Disappointment for North Adelaide

Exit the old Le Cornu building and after 10 years of bitter council and developer squabbling a new development is to begin. Not because the new design meets the required specs for the site, not because we can't live without its facilities (more apartments, another hotel, restaurants, cinemas, cafes, and designer boutiques), not because architecturally it is significant but because the state government has flexed its muscle, taken sides with the developer and bulldozed the council's planning process.

And what are we to get for it...


This photo shows how the site exists today, (2007) before any development. Its been like this for 10 years. Ok, something has got to go here but what?
The owners of the land are well-heeled developers in Adelaide. They want the works. The residents want low impact, the council wants its guidelines to be met and what do we get, -status quo.
The height requirement for new developments in North Adelaide are restricted to 3 levels. As you can see by this photo, there are no large buildings or structures. The surrounding area is open, not built up and with a sense of space.
North Adelaide remains one of Adelaide's premier suburbs, with historic homes, tree lined streets and a village atmosphere. Any new development in this location must be sympathetic to this. Any architect worth their salt would appreciate the importance of this.


During the last decade, frustrated by the councils rejection of its many proposals and re-drafts, the developer erected a multi-coloured iron fence around the site. This was meant to provoke the public, to get residents fired up about the ugly mess and to force council into action. It didn't work. The public was patient, even sceptical. The council planted shrubs around the perimeter of the site to mask the offending fence.
On the top right of this photo we can see The Archer Hotel, an original 3 level structure and tastefully redeveloped. This type of building is typical of the streetscape in North Adelaide.
And their PR blurb states... "The challenge for developing this site is in creating an urban environment that reflects and enhances the architectural fabric and history of the surrounding areas." My question is has the challenge been met?


Originally conceived at 15 levels, then 9, then 7, finally '5' and viola, approval. (Yep, those government heavies again).
Looking at this design it would certainly be at home in Monaco, its grand scale tiered upwards towards the sun with balconies, roof top gardens, arches, towers, domes, al-fresco dinning, even awnings for that pseudo European cafe look. Its got the whole shooting match rolled into one. By including nearly all known architectural cues it caters for every taste, right?
It is a colossus of a building. Take a long look at this illustration and then visualise it built on the vacant site in the photos above.
And their PR blurb states... "In North Adelaide... Just Imagine." Hmmm... just imagine. What was that I was saying about taste?

This development will affect the area profoundly. Let me address just a few points.

Scale: The limit of 3 levels has certainly been exceeded. The vast shadow fall on the surrounding area, the deprivation of essential winter sunlight, the hulking black silhouette overpowering the eastern sided residents cannot be underestimated.

Traffic: Apart from O'Connell Street, this site is surrounded by residents and local traffic, serviced by single carriageway streets. These streets will need to support freight trucks, rubbish trucks, rubbish bins, courier vans, taxis and customer cars. In turn they will become no more than hazardous service lanes, creating traffic congestion, pollution and noise. Parking bays for residents and guests will be severely reduced and, to accommodate access of the larger vehicles may be eliminated entirely. Parking is already a significant problem in this area.

Noise: All forms of noise pollution will be expected from such a development, consider; traffic noise, trucks, cars, people, late night music, air-conditioning motors...

Retail Mix: Just 2 kilometres away is the city centre which caters for all, if not more than what's on offer here. Restaurants, cinemas, cafes, pubs, hotels and apartments are already well serviced in North Adelaide. It offers nothing significantly new in 'the mix' be it in both living or retail. As often occurs the buzz from the exclusive, big ticket boutiques soon wears off (but not the substantial rents). Shop fronts become hard to fill, others close leaving retail 'holes' in arcades. Its window shopping at best.

Character: Well you can't cater for everyone's taste that's true. And you have to look at it objectively. Or you can simply look at what's on offer and then ask the question... Why? The low density heritage architecture of North Adelaide allows the designer to build into the framework an idea of character, not totally ignore it, only then to splash out on unrelated grandiose themes en masse. And their PR blurb states... "Variety is a key feature of this concept with readily identifiable building facades." I agree, because they stand out like proverbial dogs #@*$!

Environmental: Nowhere does the PR blurb mention anything about environmental sustaining design practices, implementation or innovation. C'mon, let's get real, this is not what these guys are on about. Their philosophy is to get in quick, build up, sell, sell, sell, then move onto the next. Who cares anyway? Well we do!
This is not an environmentally friendly building my friends. It will run 24/7! Sadly, this concept dates from an earlier period. It is old school, back to a time when we were uneducated about such matters, not uncaring or unwilling. So... what efficiency star rating do we give it?



On street level the sheer size and scale of the development can be fully appreciated. It is quite dominating, or better still imposing! It has no relationship with the existing precinct's scale, character or style and therefore in my opinion does not add any street appeal whatsoever.



If you look left of this visual you can clearly see the height is well over 5 levels, -especially if you include the extra elevation of the rooftop structures and the vertical turrets/towers. This brings the total height to over 7 levels, exactly what the earlier submissions requested. So tell me... how can this design be accepted to be within the level 3 constraints for new buildings in North Adelaide? Are we so blind that we can't read plans?
And their PR blurbs states..."The development needed to reflect the human scale of the older buildings in the adjoining area." Ya got that right!

As you can tell I'm not a fan of this development. So what could have been done? I think the council should have long ago bought back this block of land from the developer or traded another parcel of vacant land nearer the CBD that better suits this type of development.

For 10 years we have grown to enjoy the visual freedom of this open space, we have become used to the 'negative' balance that this wide space provides on the streetscape. We can see beyond the buildings, we can breath in the surrounds. If the developer allowed public access rather than put up a barrier we could have possibly invented some unique opportunities here and therefore let the village atmosphere take on real meaning. The developer may have even scored some brownie points too.

Picture this. North Adelaide is slightly elevated, sited on a small hill. So is Montmatre in Paris. A large cathedral exists in both locations. Artists could paint 'plein air' in North Adelaide as they do in Montmatre. After all it gets the tourists in and we are the arts capital. We could really push our European connection here too, have open-air cafes, music on Sundays, public outings even an outdoor cinema. What about the festival or fringe? The site could be re-configured for any program. This, I think is character adding, this is on a human scale, this relates to the area. To dream beyond the norm is the challenge! I know it sounds all artsy fartsy but... "In North Adelaide... Just Imagine."