The Adelaide families, interstate developers and overseas investors transforming the city
Local family groups, interstate property tycoons and overseas investors are pouring billions of dollars into developing SA. See who’s transforming the city.
From high rise apartment and student accommodation towers in the city and suburbs to high end hotels and hospitals, Adelaide is undergoing a record boom in construction, powered by billions of dollars of government and private investment.
While the state government is backing projects like the new Women’s and Children’s Hospital and redevelopments of the Flinders Medical Centre and Mount Barker Hospital, local and interstate developers are also putting their faith in the state’s economy with a string of major projects across the state.
In the CBD, there’s none bigger than the $600m redevelopment of the Central Market precinct, a joint venture between Melbourne-based ICD Property and the Adelaide City Council that’s transforming one of the city’s most visited destinations.
Ross Pelligra, another Melbourne-based developer, is also continuing to invest in Adelaide via a string of major hotel, hospital and office projects under way in the city and at Elizabeth.
But local family groups remain the major drivers of development across the city, with the Samaras, Taplin, Palumbo and Rocca families among those changing the face of the city and adding density to areas including Kent Town, Norwood and Glenelg.
Meanwhile at North Adelaide, the recent completion of the $300m Eighty Eight O’Connell apartment project ended a near 40-year saga to redevelop the former Le Cornu site, and has become a catalyst for new apartment projects proposed for one of the city’s most affluent areas.
Property Council SA executive director Bruce Djite said the wave of development activity came amid renewed optimism in the state’s economy.
“There is a real sense that South Australia is on the cusp of something special and the smart money has started moving into developing the built form the state will need,” he said.
“There is no better reflection of this – both symbolic and real – than the completion of Commercial and General’s 88 O’Connell St development. The sky didn’t fall down and the NIMBYs – once opposed – are now thanking C&G for reinvigorating O’Connell St.
“The CBD remains Australia’s greatest strategic infill site and one of the least densely populated CBDs in the world, which is ripe for development.
“City shaping retail, commercial and residential developments must continue to come out of the ground if the state is to have a chance of fulfilling the once in a generation opportunities which are currently before us.”
According to the latest RLB Crane Index, a record 26 cranes are active on major development projects across metropolitan Adelaide – the highest number recorded since the index’s launch in 2012.
Here are 15 of the most active developers who are leaving an indelible mark on the city.
Commercial & General
One of the city’s most prolific developers, Jamie McClurg’s Commercial & General has a long list of city shaping projects to its name, including the Australian Bragg Centre for Proton Therapy on North Tce, the Calvary Adelaide Hospital and the redevelopment of AAMI Stadium.
But arguably the developer’s biggest achievement is getting a project out of the ground at the former Le Cornu site in North Adelaide.
The $300m Eighty Eight O’Connell development opened its doors in October, overcoming fierce opposition from some local residents along with a legal bid to halt the project.
The project ended 40 years of failed attempts to develop the site, with 158 luxury apartments and the new home of food icon Mercato breathing new life into the O’Connell St strip.
ICD Property / Adelaide City Council
Melbourne-based ICD Property entered the Adelaide market with a bang, joining forces with the Adelaide City Council on a $600m transformation of Adelaide’s Central Market precinct.
Construction of the Market Square development is powering ahead, and includes a residential tower with 234 apartments, hotel, new market hall, Coles supermarket and a nine-storey office building where construction recently reached its highest point.
The council is also collaborating with the state government and community housing providers Junction and Unity Housing on a four-tower, $900m housing and hotel development in the city’s east end, recently launching a search to find a funding partner to develop the 8000sq m super site between Pirie and Flinders streets.
Pelligra
Little was known about Pelligra Group in South Australia before its 2017 acquisition of the former Holden manufacturing site at Elizabeth, but the family-owned company has gone on to become one of Adelaide’s most prominent developers.
Headed up by Ross Pelligra, the Melbourne-based group has completed a series of major office, hotel and commercial projects across the city.
Current major projects under construction include a new 60-bed mental health hospital on Wakefield St in the city, eight-storey start-up hub in Elizabeth and $30m conversion of a city office building on King William St into a Veriu serviced apartment complex.
Pelligra is also backing a landmark mixed-use skyscraper proposed for the Freemasons Hall site on North Tce, which could become the city’s first skyscraper.
Kyren Group
Kyren Group, led by Adelaide developer Theo Samaras, is behind some of Adelaide’s largest office buildings, as well as the city’s tallest tower – the Crowne Plaza hotel and Adelaidean apartments on Frome St.
Samaras is putting the finishing touches to a new $100m office tower on Franklin St, the latest in a long line of speculative office developments across the city, including buildings at 108 Wakefield St, 400 King William St and 70 Franklin St.
Taplin Group
The Taplin family is the biggest landlord in Glenelg’s Jetty Rd precinct, and is spearheading a development boom in the area despite the controversy surrounding upgrades to the popular seaside strip.
Hot on the heels of The George hotel development which opened its doors for the first time earlier this year, Taplin recently started work on a $120m, 12-storey apartment complex on Colley Tce.
It is also developing large suburban housing projects, including a $60m affordable housing project at Albert Park, and is working on plans for a major expansion of the Kurralta Village shopping centre, which was added to the family’s extensive portfolio of shopping centres earlier this year.
Renewal SA
The state government’s development agency continues to play a leading role in the transformation of Adelaide and its suburbs, spearheading new housing projects on some of the state’s largest and most strategic parcels of land.
They include the former West End Brewery site at Thebarton, now known as Southwark, where the first homes in a $1bn development hit the market last month.
Renewal SA’s major project pipeline includes inner city projects like the proposed transformation of the former Adelaide Bus Station site and a new Innovation Centre at Lot Fourteen, as well as major housing developments at Noarlunga, Onkaparinga Heights, Prospect and Seaton.
Walker Corporation
Founded by the late Lang Walker, Walker Corporation recently secured planning approval for a second tower at Festival Plaza, next to its first office tower in the precinct which has breathed new life into an emerging commercial, hospitality and events hub on the doorstep of Adelaide’s city railway station.
At 38 storeys and 160m, it was the second skyscraper – typically defined as being at least 150m in height – to be given the green light for the city, following the approval of the Freemasons’ 183m-tall tower behind Freemasons Hall.
Walker Corporation is also behind one of the city’s largest housing projects, the Riverlea development, which will deliver more than 12,000 new homes for up to 40,000 residents in Adelaide’s outer north over the coming decades.
Curated Capital
Adelaide developer Pep Rocca has emerged as the king of The Parade via a series of major developments that are changing the face of the cosmopolitan Norwood strip.
The $110m Como apartment project in 2023 was a game-changer for the precinct, and Rocca has followed that up with another $95m luxury apartment project, Orta, which was recently completed on the corner of The Parade and Osmond Tce.
Norwood is a key market for Rocca, who is also working on plans for another mixed-use project on the corner of The Parade and Sydenham Rd, but his imprint on the city runs much further, with recent development projects completed at Prospect and at the 45 Pirie St office tower in the city, where a $20m upgrade was completed earlier this year.
Palumbo
The Palumbo family has developed a wide range of projects over the years, ranging from apartments and townhouses to retirement housing, office buildings, industrial warehouses and mixed-use developments.
Its flagship project is arguably the $154m Sofitel Adelaide hotel in the CBD, but Palumbo has also focused much of its efforts developing Adelaide’s inner eastern fringe.
The 11-storey East Park Kent Town townhouse and apartment project on Dequetteville Tce was one of the first high rise towers in the area, and Palumbo is following that up with a seven-storey development currently under construction on nearby Rundle St in Kent Town.
It also has planning approval for a dual-tower development behind the Royal Hotel site at the corner of North and Dequetteville terraces.
Chasecrown
Palumbo isn’t the only developer looking to capitalise on Adelaide’s blue chip inner east, with Adelaide developer Chasecrown nearing completion of a 12-storey luxury apartment tower on Dequetteville Tce, just south of Palumbo’s East Park Kent Town.
The $120m Parkline development will add 61 luxury apartments to the area, along with office spaces, an entry lounge and a multi-use area for residents to host meetings and events.
Led by director Louis Kanellos, and backed by luxury builder Medallion Homes, Chasecrown has also made its mark in Glenelg, where one of its flagship projects, the EI8HT apartments tower on South Esplanade, has taken out a long list of awards for its design and architecture.
Wee Hur
Singaporean developer Wee Hur is behind some of Adelaide’s largest student accommodation towers.
The company developed the 17-storey UniLodge building on Gray St, which houses 756 students, as well as the 16-storey Y Suites on Waymouth St, with 811 beds.
But it's the developer’s latest project on the site of beloved live music venue the Crown & Anchor that has caused most controversy.
Wee Hur had initially planned to demolish all but the facade of the Crown & Anchor, but following a public outcry, the state government stepped in with a deal to preserve the live music venue while allowing Wee Hur to build 10 storeys higher than originally planned on the adjacent land.
Construction is now well under way as the developer looks to capitalise on a potential influx of international students resulting from the merger of Adelaide’s two largest universities.
Kambitsis Group
Developer George Kambitsis has a long history in the development of office buildings across Adelaide, previously partnering with Simon Chappel on projects including construction of two Flinders St towers currently home to oil & gas giants Santos and Beach Energy.
He is nearing completion of a major redevelopment of the former Internode building on Grenfell St for anchor tenant the RAA, but he is increasingly moving into the residential market, with a 120-lot land division at O’Sullivan Beach and a $35m luxury apartment building in North Adelaide.
Auta Group
The Adelaide-based developer recently completed construction of the flagship Victoria Tower apartment project on Grote St, which at 38 storeys, has become the city’s fourth-tallest building.
And it is already working on plans for its next major project, a dual-tower development at the former Publishers Hotel site on Franklin St.
Auta Group has been in talks with international hotel operators to anchor its Franklin St project, which secured planning approval late last year. It features a hotel and a second 21-level northern tower with apartments.
Peet / Buildtec
Developers Peet and Buildtec are partnering with Commercial Retail Group – the Chapley family business behind the popular Frewville and Pasadena Foodland supermarkets – on a $250m transformation of the former Le Cornu site in Forestville.
Construction of the first townhouses commenced earlier this year, with the project to feature residential, retail, hospitality, education, commercial and tourism precincts.
Perth-based Peet is also developing other major residential projects including at Tonsley and Fort Largs, while the Carrocci family’s Buildtec is partnering with fellow Adelaide developer Catcorp on projects including the Norwood Green apartment and townhouse project, and the Salisbury council’s $200m city centre revitalisation project.
Emmett
The local developer, led by Property Council SA president Nick Emmett, has a long history of development in Adelaide, covering industrial, office, retail and residential property.
Earlier this year it started work on one of its larger projects, partnering with fund manager ICAM on a new $32m purpose-built technical centre for the RAA on Port Rd in West Croydon.
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