On Sunday, the Premier of South Australia, The Hon Peter Malinauskas MP and Minister for Housing and Urban Development, The Hon Nick Champion MP announced that the state government has purchased the former West End Brewery site at Thebarton.

Renewal SA will act as master developer of this prime city-fringe parcel of land. We have a plan to transform the 8.4-hectare site into a world-class, mixed-use precinct, capable of delivering more than 1,000 homes – at least 20% of which will be affordable housing. This is at a time when home ownership and home security are becoming increasingly hard to achieve.

This strategic acquisition brings with it the potential for immense growth and progress in urban development and, indeed, for our city. It underscores our commitment to fostering vibrant, sustainable communities while addressing the pressing need for quality housing solutions, particularly affordable ones.

We firmly believe that the best way to achieve this ambitious goal is through collaboration and partnership with the private sector.

Delivery and coordination of our objectives will not happen in isolation. We will be actively seeking out private sector participants to partner with – including local and national development partners, investors, designers, consultants and builders – who can bring their specialist knowledge and innovative solutions to this new, master planned community.

As of now, we are actively pursuing opportunities to maximise affordable housing outcomes along this key Port Road corridor and other areas of the city. The State Government is in talks with the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation (NHFIC) to form a bilateral agreement that would cut red tape for Community Housing Providers (CHPs), identify areas of social and affordable housing need, unlock government land to assist delivery and expedite planning approvals during the development process.

What’s next?

Work will begin immediately on developing a formal master plan for the former brewery site, drawing inspiration from high-quality urban infill success stories like Bowden and other projects across the country, to deliver exemplar housing and commercial outcomes across a broad range of asset classes from affordable housing via CHPs, to build-to-rent apartments, to market apartments.

Consultation with the community and other key stakeholders will also inform the master plan and Renewal SA will engage with industry, via a rigorous and competitive process, to progress designs and planning for this new community.

A comprehensive sales and marketing campaign for South Australians to secure housing within the new community will follow this process.

To register your interest and receive project updates click here.

More affordable and critical housing across the state

Beyond the brewery site project, Renewal SA is more focussed than ever on delivering affordable housing for South Australians right across the state.

Our strategic approach to increasing the supply, diversity and affordability of housing includes increasing land supply, facilitating large-scale projects, optimising delivery models and being innovative in our partnerships and practices.

We are full steam ahead on a series of other affordable and critical housing projects, particularly now that the $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund (HAFF) has passed through Federal Parliament.

Bowden and Prospect

We are currently seeking Expressions of Interest from Community Housing Providers to partner with us – under two different models – to deliver two affordable rental apartment buildings in Bowden and two in Prospect.

The Prospect apartment buildings will form part of the new Prospect Corner development, which also includes more than 100 multi-storey townhouses centred around pockets of open space and greenery.

55% of the entire development will be offered as affordable housing, with tenders now open for builders and landscapers.

Playford Alive

The next stage of Playford Alive has been announced, with civil works to begin on the residential development at Newton Boulevard, Munno Para, within the next six months.

The 16.6-hectare site comprises 249 allotments of various sizes, approximately 65% of which will be sold at or below the affordable price point for land.

Office for Regional Housing

Renewal SA’s Office for Regional Housing is also calling on builders to register their interest in partnering to deliver new houses in regional South Australia.

One of the first priorities is the Regional Key Worker Housing Scheme, which will deliver 30 new homes specifically allocated to key government workers during an initial pilot phase. Land for this pilot scheme has already been secured in Mount Gambier, Renmark and Port Augusta.

Industry will be instrumental in the success of all of these projects and we look forward to seeing what public and private sector collaborations can do to extend and elevate the outcomes achieved across this significant pipeline of work.

I encourage you to connect with the Renewal SA team to explore the numerous opportunities within our extensive portfolio of projects. Those interested specifically in partnership and contractor opportunities can stay up to date via the SA Tenders website. To join our growing delivery team you can explore our careers page or for general information you can contact us here.

We look forward to hearing from you.
Chris Menz