'A Distinct Advantage'

"A distinct advantage: strategies to enhance the structure and character of metropolitan Adelaide"

This extensive and profusely illustrated study was the world's first urban design framework for an entire metropolitan area. Planning SA, the South Australian government's planning agency, won the Australia Award for Urban Design, award for best strategy, 2004, for this work.

The study was a team effort, with conception, project management and most of the writing by Nathan Alexander.

The study was a key input to the revision of the State Planning Strategy. The forty-eight recommendations were based on an analysis of the existing physical characteristics of metropolitan Adelaide, the historical development of the urban area, and the inhabitants' perceptions of significant elements. The analysis was partially based on specially commissioned market research.

Key recommendations included locations for future urban redevelopment corridors, and the establishment of a register of significant public places, akin to a heritage sites register.