The future of Canberra as a business hub

Canberra is about to experience a period of growth, which is great news for residents and potential investors in the ACT. "The booming population and employment market here will be driving demand even higher over the next few years," explained Geocon's managing director Nick Georgalis to the Canberra Times recently.

The ACT planning authority team are already feeling the pressure as they have had to work overtime to clear the backlog of development applications. A recent Canberra Times article revealed Government figures showing “there were some 1216 development applications lodged with the planning authority in 2017-18, up from 1091 in 2016-17 and 971 in 2015-16”. As a result, “Staff in the ACT government's planning authority had to work overtime to cut a massive backlog of development applications last year, but assessment staff is still dealing with a backlog of more than 360 applications”.

The ACT Government is encouraging Canberra Developers to ‘think outside the box’ and propose creative developments that combine both commercial and residential options in the one development. “The territory government looks to attract more mixed-use apartment developments with commercial on the ground floor across Canberra,” reports the Canberra Times. Some of the more complex developments include “Geocon's Wova and Republic developments in Woden and Belconnen, the Curtin and Giralang shops redevelopments and Air Towers in Gungahlin”.

Gecon’s Republic development in Belconnen, for example, will consist of two 27-storey buildings (the tallest in Canberra), 1200 apartments, a 152-room Abode Hotel and a 500-space carpark. However, this development will also include one of Woolworth’s new-model “Metro” boutique supermarkets – a smaller format Woolworths pitched at time-poor customers seeking convenience. There are currently more than a dozen of these convenience-sized Woolworths stores across Australia since the concept was launched last year.

More than $350 million worth of apartments have already been sold in the development, with the first stage (including Woolworths’ boutique supermarket) scheduled for completion by the end of this year. Completion of the second stage is planned for mid-2020.

Time is of the essence for this development. Geocon's managing director Nick Georgalis believes that Canberra is in the grip of a rental crisis, explaining to the Canberra Times, "There is an unprecedented demand for apartments and the rental crisis is worsening…With sky-high rents in the ACT, almost surpassing Sydney and positioning itself as the most expensive rent in Australia, the idea of owning an apartment and mortgage repayments being less than rent in Canberra is drawing interest globally”.

Attracting international visitors to Canberra is also a priority for Chief Minister Andrew Barr, who recently announced that he would be exploring the possibility of direct flights between China and the ACT when he leads a Government delegation to Guangzhou and Canberra’s sister city Beijing. Mr Barr plans to meet with China Southern Airlines, representatives from Baiyun International Airport in Guangzhou, Beijing Capital International Airport, as well as China’s Civil Aviation Administration to investigate future opportunities of direct international flights between China and Canberra to grow ACT’s international tourism market.

Mr Barr claims, “The ACT Government has a goal of growing international visitor expenditure to $2.5 billion by 2020, and developing closer ties with China is one of the priorities identified in our International Engagement Strategy,” reported RIOTACT.

This initiative would also benefit local Universities and other educational institutions by attracting international students. “Chinese students make up the largest proportion of our international student population,” says Mr Barr. This is also supported by the latest data from Tourism Australia Research that shows, “China is the ACT’s number one market for international overnight visitors with one in five international visitors to Canberra originating from China in the year to September 2018”.

Australian National University (ANU) has also been busy planning for the future. The ANU Campus Master Plan 2030 “seeks to maintain and improve the function and character of the University and to improve connection and circulation on the campus. The diversity of the landscape is being enhanced; new buildings are strengthening the campus structure and positively contributing to the social and academic life of the campus” it also understands that “our community is growing and changing; the spaces in which we meet, work and recreate on the campus need to reflect those changes”.

The Master Plan for ANU over the next decade will be realised by not only delivering “world class research and teaching”, but also through:

·         Increased capacity for more students and staff

·         More accommodation

·         Building refurbishment/repurposing

·         Increased accessibility and safety for walking and riding

·         Increased technology infrastructure

·         Meeting places to bring people together

·         Renewable energy and recycled water

·         Green space to enhance biodiversity and recreation

This plan provides prospective students visibility of the benefits ANU can offer them as they plan their future and submit their university applications.

Investors considering the West Belconnen area will also be encouraged to learn the updated Kippax group centre masterplan has just been released, following considerable feedback and engagement from local businesses and residents (the first draft was released in 2015). The plan for the centre is worth watching as this area will soon service the new Ginninderry Estate and its future 11,500 new homes, in addition to the existing areas of Holt, Higgins, Macgregor, and Latham. One of the key aspects of the plan is that “Six-storey apartment buildings would be encouraged in the heart of Kippax under the ACT government's plan to transform the area into a major hub for Canberra's growing western region”. This would significantly increase the residential density and commercial opportunity in this area, and support the masterplan recommendation of “building a new community centre south of Kippax Library, with an existing centre in line for demolition as part of the shopping centre upgrade. The new building would help form part of a revitalised community plaza”. There would also be “upgrades to footpaths and bikeways, along with the planting of new trees. A ‘pocket park’ linking Hardwick Crescent and Starke Street is also in the pipeline", detailed a recent Canberra Times article.

Technology is also bolstering the growth of Canberra local businesses. One of the most exciting recent developments is the approval of a world-first drone delivery business here in Canberra. The aviation watchdog Casa signed off this new venture in Canberra. Whilst Project Wing (a subsidiary of Google’s parent company Alphabet) has been trialling delivery of food, drink, and medication over the past 18 months, “the safety of the drones, traffic management system, maintenance, drone pilot training and operational plans have been examined”.

There are strict limitations of where and when drones can operate. In addition to maintaining minimum distance from people, they are also not permitted to cross major roads and can only operate in daylight hours. Casa spokesman, Peter Gibson told Guardian Australia, “All those safety issues have been assessed so there are no risks to people on the ground, property or aircraft in the sky”.