Governing Urban Waterfront Renewal: the politics, opportunities and challenges for the inner harbour of Port Adelaide, Australia

Urban Waterfronts: Contemporary Streams of Planning Conflicts

“…On the other hand, they often beget upscale environments that potentially exclude large publics from the revitalized space and inscribe in the urban landscape certain values and memories over others (Samant and Breares 2017;Cheung and Tang 2015). In the last few decades, a large strand of the literature has examined waterfronts as products of neoliberal and entrepreneurial regimes, geared toward economic profitability and competitiveness (Boland, Bronte, and Muir 2017;Oakley 2009;Swyngedouw, Moulaert, and Rodriguez 2002;Mele 2013;Thorning, Balch, and Essex 2019). Scholars have documented how waterfronts have been transformed into spaces of spectacle (Broudehoux 2013), creative milieus (Kostopoulou 2013), and innovation districts (Kayanan, Eichenmüller, and Chambers 2018).…”

A Lefebvrian Analysis of Redeveloping Derelict Urban Docklands for High-Density Consumption Living, Australia

“…Redeveloping derelict waterfronts echoes many of these concerns raised by Lefebvre through their '[re-]imagineering into places of spectacle, symbolic economy and cosmopolitan living' (Lehrer & Laidley, 2009, p. 799). It is a speculative endeavour that is favoured by a select population who purchase into these newly built forms (Oakley, 2009). From an Australian perspective, waterfront developments rely on an increasingly diversified range of products and consumer tastes in housing, amenity and leisure.…”

“…The regeneration was also touted as generating up to 6000 jobs: 2000 jobs in new commercial enterprises in recreational and tourism activity, investment in restaurants, cafes and retail outlets, and the creation of a further 2000 jobs during the construction phases of the development. In addition, the redeveloped site is expected to realise , AUD 2 billion in reinvestment capital (Oakley, 2009). To date, two precincts have been completed and occupied by new residents.…”

“…Moving much of the population from low density, detached suburban housing into medium and high rise dwellings is a major focus at all levels of government. Concern over climate change, rising fuel, energy, land and material costs associated with housing as well as declining public sector investment in urban amenity and infrastructure is prompting policy-makers to offer alternatives to continued outward metropolitan growth (Oakley, 2009). This has coincided with a growing urgency around housing affordability and housing stress that is being experienced across Australian cities and major urban centres (Beer et al, 2006;Chapman, 2006;Wood & Ong, 2009).…”

The changing tides of port geography (1950–2012)

“…Transport papers have gained enormous important in the network compared with previous periods, such asRobinson (2002) on ports in value-driven chain systems,Slack et al (2002) on strategic alliances, and Notteboom and Winkelmans (2001) on structural changes in logistics. Most peripheral port geography papers are in fact much closer to urban-related issues as they principally focus on waterfronts (for example,Oakley, 2009) or on specific issues such as remote sensing…”