[CAN] [Freedom Apartments] 3x | 30m | 8lvls | Apartments

[Ben]

From the City Messenger:

Freedom fighters

by Emily Charrison

ADELAIDE City’s Development Assessment Panel (DAP) should be sacked for “assassinating” a student apartment block that has since been approved, the project’s architect says.

The $70 million Freedom Apartments, on Grote St, were approved last week by the state’s peak planning authority, the Development Assessment Commission (DAC), after the council’s DAP refused the three-tower complex in May, calling its appearance “hopeless” and “absolute rubbish”. Speaking to the City Messenger after last Thursday’s (July 23) DAC ruling, architect Fred Phillis, of Phillis & Associates, said the DAP was anti-development and should stand down.

He has also lodged a formal complaint with the Architects Board of SA against independent DAP members David Grieve, who labelled the plans “hopeless”, and Rob Cheesman for saying the project was “not good for a number of reasons, not least the architecture”. “(The complex) is a vibrant, contemporary design that will probably win an award in the future,” Mr Phillis said. “For panel members to just rubbish it like they have, they should be sacked, to tell you the truth.”

The project, for Sino Australia Investments and Development, requires the demolition of the existing Freedom Furniture building, which it owns. It has 319 apartments, retail space and a 250-seat restaurant.

DAC assessment director Phil Smith said the panel considered the DAP’s concerns when approving the amended proposal.

[AtD]

“(The complex) is a vibrant, contemporary design that will probably win an award in the future,” Mr Phillis said.

While I didn't agree with the ACC's decision, Mr. Phillis is being a tad optimistic there.

[Ben]

“(The complex) is a vibrant, contemporary design that will probably win an award in the future,” Mr Phillis said.

While I didn't agree with the ACC's decision, Mr. Phillis is being a tad optimistic there.

haha I thought the same.

[Shuz]

I think he ought to lay off the drugs for a while.

[rogue]

Is a render of the revised design available?

[Will]

Is a render of the revised design available?

Here you go:

[Shuz]

You cannot tell me advertisers would not pay exponential sums of money to have billboards on those western walls. Soooo much potential.

[omada]

f**ing ghey.

A fine example of the "70's Glenelg School of Architecture"

[bm7500]

.... Freedom Apartments.... featuring the latest in 1980's design....

[Splashmo]

They're not *that* bad. A nicer paint scheme and some murals on those blank walls could jazz the place up quite a bit.

[skyliner]

They're not *that* bad. A nicer paint scheme and some murals on those blank walls could jazz the place up quite a bit.

AGREED!!! Liking the architecture. It's the modular multicoloured seemingly unbalanced appearance that I don't like. So there - I said it. (Ducks out of sight).

If those blank walls are facing west, does that make the road going E -W West Tce? The st going towards the epper left = Grote St???

ADELAIDE - TOWARDS A GREATER CITY SKYLINE

[Pistol]

Bland and unappealing but hopefully will be out of view when someone decides to redevelop that servo.

Do they really need to advertise that this is student accommodation on the side of the building tho?
It is pretty sad that we are thinking of ways to 'jazz' these buildings up before they are even built...

[monotonehell]

“(The complex) is a vibrant, contemporary design that will probably win an award in the future,” Mr Phillis said.

Contemporary maybe, in the sense that it's bland and unimaginative, like so many other cookie cutter crap that's being produced these days. But in no way is that design vibrant. Award? Is there a brick bat for architecture? Sure the council's development board are hopelessly confused about their purpose and direction, but if Mr Phillis really believes that design is vibrant, he's in the wrong industry. This article is more about him thumbing his nose at the council's development board.

f**ing ghey.

More straight and boring than "ghey" I would say. ;P It's all boxes with rectangles for contrast and beige!. Borrrrring!

Weren't the original concerns with the design more to do with amenities (quantity and placement of lifts, shadowing, window views etc) than aesthetics?

[Just build it]

Would look Ok.......somewhere down Anzac Highway.

[Omicron]

Mr. Phillis is welcome to submit his plans to me for assessment if the DAP is not to his liking. I have plenty of adjectives that are just waiting to be unleashed from atop my observer's pedestal.