Construction on Kodo apartment tower reaches highest point, becomes Adelaide’s tallest residential tower — for now
At 103 metres, Adelaide’s tallest residential tower has reached its highest point, marked with a traditional ceremony on the building’s 30th floor. Here’s what the view looks like.
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Construction of Adelaide’s tallest residential tower has reached its highest point, marked with a traditional topping-out ceremony on the building’s 30th floor.
Towering 103 metres over Victoria Square on Angas St, the $100 million Kodo project will overtake the Vue project on King William St as the city’s tallest apartment building when it is completed in March.
However, it is likely to hold that mantle for less than a year, with the taller Realm and Adelaidean projects in the city’s east end due for completion in late 2019 and early 2020.
Kodo developer Flagship Property Holdings, backed by prominent businessman Kerry Stokes, expects residents to move into the new building by Easter, with 186 of the 202 apartments sold off the plan.
“The Adelaide CBD is really coming of age as more people choose an urban lifestyle, which in turn is resulting in more shops, bars and restaurants, and an ever-growing vibrancy that continues to make Adelaide one of the most liveable cities in the world,” Flagship chief executive Mark Jarman said.
Timelines at Kodo were pushed back earlier this year after workers discovered cracks in two concrete columns.
Mr Jarman said an investigation, which cleared the project of any structural issues, caused a six-week delay, but that builder Watpac had managed to make up some of the lost time.
“We needed to do a thorough investigation in order to understand what it was and to work through an appropriate solution,” he said.
“We kept our purchasers fully informed. There was no concern — people just wanted to understand the process we were going through.”
Flagship has two other apartment projects in its Adelaide pipeline including at the site of the Royal Hotel in Kent Town and Penny Place — a 23-storey, 152-apartment building adjacent to Kodo and due to hit the market in the new year.
Despite the number of projects in the pipeline, Mr Jarman is not fazed by concerns around oversupply.
“I think it’s lies, damned lies and statistics probably to a certain extent,” he said.
“I question whether or not the projects that are mooted, whether all of those will come online.
“But I still want a competitive and vibrant market in Adelaide because that can only be good for the underlying growth of the city.”
Mr Jarman said Flagship was in discussions with Watpac around how to treat the building’s blank western wall, which rises over the adjacent Federal Court building.
“At the minimum there’s some work that we can do around its continuity,” he said.
“We’ll look at other opportunities as well — it’s still early days.”
As part of Tuesday morning’s topping out ceremony, a large pine tree was raised from the ground to the top floor of the building by a 125 metre crane.
Planning Minister Stephan Knoll, who attended the ceremony, said Kodo was “a mark of confidence in the South Australian residential market”.
