round from 2014. As a result I believe there
is the potential for North Adelaide to boom. Lets hope that this is the beginning of several new developments for
O'Connell street.

[silverscreen]

I just dont think this is going to happen. There are 40+ apartments, and lots of shops, but where is the marketing, the sales office and the promotional placards & leaflets to sell? Projects like this are usually financed by off-the-plan sales, say about 70% at least. There's no evidence of this. My guess is that the block is just being tidied up ready for re-sale before the developer quits Adelaide.

[Ben]

I just dont think this is going to happen. There are 40+ apartments, and lots of shops, but where is the marketing, the sales office and the promotional placards & leaflets to sell? Projects like this are usually financed by off-the-plan sales, say about 70% at least. There's no evidence of this. My guess is that the block is just being tidied up ready for re-sale before the developer quits Adelaide.

Good try but the developer is an Adelaide developer. Try Again.

[Will]

I just dont think this is going to happen. There are 40+ apartments, and lots of shops, but where is the marketing, the sales office and the promotional placards & leaflets to sell? Projects like this are usually financed by off-the-plan sales, say about 70% at least. There's no evidence of this. My guess is that the block is just being tidied up ready for re-sale before the developer quits Adelaide.

Makris has already stated that this project will be released to the public later this year.

[silverscreen]

Well that would be good tho I havent seen that announcement. However it seems he's putting one of his northern shopping centres up for sale and might sell other SA assets while at the same time he's buying a shopping centre in Vic. It's a volatile market at the moment & anything could happen.

[rev]

I just dont think this is going to happen. There are 40+ apartments, and lots of shops, but where is the marketing, the sales office and the promotional placards & leaflets to sell? Projects like this are usually financed by off-the-plan sales, say about 70% at least. There's no evidence of this. My guess is that the block is just being tidied up ready for re-sale before the developer quits Adelaide.

He isn't going anywhere. He might increase his portfolio interstate while selling some assets off in Adelaide, but that's what people like him do, buy,sell,manage,develop property.

[stumpjumper]

We'll see. I've heard that the project has been pitched around the place. Makris may just be looking for finance on terms but if a sale is concluded at a price reflecting the seven levels Makris was granted after his large cash donation, then I reckon he owes a few bucks to the people who are inconvenienced by the non-complying bulk of the development. After all, the benefit has been privatised, why should 100% of the the cost of the benefit be socialised?

[Will]

We'll see. I've heard that the project has been pitched around the place. Makris may just be looking for finance on terms but if a sale is concluded at a price reflecting the seven levels Makris was granted after his large cash donation, then I reckon he owes a few bucks to the people who are inconvenienced by the non-complying bulk of the development. After all, the benefit has been privatised, why should 100% of the the cost of the benefit be socialised?

How are people inconvenienced by this development being 7 levels as oppossed to 3?

[jk1237]

How are people inconvenienced by this development being 7 levels as oppossed to 3?

pretty much no one. The net positive vibe this would contribute to Adelaide would be enormous if this site was ever completed. Its just such a downer to see this site vacant for so long. I would make O'Connell St so much more vibrant. Yeah most parts of North Adl need its old village charm maintained, but this busy inner suburban road is not one of them, especially when there are 2 buildings taller than this a few metres down the street

[Ben]

Light on Le Cornu but planners still at war

Christopher Russell, Business Editor

From: The Advertiser March 23, 2010 5:33PM

WHEN the bulldozers move into the former Le Cornu site in North Adelaide in the next fortnight, it will mark the end to the long-running battle between developers and the Adelaide City Council.

It has been a high-profile battle that is symptomatic of a war being waged around the city as developers clash with some - but not all - local councils over planning approvals.

"Everybody agrees the planning process doesn't work - the councils say it doesn't work, the community says it doesn't work, the developers don't think it works," said Charles Sturt council chief executive Mark Withers.

"There's a real separation of thinking between the development industry, councils and the community.

"One of the major problems we have is that there are development plans that are 10 years behind where the market is.

"And that's because you develop planning policy for a community and the very people that you're asking aren't thinking about the future. They're thinking about today.

Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar.

"They're thinking about keeping things the same.

"It's that lack of ability to see how you plan for the future, how you create jobs and vibrant communities - they're the things that don't appear in a development plan because they're the very things that challenge everybody's thinking."

Charles Sturt now appoints case managers to big projects to facilitate negotiation through council.

The State Government passed reforms in 2008 to reduce demand on council planning departments.

The bulk of changes focused on residential, leaving commercial developers facing a system they say is fraught with uncertainty.

Developer Con Makris said he had felt nothing but frustration in bringing the former Le Cornu block at 88 O'Connell St, North Adelaide, to the point of site work beginning.

"My vision is to create something fantastic, something out of this world," he said. "I'm not going to make money. I might even lose a bit but I want to do something that I'm going to be proud of.

"I'm not going to cut corners. I want people for the next 50 years to talk about me, that I've done that.

"But the mentality of people, especially in North Adelaide . . .," he said, shaking his head. It has taken 10 years and numerous reincarnations of plans - complete with 3D models at $30,000 to $40,000 a time - for Mr Makris to win approval.

Nor has it been his only difficulty with Adelaide City Council. He cites the example of City Cross where it took six months to get approval to change one tenancy to another - when both were clothing stores.

He's also critical of Glenelg, which he said had done little to promote the Marina Pier as a tourism spot.

But there are some bright points, with Mr Makris praising Marion Council for its attitude to the Hallett Cove Shopping Centre where he spent $50 million on redevelopment last year.

"The council was magnificent," he said. "I delivered the centre and then all the councillors said `What can we do to get you to do something else down here?' "

Mr Makris said government granting major project status did help decision-making but more generally he would like a tight panel of well-qualified people making assessments.

Otherwise, parts of Adelaide would remain resistant to progress.

Conservative attitudes were holding back Adelaide, said Jonathan Hii, director of Professional Mortgage Partners, a company that works with overseas investors.

"Adelaide people really need to look around at other cities and see what is going on, to see how far we are behind," he said. "The challenge is coming to our door - and you can see it as a threat but it is also an opportunity."

Mr Hii said there was a lot of Chinese money looking for good investments. While much of the interest in SA had centred on mining, there were also major deals in commercial property such as the Freedom Furniture site in Grote St, and sites in Grenfell St and King William St.

And there was potential for a lot more from the cashed-up Chinese.

"There's a lack of expertise in SA in terms of linking business with China," he said. "Within government, we don't have enough people who can speak the language and understand Chinese business culture.

"If you don't have those sorts of people, how can you encourage economic development?"

Assist Finance chief executive Jason Di Iulio said it was difficult to reconcile what councils wanted.

"I've had some very good experiences and some very bad ones," the finance broker said.

"Recently I did some work up at Playford, and I could not fault their attitude and their ability."

But not all councils were like that.

Ambassador for women in local government Angela Keneally said elected members had diverse skills and values - some not compatible with major planning decisions. "There's plenty of evidence to show that councillors aren't always supportive of developers," she said.

"And it's possible that in their role they're thinking of making their mark."

While developers were frustrated, she suggested property players get involved in helping raise the level of education and understanding.

She called for a better partnership between councils and developers.

"Without that, cities are going to be the losers," she said.

Developer Peter Harris has an Unley project of about 100 townhouses that in 2004 was bogged down in legal challenges for 2 1/2 years.

"You do stay awake at night worrying about outcomes from councils because there's so much unpredictability," he said.

"If one person gets uptight about something, it could destroy something that makes the whole project viable or not. Some councils are very progressive, pro-development but others aren't. It's difficult to have confidence in the system.

"When you make an investment, you've often got millions of dollars on the line. You've got investors and all sorts of things happening around you - and you just can't lock it down and the risk equation goes up and then you don't do projects."

[skyliner]

the article from 25/3/10 spoke of bulldozers coming. The bldg on ther corner is already gone so this suggests it will go ahead to me.

ADELAIDE - TOWARDS A GREATER CIT SKYLINE

[silverscreen]

Yes there will be bulldozers, but there'll be knocking down, not building. This has only just started & still no sign of any marketing or invitation to buy any part of this "major project" development which the govt promised would create significant economic and employment benefits. Meanwhile Oberdan is promoting town-houses in Tynte St & there's a 4 town-house build in Watson Street.
Curiouser and curiouser!