[CAN] Castle Plaza Shopping Centre Redevelopment

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Ben
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Re: CAN | Castle Plaza Shopping Centre Redevelopment

#181 Post by Ben » Fri Feb 11, 2022 5:03 pm

From the Advertiser
Vicinity Centres scraps plans for Castle Plaza expansion
The owner of Castle Plaza has scrapped plans for a major expansion – but it has new plans for the 7.7ha South Rd site instead.

Giuseppe Tauriello
and
Renato Castello
3 min read
February 10, 2022 - 9:30AM

Plans for a major expansion of the Castle Plaza shopping centre have been scrapped, with owner Vicinity Centres choosing to sell off the land where new shops, restaurants and other upgrades had been earmarked for more than a decade.

The expansive 7.7ha South Rd site, just north of Castle Plaza, has been dogged by delays, rezoning disputes and questions over contamination since iconic company Hills Industries departed it in 2009.

Vicinity first floated plans for an $80 million development in 2007, but then scaled back its plans to about half the size in 2016, citing a downturn in the retail and economic environment.

New Woolworths and Aldi supermarkets had been mooted, together with “a couple of hundred extra square metres” of specialty retail space and upgrades to Raglan Ave.

Apartments, offices and shops were expected to occupy 2ha of land north of Ackland St up to the railway line.

However the project failed to get off the ground, and the site is now being pitched by selling agents, JLL and Colliers, as an opportunity to develop “one of Adelaide’s most significant land-holdings”.

A Vicinity spokesman said the property was one of its smallest assets and “no longer represents the best use of our capital”.

“The property was identified for divestment later in the year, however after receiving a number of strong unsolicited offers, we have decided to bring the sales campaign forward to take advantage of current levels of interest,” he said.

During implementation of the new planning and design code, Vicinity successfully lobbied the government to amend the vacant site’s zoning to Urban Neighbourhood, which allows for a range of uses including commercial offices, retail and medium-density apartments.

While the zoning rules specific to the site restrict development to four storeys, JLL managing director Mr Parkinson said greater flexibility could be considered by planning authorities given the large size of the site.

“We expect local and national developers and capable owner-occupiers to recognise the upside that may be generated by such a key acquisition,” he said.

“Edwardstown and adjoining suburbs along South Road have gone through a significant period of development and repositioning in recent times. We anticipate significant interest from medium and high-density residential developers.”

The long-vacant site was home to Hills Industries from 1954 to 2009, and was the birthplace of the iconic Hills rotary clothes hoist.

While there have been question marks around the level of contamination built up during the Hills operation, Marion Mayor Kris Hanna said remediation work had taken place over the years and it was now ready for development.

“There might be some additional costs or some special considerations to overcome the contamination issue but certainly it’s not fatal to any major development there,” he said.

“I think there will be a lot of interest because it’s a uniquely large piece of land in the inner south of Adelaide.

“Marion Council has taken the view for some years that density should be limited in the middle of our beautiful suburbs, but if you’re going to put medium or high density somewhere, then next to main roads, railway lines and shopping centres is the appropriate place to do it. This bit of land is bounded by a main road, a railway line and a shopping centre.”

The site is being offered for sale as a whole or as two individual “super lots” – north and south of Ackland St.

Urban Development Institute SA chief executive Pat Gerace hoped development would proceed quickly, allowing for the “removal of what is now a blight on the neighbourhood”.

“It is extremely well suited to higher densities because of the minimal impact it would have on the existing suburban neighbourhood which are some distance away, but it also has excellent transport links surrounding the entire site,” he said.

Local Labor MP Jayne Stinson said the area was in desperate need of open space, and hoped future development would deliver “a splash of green” to the area.

“People in my community want to see something happen on this land, which has laid dormant for so long,” she said.

“I’ll be advocating that whatever’s built enhances our neighbourhood, especially in terms of attractive design and greater green space.”

Expressions of interest close at 3pm on March 24.

neoballmon
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Re: [CAN] Castle Plaza Shopping Centre Redevelopment

#182 Post by neoballmon » Tue Feb 15, 2022 6:46 pm

Surely the South Road frontage of this site would be a great location for a chunk of the businesses being demolished at Tonsley to move if the government is finding land to accommodate them (as mentioned in the North-South thread). It's not too far from their existing location and they can still keep a South Road frontage instead of being pushed into side-streets.
Looking forward to a free-flowing Adelaide!

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