Dear Santa...

[Maximus]

Dear Santa,

For Christmas, please, I want:

1. Construction started on a new tallest at the corner of Pulteney and Flinders Sts.
2. More activated laneways in the CBD.
3. Another international airline to begin flights to Adelaide.
4. A planning study released on the options for South Road between the Superway and Gallipoli Underpass.

And my friends would like...

[ghs]

The best thing which could happen to SA over the next year or two would be for BHP to reverse
their recent cancellation of the Olympic Dam Expansion.

BHP pulling out of the expansion was a massive loss for SA - look at what Mining has done for WA.

I am surprised that there hasn't been more in the media regarding how much of a loss it was.

If commodity prices increase and BHP decide to go ahead with the expansion then we would see billions of dollars
come into our state which would result in a lot of development in the city.

[[Shuz]]

Dear Santa,

Please make Mr Snelling understand that we need to reign in our state debt, immediately.

[stumpjumper]

cancellation of the Olympic Dam Expansion

To be fair to BHP Billiton, there never was a definite proposal. in 2008 BHP did a feasibility study on an open cut expansion. Premier Rann and Treasurer Kevin Foley used documents from this process to talk up the economy before the 2010 election. In 2011 the federal government approved the expansion. In 2012, BHP postponed it indefinitely, citing high costs.

The point is that there never was an agreement, so nothing was cancelled. BHP's intentions were always conditional, despite Rann and Foley trying to suggest in the media that documents such as indentures were 'agreements'. Cynical of them, but then what would you expect?



Anyway, I'd like Santa to cancel the proposed higher density developments in our suburbs. Rezoning those areas is bad planning practice because it encourages development away from the still under-developed city centre, which is struggling to achieve the critical mass of popoulation required to make it truly 'vibrant'. While there are vacant lots in the city, used as carparks, what is the sense of allowing multi-storey development in the suburbs?

This situation happened in the 1970s, when the government sat back as local councils rezoned land facing the Park Lands for multi-storey commercial. There followed years of no small commercial development in the city.

Let's get the city up and moving, then worry about the suburbs. Restricting medium rise development to the city (and a few special areas like Glenelg) will increase land and property values in the city and encourage the development of thos e vacant lots.

A vibrant city for Christmas, thanks.

[Ho Really]

[...]

Anyway, I'd like Santa to cancel the proposed higher density developments in our suburbs.

[..]

Let's get the city up and moving, then worry about the suburbs. Restricting medium rise development to the city (and a few special areas like Glenelg) will increase land and property values in the city and encourage the development of thos e vacant lots.

A vibrant city for Christmas, thanks.

Hear, hear! Yes, let's do the city first and the TODs (those serviced by rail) and all the empty lots that can be surrounded by greenery.

My wish is for...
1. Sane, intelligent and sustainable developments, without strangulating our wide boulevards! Hehehe!
2. Take traffic out of laneways and narrow roads. Paved them, put in trees, flower pots, tables and chairs. Bring in the musicians and let the beer flow!
3. Expand the bus and tram system to feed heavy rail.
4. Underground a loop or a through line in the CBD.
5. Light rail to the Airport to make ours the best in the land.
6. Add a hotel there too.
7. Like Maximus I want another international airline here...but I'll be greedy. I want a Chinese airline to bring us masses of tourists. Still being greedy I want an Indian airline too, maybe one backed by the Arabs.
8. Improve our passenger terminal at Outer Harbor so that we can lobby for a cruise ship to homeport here during summer.
9. Dig up our south parklands and install underground water reservoirs.
10. Finally raise the maximum height limit in the CBD to 200 metres AHD (that is approximately 155 metres above street level). If you were expecting 200 metres from street level sorry, but remember to consider the boom arm on the FAVCOs too...

Cheers