Civecon Developments plans 400 new homes at Encounter Bay

A local developer has unveiled plans to build 400 new homes in Encounter Bay, on land acquired from property baron Con Makris.

A local Adelaide developer is planning to build more than 400 homes at Encounter Bay, after acquiring a major piece of land from billionaire property baron Con Makris.

The $250m development would include a mix of traditional house and land packages and “bespoke hilltop villas”, as well as bike and pedestrian paths, reserves and a retail and commercial precinct.

It is being led by local developer Civecon Developments and is expected to take up to eight years to complete.

Mr Makris had previously planned to build a $250m shopping centre development on the site after securing major development status in 2007. But the project failed to get off the ground.

Civecon director Ian Day said the new vision would help to meet the shortage of housing south of Adelaide.

“With the majority of greenfield residential development to the north of the city and in the hills, we identified an extreme shortage of quality master-planned communities to the south of Adelaide and along the Fleurieu coast,” he said.

Civecon is planning to build more than 400 new homes on the Encounter Bay site.

“The site is only 3km from the centre of Victor Harbor, and due to its elevated position, it has some of the best panoramic views on offer.

“Our design team is incorporating the natural features of the site, such as utilising the existing creek line and established vegetation, to provide shared pedestrian and bike paths throughout the project, as well as utilising the magnificent views.

“We are also restoring the original stone homestead to add some character to the project and provide the community with a future asset.”

Mr Day said his firm was working with the Victor Harbor City Council on securing approvals for the master-planned project, and expects to launch a sales campaign towards the end of this year.

While he expects the state’s red hot housing market to slow in the coming months, Mr Day remains confident the Encounter Bay project will attract interest from a wide range of buyers.

“Though we are aware that the unprecedented volumes of sales seen throughout the state over the last 12 months will not continue forever, we believe that high quality projects in great locations such as this one will continue to attract purchasers such as sea-changers, first and second homeowners and locals looking to upgrade,” he said.

“Post pandemic, we are seeing people put a lot more value into lifestyle than proximity to work.”

Civecon has previously completed a number of housing developments across Adelaide, and recently launched the 155-home Olivewood project at the Barilla Olive Oil farm site in Munno Para.

The sale of the Encounter Bay site continues Mr Makris’s exodus from the South Australian property market after he moved his headquarters to the Gold Coast in 2017.

Since then he has offloaded the former Le Cornu site in North Adelaide, as well as a string of retail properties including the Newton Village, City Cross, North Adelaide Village and Hallett Cove shopping centres.

The Commercial Agency’s Con Kavooris brokered the sale of the Encounter Bay development site.