News & Discussion: Laneway & Streetscape Projects

[Kasey771]

There was one of those golden shovel launches today in Bank Street, so hopefully proper construction will start now. Rau and Haese were in attendance.

Heard Haese on the TV news, The traders are looking forward to it and to the increased foot traffic it ought to bring. P*sses me off that they're still pandering to the car lobby. Its supposed to be a pedestrian prioritized laneway you clowns. Only let a car/truck or two in for deliveries and then put the bollards in! Allowing cars in there makes it more of a lame-way than a lane way:(

[Will]

From News.com:

Adelaide City Council to review business mix in Topham Mall, flags potential redevelopment of shopping precinct



Renato Castello, The Advertiser

April 26, 2017 12:00am




IT’S more than 30 years old but it’s only recently that some life has emerged in the once deserted Topham Mall.

The mall is a mix of snack bars, a newsagent, dry cleaner, cafes and offices set below a visually dominating public carpark of 1041 spaces whose facade has been embellished with some street in a bid to soften its presence.

The addition of the Lady Burra Brewhouse has provided an anchor tenant to the area that has been often considered a thoroughfare rather than a place for reflection.

And Renew Adelaide has brought in hip new businesses including The Flower Nook, Transform, The Beigelry, Booknook & Bean and The Coco Stop to once empty shopfronts.

But as work progresses on the publicly-funded upgrade of the pedestrian mall linking Waymouth and Currie streets, mall owner Adelaide City Council is seeking a consultant to undertake a wholesale review of the precinct and its tenancies.

The scope of the review, obtained by The Advertiser, would be to assess the “strengths and weaknesses” of current tenants and prepare an “overall strategy” for the mall including potential redevelopment.

“The multi-deck carpark building has a remaining useful life of at least 20 years, and while the Topham car park provides a reliable income stream for council, the ground level commercial tenancies are in need of an upgrade,” the consultancy brief says.

Potential outcomes mentioned in the tender document include:

REALIGNING the pedestrian link and how it connects with the new public upgrades;

RELOCATION of toilets;

REPURPOSING the former U-Park cashier area and;

POTENTIAL for staged redevelopment of the mall and the practicality of relocating its archives building.




The council will also seek advice on the theming and branding of retail offers at the site.

Topham Mall has 13 tenants, with the council’s archives building taking up the majority of space across the ground and basement floors.

The council and State Government have started upgrades of the walkway as part of a $14.6 million spend to transform a network of small streets and laneways between the Adelaide Central Market and the Riverbank.

The successful consultant for the Topham Mall study will also be asked to conduct a “high-level” review of retail and consumer trends in metropolitan Adelaide.

The council is setting aside 12 weeks for the successful applicant to put together a feasibility study identifying future revenue streams.

The council has budgeted $70,000 for the work with the tender closing on May 9.

The review comes almost two years after the council released the results of a blueprint, dubbed Invigorate Your Senses, which listed making Topham Mall a “day and night food precinct”, possibly including a supermarket.

[Norman]

Gawler Place in line for $7.8 million transformation into dining, entertainment precinct
Sam Kelton, The City, The Advertiser
May 17, 2017 12:00pm

GAWLER Place, the city’s busiest laneway, will be transformed into a bustling late-night dining and entertainment precinct thanks to a $7.8 million upgrade.

Currently a tired thoroughfare for delivery drivers and pedestrians, new designs show a luscious, spacious laneway linking to the new North Tce tram stop.

With the upgrades set to bring not only a splash of green and a touch of class, there is further opportunities for outdoor dining and Lord Mayor Martin Haese says the area could become a dining precinct over time.

“I think it’s a very natural conclusion,” he said.

“When you’ve got thousands of people passing through it, and in time, a tram stop adjoining it, and 2800 buses passing by on Grenfell St — entrepreneurs are going to want to stop them, give them a seat and feed them.

“We want to see more of that — people heading down there after work for a bite to eat and Gawler Place could do that.”

The upgrades it will make Gawler Plance the missing link in the transport corridor of Grenfell Street, the new tram stop on North Terrace, the recently completed ANZAC Memorial Walk on Kintore Avenue, and North Terrace.

The project has been championed by Rundle Mall Management Authority board member and Councillor Natasha Malani, who pushed for the upgrades through Adelaide City Council.

“It is important for Council to invest in upgrading our public spaces for people to enjoy... this is a key project as part of the Rundle Mall Master Plan,” Councillor Malani said.

Rundle Mall Management Authority General Manager, Amanda Grocock said the upgrade would provide significant benefits to retailers, businesses and visitors of the Rundle Mall Precinct.

“Council’s investment in this project is to be congratulated and I look forward to being able to welcome people who visit, shop and work in Gawler Place into a more contemporary and user friendly space,” she said.

Construction is planned to start in January 2018 and will take six to eight months to complete.

Images
Gawler Place South



Gawler Place North



http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/messenger ... 1fc00142cb

[SRW]

They're not final concept images are they? I would have expected a continuation of the same treatment as Rundle Mall. Also, it's a shame this won't start until next year but I guess they've left it too late now to ensure conpletion before peak trading (ie Christmas).

[rhino]

Fantastic! I've been saying for years that Gawler Place should look like this!

[Norman]

If you want to see actual plans and not just pretty pictures, there is more content on the Your Say website.

https://yoursay.cityofadelaide.com.au/gawler-place

[obituary resider]

They're not final concept images are they? I would have expected a continuation of the same treatment as Rundle Mall. Also, it's a shame this won't start until next year but I guess they've left it too late now to ensure conpletion before peak trading (ie Christmas).

The pavers used in the mall were sourced from China and can no longer be used due to new industry participation guidelines. The black pavers should match in with the mall nicely while the green ones will probably de-saturate a little once they have had a bit of wear and exposure.

[Norman]

Not sure if the Hindley Street renewal project goes here...

[Kasey771]

Activating Pitt and Bentham could be a bit of a challenge. But this is a great idea!

I agree on Pitt, I walked from the train station to Ying Chows on Gouger last night. My suggestion for activating Pitt Street:
Link it to the Central Markets. The restaurants/cafes on that street should be the alfresco dining area of the Markets using products sourced from across Grote street.

[PeFe]

I agree on Pitt, I walked from the train station to Ying Chows on Gouger last night. My suggestion for activating Pitt Street:
Link it to the Central Markets. The restaurants/cafes on that street should be the alfresco dining area of the Markets using products sourced from across Grote street.

Really smart suggestion. There is something similar in Brighton England, called The Links, where small laneways have been connected providing a north-south route, but not along the main streets.
It would be a really nice stroll to walk from the Central Markets to Rundle Mall via a series of back lane ways and small streets full of cafes/restaurants/small shops etc. A leisurely meander providing a real "village" feel in the centre of the city...well away from the traffic and fumes.

[Llessur2002]

There is something similar in Brighton England, called The Links, where small laneways have been connected providing a north-south route, but not along the main streets.

Do you mean the Laines (technically the North Laine, but everyone gets that bit wrong)?

Series of back streets with shops, cafes etc leading down from the station towards the sea?

[PeFe]

Oops, yes, it may be called the Laines, not the Links.

[Llessur2002]

Thought so! Brighton's my hometown so hope you don't mind me being pedantic

Regardless of name it's a really good blueprint for the station to market route in Adelaide. The sheer number and variety of shops and eateries is probably the main driver behind its popularity but it's a much more scenic, enjoyable and safe route than the parallel main road.

On weekends it's completely closed to traffic and full of street artists, tabletop vendors, buskers etc.

[Kasey771]

Thought so! Brighton's my hometown so hope you don't mind me being pedantic

Regardless of name it's a really good blueprint for the station to market route in Adelaide. The sheer number and variety of shops and eateries is probably the main driver behind its popularity but it's a much more scenic, enjoyable and safe route than the parallel main road.

On weekends it's completely closed to traffic and full of street artists, tabletop vendors, buskers etc.

Because Pitt street is so wide, I was more thinking of Hardware Lane in Melbourne with restaurants for my inspiration rather then something like the Laines in Brighton, which look like narrow back alleys connected together. Of course I should think it'd need to be closed to traffic to permit dining in the street.


EDIT: Theres a multi-storey car park on Pitt street, so its entrance would need to be moved to Franklin street for Pitt street to be closed to vehicle traffic.

[Llessur2002]

Because Pitt street is so wide, I was more thinking of Hardware Lane in Melbourne with restaurants for my inspiration rather then something like the Laines in Brighton, which look like narrow back alleys connected together.

There are two different areas in Brighton with similar names - the North Laine (singular), which is a series of streets which lead approximately halfway from the Station to the seafront and then the Lanes which are the alleyways which I think you are referring to, that lead the rest of the way towards the sea.

The North Laine includes Sydney Street, Gardner Street and Bond Street which are the main shopping/eating streets in the area. These are two-way roads during the week but closed to traffic on the weekends and are quite similar in width to Pitt Street etc, albeit with far more existing retail units:



The Lanes are older, narrow pedestrian walkways full of antique shops, jewellery shops and boutiques:



The terminology is confusing - Laine is an old local term for a plot of land rather than a thoroughfare. Therefore the North Laines refers to these old plots that the streets now occupy, rather than the streets themselves.