The vibrant North Terrace Local Area, spanning from National Wine Centre and Adelaide Botanic Garden in the east to the Adelaide Biomedical Precinct and Bonython Park in the west, plays a significant role in Adelaide’s identity, facilitates social interaction, communication, and learning and provides an enabling environment for building social, cultural and economic capital.

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1. Improve connections to the River Torrens / Karrawirra Pari that strengthen cultural and recreational uses, and enhance permeability, greening, and visual connection of the local area to the River Torrens / Karrawirra Pari.

2. Establish a contiguous pedestrian boulevard along the northern and southern sides of North Terrace.

3. Activate the retail and commercial frontages on the southern side of North Terrace to increase vibrancy and safety of the street through passive surveillance. 

4. Improve laneway connections to the commercial centres of Rundle Mall and Hindley Street.

The place principles for the local area are:

• Public spaces are accessible and well defined with active and visually permeable frontages to create a sense of address, destination and identity at pedestrian level particularly on the northern side of North Terrace west of King William Street and east of Frome Road.
• Retain the prominent views of the significant National Heritage and State Heritage Places.
• High quality contemporary and innovative architecture that is respectful of the local area’s Heritage Places, Adelaide Park Lands character and civic uses. 
• Minimise land use conflicts by designing to ensure that residential uses can co-exist with supporting commercial and leisure functions.
• Diversify housing supply by converting vacant office buildings into residential accommodation, while maximising the utilisation of retained embodied energy and activating dormant spaces.
• On the northern side of North Terrace where there are long range views from North Adelaide, Montefiore Road, Memorial Drive, Adelaide Oval and North Terrace, buildings should be designed to address all frontages and be viewed from all sides with open spaces between adjoining buildings.
• Protect and support Elder Park as a premium event site.
• Encourage pop-up activities, especially between festivals and events, to support engagement with local businesses and the cultural institutions in the local area.
• Protect existing land uses that play an important role in contributing to the character and vibrancy of the area.
• Leverage significant investment into the northern side of North Terrace to reinforce its role as the premier cultural and institutional boulevard. This includes prioritising pedestrian amenity and safety to take advantage of the significant and growing event infrastructure including to:
  • Extend the shaded pedestrian boulevard along North Terrace to the west connecting the Adelaide Railway Station to the Biomedical Precinct and, to the east connecting Lot Fourteen withthe National Wine Centre.
  • Continue the formal planting to enhance the grand boulevard character of North Terrace and King William Road.
  • Support connectivity to the commercial centres of Rundle Mall and Hindley Street through improved laneway connections and wayfinding.
  • Strengthen the physical and visual connection and permeability of the local area to the River Torrens / Karrawirra Pari.
  • Improve pedestrian amenity and ease of pedestrian movement across North Terrace.

• Enhance the use of the tram along North Terrace by providing intersection priority and better connectivity to tram stops including the longer-term consideration of the City Loop (Strategy 6 – Establishing the City Loop).
• Invest in the pedestrian boulevard on the southern side of North Terrace to provide a quality public realm that is inviting and attractive and supports business and shopfront activation, particularly of uses that continue into the evening. 
• Support active transport use through protected cycle lanes along North Terrace and additional cycle connections with the River Torrens / Karrawirra Pari path network.
• Service roads, loading areas and vehicle entry points to car parking should give priority to and not obstruct the movement of pedestrians and cyclists.
• Regenerate the existing carpark under the southern plaza along Festival Drive to address its structural and functional deficiencies and reinforce its sense of safety for public use as a high-quality space to help reinforce the area as an entertainment hub.