"Modern" is not a term I'd use for this city...frank1 wrote:AtD, you live in Canberra right? What's the building industry like there. Do they have same problem with height restrictions like Adelaide. Does the CBD have tall buildings (never been to Canberra).
The photos you post give me the impression that the city is really modern..........fill me in plzl
Building controls here border on nazi-like, because of the "planned" vision the Territory has. The problem is, it's not a very good plan because there's acres of "parks" that make Adelaide Parklands look like New York's Central Park in terms of utilisation. The parks mean the suburbs are kilometers apart, and you'll be driving between the main centres and pass cow farms and such.
Because of the chronic land shortage, a lot of apartment blocks and sub-divisions have been created with corners cut to meet the massive demand. Most of the city's buildings are from mid to late 20th century, mid-rise office blocks with horrid street frontages. There's the odd high rise but nothing worth writing home about. Naturally there's only one industry here: public servants.
My biggest gripe is Canberra is designed as a city for several million people. However, it only has 300,000 (plus 50,000 in Queanbyean in NSW), so the place feels very empty sometimes. There's a six lane highway near me that is almost empty, even in peak.
Here's a nice chunk of photospam I took yesterday while having a wonder in the in January. The city dies in summer, all the public servants bugger off. It's a bit more lively now as Uni is back.
(I've copy-pasta'd this from an old thread of my own on SSC)
New works on University Ave, from the City West car park, with the omnipresent Telstra Tower in the background.
Looking south from City West car park.
And north east.
Bustling city streets at 3pm on a Tuesday.
CONCRETE! Canberra's favourite food.
New UniLodge for the ANU. I don't understand why they bothered with the fancy street-scape, there's nothing else on the street. It's rather harsh looking from the ground, as well.
I assume this is more student accommodation. Childers Street.
One of my biggest gripes over Civic is the abundance of surface level car parks. Seems like a poor use of land, IMO.
Another gripe is the street frontages of most buildings.
Some apartments on Northborne Ave.
Some new offices near Bunda Street.
These offices give us another fantastic street frontage on Cooyong Street, if memory serves. This isn't some back ally, this is an arterial road!
The ACT likes to paint words on the road for no apparent reason, just to make sure you don't try to turn left from the right lane. It might just be because I'm from SA, but I don't understand the purpose.
The Monolithic Canberra Centre shopping mall (left, right AND centre), which seems to have decimated the outdoor mall nearby. It takes up a fair chunk the CBD, and has the only food courts I have been able to find.
Artwork outside the Legislative Assembly and Canberra Centre.
The ACT government is more a local council than anything. Canberra only has two tiers of government: Federal and Territory.
London Circuit is the 'inner ring' of the CBD. Inside it is mostly car park. Vernon Circuit, the centre ring, is totally lifeless with nothing but grass and car park.
A few more street-scapes.
A new apartment complex on Marcus Clarke Street, reminds me of a design in SimCity 4.
New office block next door, glass! Excuse me while I indulge myself.
Down the bottom of Marcus Clarke Street.
Parkes Way reminds us all that this city was designed by an American.
Traffic at 5.05pm on a Tuesday. I kid you not.
I must get over there one of these days 
). 
about the traffic. There is a few buildings in those pictures i like. The grey building on the left with the curve shape is nice.
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