Bowden and Tonsley Development Projects

Mr ODENWALDER (Little Para) (13:30): My question is to the Minister for Housing and Urban Development. Can the minister further update the house on the progress of the Bowden and Tonsley development projects?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The Speaker is most interested in the Bowden project and will act like a martinet if he can't hear the detail of it. Minister.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN (Lee—Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Minister for Housing and Urban Development) (13:31): I thank the member for his question. As many members would be aware, Bowden is the state government's first high-density urban infill project. It would be obvious to anyone visiting the site, albeit it is on the west of the city, that there has been steady progress on this $1 billion project transforming what was once a derelict industrial site into a vibrant new community adjacent to the city's western Parklands.

When completed, the Bowden project will comprise more than 2,400 dwellings. The 16-hectare site will also include cafes, restaurants, offices, open spaces, parks and gardens. Mr Speaker, along with you, I had the pleasure last Saturday of visiting the site for the official opening of the Bowden Town Square and to see firsthand the progress that is being made on this exciting development which is being managed and delivered by Renewal SA.

The town square is significant, being the first stage of retail development in Bowden and will, over time, become the retail heart of the project. Since Bowden was launched by this government four years ago, 10 developments comprising over 250 dwellings have been completed and Bowden is now home to approximately 430 people. Public interest has been strong, with more than 450 apartments and townhouses sold off the plan to date. A further 150 apartments are currently under construction and work is anticipated to begin on a further 190 apartments within the next 12 months. A total of 19 development sites have been contracted by developers.

Unlike Bowden, which has a major focus on residential construction, the Tonsley innovation district is an economic project to create a mixed-use precinct on the former Mitsubishi Motors site off South Road at Clovelly Park. The government's vision here is to create a precinct that will support the transition of South Australia's manufacturing industry by providing a high-quality knowledge-driven precinct with researchers, companies and manufacturers focusing on value-added advanced manufacturing.

The private sector is projected to invest more than $1 billion over the 20-year life of the project. There are now more than 1,000 people working at the Tonsley site between the more than 70 businesses and start-ups, Flinders University and TAFE. This is compared to when Mitsubishi last manufactured cars at the site in 2008 when, I am advised, there were approximately 800 people employed at the facility. These figures are projected to grow into the future.

The Tonsley innovation district has attracted investment by such high-calibre companies as Siemens energy maintenance and repair, the Hills Innovation Centre and medical equipment companies Micro-X and Signostics. Leading South Australian companies such as SAGE Automation and Rivergum Homes have also announced plans to announce operations within Tonsley; for SAGE, a new head office with approximately 120 staff, while Rivergum is investing in an advanced manufacturing and modular construction facility. Last year, Flinders University opened its new $120 million computer science, engineering and maths school at Tonsley, part of the push to build our state's base of knowledge workers.

The success to date of the Bowden and Tonsley precinct developments shows the capacity of Renewal SA to deliver significant changes in land uses from former industrially blighted sites. I am looking forward to the future success of further precinct developments, particularly the existing Royal Adelaide Hospital precinct to be redeveloped into a leading residential, knowledge, innovation and research precinct and commercial and mixed use development.