News & Discussion: General CBD Development

[cruel_world00]

Not that I take any enjoyment in another state's lament, I did think it was interesting to see that a venue as famous as the Opera House in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Looks like funding, or there lack of, for Arts venues isn't exclusive to Adelaide. Not that I believe a lot that is written by News Limited, still nice to know we aren't the only state having these issues.

[Wayno]

I would rather see the Festival Centre given a major revamp.

agree.

[Waewick]

I would rather see the Festival Centre given a major revamp.

agreed

[ricecrackers]

perhaps we need a thread for that

tbh I'm not really sure what you do with the exterior of the Festival Centre. when it was built in the 70's it was only ever a cheap knock off of the Opera House, but we were proud of it then, during a time when we lived in blissful naivety. even so, its still the most prominent building of our northern skyline, so any major change would be difficult to accept by most who are used to that aspect. it does seem in conflict with the new convention centre though on that count.

it was always the centerpiece during the height of our Arts festivals during the 70's and early 80's, but now seems to be underutilized and underused in comparison to those times. in a sense it has already been replaced by the Ent Centre..which due to the recent interior refit has a little more class about it than the original interior.

[Vee]

I would rather see the Festival Centre given a major revamp.

One more vote from me.

Vital part of a Riverside precinct upgrade.

[Stubbo]

I would rather see the Festival Centre given a major revamp.

One more vote from me.

Vital part of a Riverside precinct upgrade.

Yep definately. Expand the Convention Centre as already proposed, but significantly revamp the whole stretch from the Convention Centre through to the Festival Centre.

Leave the old RAH site to be put back into the Botanical Gardens, but link it through to the new Zoo entrance better or at least make the entrance to the Botanical Gardens something significant other than a small, easily missable gate.

[crawf]

Surprised no one has posted this

Heritage Matters: Vision of a Museum of Adelaide
http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/sout ... 5874607453

THE battle for a Museum of Adelaide was fought and lost nearly a decade ago when the Treasury Building next to Adelaide Town Hall was converted into the Medina Grand Hotel.

It was not an altogether bad outcome, as the Medina Grand has made an asset out of the many heritage elements of the building and avoided irreversible changes to its fabric, which includes some of the oldest bits of Adelaide. What did not go away was the need for a Museum of Adelaide. That should be a starting point for any journey into the history and culture of our city and state.

At present, the options are limited by the specialist nature of our existing museums. These provide many portals into the city and South Australia. Each has its particular flavour.

You can start in Port Adelaide at the SA Maritime Museum, where some idea of settlement can be garnered, or go to the State Library and see some of the original documentation that formed the state.

You can visit the SA Museum or the Adelaide Zoo and Botanic Garden, and learn more about our indigenous cultures and natural history.

You can explore the Art Gallery of SA and find out more about the complex interplay of ideas and cultures which shaped by our city and state. There are museums for immigration and settlement, theatre, railways, automobiles, aviation and other subjects.

What you cannot find is a museum for Adelaide that captures the origin and meaning of the city but, more importantly, a museum that opens the way to our depth of museums and makes sure they can be understood.

Many institutions hold artefacts and documents on Adelaide. Parliament House and the Town Hall are prime examples, holding some magnificent, but rarely viewed, treasures.

A good idea never dies, and it turns out Adelaide City Council, with the State Library and other institutions, has been preparing confidential plans for a distributed Museum of Adelaide. The museum potentially can be located at the distinctly underused Institute Building on North Tce.

With the right brief and support, it could give locals and visitors a meaningful introduction to the city and provide a stepping-off point and guide to the fabric of city museums and heritage treasures.

* Some of Adelaide's suburbs have their own museums. Try the Museum of Unley.

* There is a Museum of Sydney, a Melbourne Museum and a Museum of Brisbane.

* Today and tomorrow are the final days of SA History Week, and a great time to explore SA's many museums.

[AtD]

Today's AFR: The Riverside Centre on North Tce has been sold to a German group for $66.8m. The building was sold by Industry Super Property Trust who acquired it in 2001 for $35.1m. It is 23,000 sqm and will be on-sold to wholesale investors in Germany.

[Prince George]

Today's AFR: The Riverside Centre on North Tce has been sold to a German group for $66.8m. The building was sold by Industry Super Property Trust who acquired it in 2001 for $35.1m. It is 23,000 sqm and will be on-sold to wholesale investors in Germany.

I had to lookup which building that actually is - it's the grey one with four octagonal buildings joined together like a four-leaf clover that's between the convention centre, the Hyatt, and the railway station. It seems to be almost entirely state government offices, so we can all rest easy that German investors are reaping the benefits of government leases.

[activ8ed]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I though that the Riverside Centre is supposed to be earmarked for demolition in conjunction with the Convention Centre and Torrens Riverbank redevelopment?

[AtD]

Prince: It's the blue one. It used to have a big staircase on North Tce to the first floor lobby but they removed it and now I presume the lobby is on the ground floor. I thought Singapore Airlines (or Malaysia Airlines?) were a tenant too. Could be wrong.

Yes Shuz, they paid $67m to have it demolished...

[Prince George]

Prince: It's the blue one. It used to have a big staircase on North Tce to the first floor lobby but they removed it and now I presume the lobby is on the ground floor. I thought Singapore Airlines (or Malaysia Airlines?) were a tenant too. Could be wrong

I saw the article - the photo there is that octagonal building I'm talking about, on the north side of the terrace. That picture has a blue tint, but the actual building is the kind of colour that gives grey a bad name.

[Nort]

How did that building get built in the first place on that side of North Terrace anyway? It's the odd one out when you long along all the rest of North Terrace. Was it needed to raise funds when the convention center was initially built or something? I can't imagine the outcry if someone proposed building a commercial office building on that side of North Terrace nowadays.

[SRW]

*grits teeth*

ASER, children. It's the ASER.

[monotonehell]

*grits teeth*

ASER, children. It's the ASER.

You can see it being constructed on the right, along with the hotel on the left, in this circa 1986 photo on Wikipedia...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Adela ... n_1986.jpg

Oh hello, I do believe that our own Muzzamo is responsible for this photo.