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News & Discussion: Population Growth
Posted: Mon Aug 15, 2005 4:54 pm
by AG
Making SA a magnet for migrants
By GREG KELTON
15aug05
MORE skilled migrants are coming to South Australia but that will not prevent moves to attract even more.
This is despite SA's record low unemployment rate of 4.6 per cent recorded last month.
New figures released yesterday by Premier Mike Rann show the state has attracted 2880 more skilled migrants from overseas in the last financial year than in 2003-04.
Mr Rann said the growth rate was 139 per cent compared with a national rate of only 47 per cent.
Key shortages are across the hi-tech IT area, in professions such as accounting and finance, and skilled trades areas - particularly those in the defence area.
"With SA's record low unemployment rate also leading the nation, it's important that SA steps up its attraction of skilled workers," he said.
"Bringing in skills will help us deliver on the state's major projects like the $6 billion air warfare destroyer contract, the mining exploration boom and the anticipated doubling of production at the Olympic Dam mine."
Business SA chief executive Peter Vaughan said a shortage of skilled workers, a world-wide problem, was one of the biggest issues facing the state. "What we have in every business I know is an inability to be able to satisfy future needs because of skills shortages across the whole spectrum," Mr Vaughan said.
He said SA had to keep selling itself by showing its affordability in housing, its lifestyle and other advantages.
Posted: Mon Aug 15, 2005 5:27 pm
by Al
Great news IMHO.
Posted: Mon Aug 15, 2005 7:48 pm
by Howie
Fantastic news for SA. But not surprising from my point of view. Especially in the hi-tech industries, you don't have to look very far for opportunities in IT&T, accounting, and engineering. Management positions have traditionally been in the eastern states, but hopefully with more work down in the southern state, we can change this trend. I've read a few articles lately along these themes. It reaffirms my belief that this state is finally starting to go places.
Migrants boost SA growth
Posted: Sat Jun 24, 2006 8:01 am
by AG
Migrants boost SA growth
PAUL STARICK
24jun06
AN influx of migrants has spurred South Australia's population growth rate to its highest level in 14 years.
A BankSA Trends report released yesterday predicts the growth spurt is likely to continue in the short term because of high job vacancy rates.
The state's population has risen by almost 10,000 in a year, the report finds - the biggest annual increase since 1992, which has been driven by a surge in international migration, which has trebled since 2001.
The report, by BankSA and Access Economics, predicts a boost to housing construction, saying this must lift if the state is to have as many homes as it has families.
But the optimism is tempered by a "return to the bad old days" of large numbers of people moving interstate and the older population limiting birth rates, which means the "current population strength may not last".
BankSA managing director Rob Chapman said SA's population growth had been accelerated by changes to the Federal Government migration scheme, which treated the state as a "regional area" with less restrictive visa conditions.
"We are now enjoying the highest level of population growth since 1992 and its positive impact on the economy is already evident," Mr Chapman said. "With continuing high job vacancy rates, the improvement in the state's population growth may continue in the near future."
But Mr Chapman said SA was losing an increasing number of residents interstate, particularly to the strong economies of Western Australia and Queensland.
The state's population at the end of last year was 1.546 million - the smallest of the mainland states - and behind WA's 2.02 million and Queensland's 4.001 million. More than a third of SA's international migrants in the second half of last year came from Britain, while 9.3 per cent were from China, 7.8 per cent from India and 4.1 per cent from New Zealand.
Australian Population Institute chairman Michael Hickinbotham said recognition of migrant's overseas skills was the "biggest area that we need to improve in".
"Affordable housing is one of the key drivers for attracting and retaining people in South Australia," he said.
Posted: Sat Jun 24, 2006 11:00 pm
by Will
Although it is excellent that the state population is growing by 10 000 people a year, again, it is bitterly dissapointing that we are the state that looses the most people due to interstate migration on a per-capita basis. Even Tasmania ia having a positive net gain of interstate migrants.
#Article: 65,000 people for city centre
Posted: Sat Jul 14, 2007 3:57 am
by Howie
65,000 people for city centre
Article from: The Advertiser
CRAIG BILDSTIEN CITY EDITOR
July 14, 2007 12:00am
BUSINESS has backed calls by Lord Mayor Michael Harbison for a dramatic increase in the number of people living in the city.
But developers, welfare, environmental and ratepayer groups are cautious about suggestions the city's population could be quadrupled.
Just 17,000 people live in the city but Mr Harbison has revealed in an exclusive interview in today's Review liftout that a population of up to 65,000 is sustainable.
However, he qualified the statement yesterday, saying this would be at the expense of commercial development, and a lesser figure of 48,000 would not "compromise the character" of the city.
Adelaide City Council's strategic management plan has a target of 26,000 permanent residents by 2010 and a total "overnight" population, including those in hotels and hospitals, of 34,000.
"We have identified the streets and the sites where we will get increases in population," Mr Harbison said. "We are putting together a plan street by street, lot by lot."
Mr Harbison said there could be much more residential development in areas such as Angas St, but ruled out strong growth in North Adelaide heritage precincts.
Business SA chief executive Peter Vaughan, often a vocal critic of the council, yesterday applauded Mr Harbison's vision. "This city is horrendously underutilised and can accommodate a significant increase in population," he said.
"We should be striving for a state population of two million, and obviously the vast majority of those will be mainly in the city and environs of Adelaide."
Mr Vaughan said whether the optimum city population was "26,000 48,000 or 65,000 depends on use and density".
He called for a bold approach from council to "stop the urban sprawl and construct a new vibrant city".
SA Council of Social Service executive director Karen Grogan said targets for higher population needed to be matched with strong social planning to ensure appropriate support services.
Conservation Council chief executive Julie Pettett said that whatever population figure was ultimately decided for the CBD, it "must be ecologically sound".
Property Council executive director Nathan Paine said the council should be focused on exploiting commercial opportunities within the city.
Residents and Ratepayers Association president Kevin Kaeding said he was "very disturbed" at what he thought were unrealistic population targets for the city.
"How can that be sustainable? We have huge congestion and parking problems now and public transport is not coping with the numbers," he said.
RAA spokesman Adam Thomson said the organisation had given no consideration to an optimum population level and declined to comment.
That is a bold vision indeed! Well done Michael Harbison.
Re: #Article: 65,000 people for city centre
Posted: Sat Jul 14, 2007 10:31 am
by AG
There was once a time in Adelaide's history when the total population within the square mile was once 65000 (around the time of World War II), but the population then declined after the 1950s when the suburban expansion began to accelerate. The plan and ambition shown by Harbison are just great. He's certainly shown so far in his term as lord mayor that he's more capable of making things happen than his previous counterparts, even with resistance from others in the council who seem to have their own interests as well.
Re: #Article: 65,000 people for city centre
Posted: Sat Jul 14, 2007 12:35 pm
by Will
I completely support this target. It is vital that the CBD remains active all the time. Although much has been achieved, most days of the week, it can still be said that Adelaide is a 9-5 city.
However to achieve this target, it cannot be solely left to the profit-driven private sector. There are many people who would want to live in the city, but cannot due to the high cost of buying and renting. The state government has to consider building public housing in the CBD. The city needs a diverse demographic, not just rich baby-boomers.
Re: #Article: 65,000 people for city centre
Posted: Sat Jul 14, 2007 8:32 pm
by Howie
Just did a wiki and abs search for populations of city council areas and density.. here's how we compare
City of Sydney
151,920 (2006) - Density 4,900/km²
City of Melbourne
71,380 (2006 Census) - Density 1678/km²
City of Perth
11,573 (2006 census) - Density 1,063/km²
City of Adelaide
16,660 (2006) - Density 881.3/km²
City of Brisbane
LGA covers most of brisbane, so difficult to know what their cbd population is.
Density 379.8/km²
City of Hobart
47,700 (2006)
City of Darwin
66,291 (2006)
So with a population of 65,000 by my guess our CBD density would be 3439/km². Approaching sydney's current density.
With a population of 48,000 our CBD density would be 2539.7/km². Easily the second largest CBD population in Australia.
And with the target population of 26,000 by 2010 our density jumps to 1375/km². Slightly above where perth is now.
Re: #Article: 65,000 people for city centre
Posted: Sat Jul 14, 2007 11:24 pm
by Shuz
65,000 permanent CBD residents? Well, Harbo - I'm supportive of your ambitions but you better start laying out the groundwork to make this happen. Anything that makes our CBD square mile as dense as Sydney's.
Re: #Article: 65,000 people for city centre
Posted: Sun Jul 15, 2007 10:07 pm
by Ho Really
Fellas, the CBD is not all of the city square mile (or thereabouts). Imagine 65,000 only in the CBD...that would make for some density...?
Harbo, bring it on.
Cheers
Re: #Article: 65,000 people for city centre
Posted: Sun Jul 15, 2007 11:02 pm
by SRW
And the re-election campaign begins...
Re: #Article: 65,000 people for city centre
Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2007 2:46 am
by jimmy_2486
Well you can make that total 17001 soon cos i wouldnt mind living in an apartment in the city!!!
Whos with me folks!!
Re: #Article: 65,000 people for city centre
Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2007 8:21 am
by stelaras
Are we cloning humans in Adelaide??
I don't wish to be negative but where are the approx. 50,000 extra people going to come from?
How can you increase the density of the city when your not allowed to build anything higher than 50M in most of the Adeladie CBD?
Over how long a period is this to occur 5, 10, 50, 100 years??? (one would guess that in 100 years the density in the city would naturally increase due to population increases anyway)
Is Harbo and his cronies going to be in the ACC for the next 5, 10, 50 years...I doubt it!
Whats the plan, how is he going to safeguard it from future ACC mayors from stopping it??
In all seriousness:
We would have to attract these people from interstate or Overseas. (how likely is that...not very!)
Or the other alternative is to allow for people to move back into the city from the burbs. So if the latter is to occur, then the apartments in the city have to be affordable for those that are going to move there and there must be guarantees that the infrustructure in the burbs isnt allowed to diminish.
I cant see too many people from Deveron Park, croydon, rosewater, underdale being able to afford $300,000+ apartments in the city. I definitely can not see people in Unley, Norwood, Springfield, Magill moving to the city either..!
It's a positive move by the ACC, but with a council re-election to occur soon, it really just smells of saying the right thing at the right time to get voted in... aka John Howard!
Re: #Article: 65,000 people for city centre
Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2007 9:47 am
by AG
Paris has very few buildings taller than 10 floors within it's city proper limits (most of the tallest buildings are in La Defence), yet it has densities in some of it's city's districts well in excess of 20000 people per square kilometre.
I do agree that attracting such a large number of people to live in the CBD may well prove difficult. Most Australians still seek the "Australian dream", and there are few places in Australia where this is more evident than in Adelaide, where over 80% of new housing is still detached homes and high density living is still frowned upon in general. The vast majority of households in Adelaide are families or retired people, with a smaller proportion of singles or dinks compared to other Australian cities. In the eastern capitals, most apartment dwellers tend to be singles or dinks rather than families.