Public Works Committee: Southwark Project

Ms HOOD (Adelaide) (12:13): I move:

That the 132^nd report of the committee, entitled Southwark Project, be noted.

In September 2023, the South Australian government announced it had purchased the former West End Brewery site in Thebarton. The government envisions a $1 billion development of the site into a mixed-use precinct within a sustainable environment. The Southwark Project will undertake civil works and landscaping as well as construct 17 new townhouses at the old brewery site as part of the cabinet-approved Southwark master plan, which aims to build a thriving community at the Thebarton location now known as Southwark.

The project is also part of broader goals to develop higher density housing within the urban corridor adjacent to Port Road. Renewal SA is the master developer for the project and will partner with the private development and construction sectors to deliver:

up to 1,300 new dwellings, with a minimum 20 per cent being comprised of affordable housing;

over 15 per cent public space, including an expanded Karrawirra Parri/River Torrens riverbank;

a target of 30 per cent tree canopy coverage; and

a new shared-use path connection to the Adelaide Parklands.

The site is located within the City of West Torrens at 107 Port Road, Thebarton and comprises 47 individual or partial titles across approximately 8½ hectares. The development of landholdings will include re-establishing the former Southwark Road grid through upgraded road and streetscape networks, delivering an estimated 11 super lot development sites, the construction of 17 townhouses by Renewal SA, and delivering four new public reserves, including the return and upgrade of more than six and a half thousand square metres of Karrawirra Parri into public ownership.

The project is expected to cost $103.1 million in capital expenditure. Renewal SA will be responsible for ongoing costs prior to settlement as well as the transfer of ownership to the public realm and individual super lots. Sales revenue of $147.6 million has been included in the forward estimates, and final settlements are expected by December 2029.

Renewal SA is the lead agency for the project, and project delivery activities will be governed using the agency's internal governance structures. The agency anticipates works to commence in the third quarter of this year, with first residents to move in by December next year and the entire project to be complete by 2032, subject to market response.

The agency has been in consultation with the Kaurna community, and an Aboriginal cultural heritage survey identified no known archaeological sites. An Aboriginal cultural heritage survey has identified Karrawirra Parri as an area of high anthropological and archaeological sensitivity, and a management plan has subsequently been prepared. The site accommodates several state heritage items, and Renewal SA is working to protect heritage items and adaptively re-use or protect them within the public realm. The project also includes plans to reimagine the well-loved riverbank Christmas lights display.

The committee examined written and oral evidence in relation to the Southwark project. Witnesses who appeared before the committee were Shane Wingard, Executive Director, Property and Major Projects; Michael Wood, Executive Director, Commercial and Business Services; and Chantal Milton, Development Director, Major Projects. I thank the witnesses for their time.

Based upon the evidence considered and pursuant to section 12C of the Parliamentary Committees Act 1991, the Public Works Committee reports to parliament that it recommends the proposed public work.

Motion carried.