Special Edition - 17 March 2025

A plan for an even greater Adelaide

The South Australian Government has released its Greater Adelaide Regional Plan (the Plan) which identifies where 315,000 new homes will be built over the next 30 years and preserves important land for future infrastructure requirements.

Growing communities will be well-serviced as the Plan ensures enough land will be preserved for future hospitals, roads, public transport, schools, and emergency services. This avoids the need to acquire land in the future at a higher cost, saving taxpayers money.

By 2050, Greater Adelaide’s population is expected to grow by an additional 670,000 people, the Plan sets a clear direction for growth:

• The Plan identifies the location of 315,000 new homes for South Australians.
• It identifies space to create 254,000 additional jobs within Greater Adelaide.
• We are providing increased protection for 88 per cent of Greater Adelaide’s food production areas.
• It will create a new Northern Park Lands and ensures open space and sporting facilities are provided in new growth areas.
• The Plan aligns with the Urban Greening Strategy and targets an increase in tree canopy coverage to 30 per cent by 2055, ensuring a cooler and greener urban environment.
• The Plan aligns with key outcomes of South Australia’s Transport Strategy and the 20-Year State Infrastructure Strategy, ensuring more integrated planning, especially for new growth areas.

No new general infill development areas have been planned, and the Plan has removed the former objective in previous versions which targeted 85 per cent of future housing being infill projects.

A range of new strategic infill sites have been identified, with the planning of these locations to be led by the Department for Housing and Urban Development.

Areas identified for new homes are either already connected to infrastructure, have infrastructure commitments in place or are located in areas where future investment in infrastructure is planned.

There’s been two extensive rounds of community and targeted stakeholder engagement that have been completed, which has helped shape the finalised plan, with all government departments having input.

The Plan provides a plan for the next 30 years and complements the Housing Roadmap which identifies ways to increase housing in the short term over the next five years.

Spanning approximately 11,000 square kilometres from Cape Jervis to Murray Bridge, taking in the townships of the Barossa and the boundary of Port Wakefield, the Greater Adelaide region is currently home to around 1.5 million people, approximately 85 per cent of the state’s population.

The Plan is Australia’s first fully digital regional plan. This means it can be a live document and easily updated to respond to changing data, similar to the land supply dashboard.

New Northern Park Lands

The South Australian Government will make the most significant investment in public open space in Greater Adelaide ever, creating a new Northern Park Lands.

At maturity, the Park Lands will cover almost 1000 hectares of land, which is 39 per cent larger than the Adelaide Park Lands.

Developed as part of the new Greater Adelaide Regional Plan, the Northern Park Lands will feature natural open space, new sport and recreation facilities, a new railway station as well as three interconnected Linear Parks with shared-use paths that will provide a continuous loop around Gawler.

At the heart of the Northern Park Lands is the proposed 70-hectare Village Green sport and recreation area which will be the equivalent of 31 Adelaide Ovals in size.

The playing fields will include ovals, courts and clubroom facilities and will be home to numerous local sporting clubs. Located along the electrified Gawler Railway line, it will feature public transport connections as well as car parking.

Preliminary consultation has already commenced with local sporting clubs and the Town of Gawler to ensure the Village Green and Recreation and Sporting area can become a vibrant multi-sport precinct servicing the needs of the growing northern suburbs and greater Gawler region into the future.

More than 760 hectares will be preserved for natural green open space that supports greater biodiversity and increases habitats for native animals.

Located adjacent to the Kulda growth area south of Gawler, the Northern Park Lands will provide an uninterrupted journey from the hills face to the Gawler River, via Karbeethan Reserve and will serve as a vital inter-urban break between new growth areas and more established areas of the Town of Gawler.

It will provide spaces for active recreation, greening initiatives, community respite, and local sports facilities.

The Gawler area will be encircled by three Linear Parks, to be delivered over multiple stages, that will result in 38-kilometres of shared use walking and cycling paths that will provide a continuous loop.

The South Australian Government has committed $53 million towards the first stage of the Northern Park Lands.

Funds generated through future land developments as well as council contributions will help establish and maintain the Park Lands.

Legislation will be introduced to establish a new statutory authority, named the Northern Park Lands Trust, that will establish the new Northern Park Lands.

Legislative change would enable the new authority to operate with a level of independence with the Northern Park Lands Trust to be responsible for the ongoing maintenance and management of the Northern Park Lands once established, including oversight of any development, or leases granted.

It will be similar to the West Beach Trust model which has proven successful in protecting the local environment whilst also creating popular recreation areas.

Following this model, it would be able to establish its own revenue stream, through the creation of a Holiday Park or tourist venture, and employ staff.

The Northern Park Lands will require some land acquisitions and utilise the development of government-owned land for open space with increased vegetation.