The 24th National Congress of the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) currently underway in Adelaide will explore development issues in the country as well as solutions to unlock a city’s potential.

The property development conference returns to Adelaide this year and is themed ‘BUZZ - creating places where people want to be’. Expected to attract almost 500 delegates from around Australia and the world, including four highly credentialed international speakers, UDIA’s 24th National Congress is being hosted in Adelaide from 8-10 March.

UDIA South Australia Executive Director Pat Gerace said it was no coincidence the Adelaide Convention Centre conference was scheduled for March when the Festival of Arts, Fringe, Clipsal 500 and WOMADelaide events were in full swing.

Referring to the Adelaide Oval, Riverbank Precinct and Adelaide BioMed City projects as excellent examples of this year’s theme, Gerace said the 2016 congress presented a great opportunity to show how these developments can actually create spaces where people want to be. All of these projects have evolved since the congress was last held in Adelaide in 2011.

UDIA’s 24th National Congress speakers include

  • John Campbell, former CEO of Toronto’s Waterfront Development Team - Planning the waterfront for a liveable city: the Toronto experience;
  • Larry Ng Lye Hock from Singapore’s Urban Redevelopment Authority - A State of Excitement – the economic and cultural BUZZ that is Singapore;
  • Brian O’ Looney, Design Principal of ‘Community Architects’, Torti Gallas Urban, Washington DC - Bringing our streets and suburbs alive;
  • Thomas Lamberth, Vice President, Development, UDR Dallas Office - Achieving synergies through the early delivery of public realm: Vitruvian Park;
  • Michelle Cramer from Hames Sharley - Activation through urban design – case studies from Sydney;
  • Renewal SA Chief Executive John Hanlon, Adelaide Oval Stadium Management Authority CEO Andrew Daniels and SA Riverbank Authority Board Chair Andrew McEvoy - What’s the Buzz in Adelaide?.

The State of the Land report will be released on the first day of the conference, which will outline the development challenges across Australia state by state in terms of land supply and market conditions. 

The conference will also include walking tours and trips to nearby regional areas such as the Barossa Valley, Adelaide Hills and McLaren Vale.