Equinox Greenlit for SA Office-to-Hotel Transformation

Sydney-based developer Equinox Property has won approval for a 12-storey office-to-hotel plan in the Adelaide CBD.

Earlier plans for a $150-million, 39-storey Wyndham Grand Adelaide, put forward in 2018, were scaled back significantly to create a “lightweight” boutique hotel for the 651sq m CBD site.

The former seven-storey brutalist Adelaide Metro office at 75-79 King William Street would be refurbished and five storeys added above the building.

The property last changed hands in 2017 for $8.38 million, according to CoreLogic data. 

The developer adopted an adaptive-reuse strategy for the site and filed reworked plans in October of last year.

Those plans won planning consent in February from the State Commission Assessment Panel.  That followed the lapse of prior approvals for the 39-storey tower planned for the site. 

The new designs by Loucas Zahos Architects details 129 hotel rooms, a restaurant and retail space, and amenities and meeting rooms in a basement level. 

▲ A render of the Little National Hotel that Doma Group is building in Adelaide.

Adelaide Economic Development Agency data indicates year-on-year growth for Adelaide’s CBD hotel room bookings, with higher average daily rates and room revenue, despite an increase in supply. 

The city’s occupancy rate also outperformed the Australian major city average by 1.4 points in the last quarter of 2024, whihc was attributed to sport and events tourism. 

Meanwhile, construction is under way on the $120-million Crystalbrook Sam at 15-19 Halifax Street, which will comprise 206 rooms, a restaurant and a rooftop bathhouse. 

Doma Group is also active in the Adelaide hotel market, building out a Little National Hotel at 100 North Terrace. 

▲ Freemasons Tower Adelaide will comprise a Westin hotel as well as student accommodation and conference facilities.

The 23-storey hotel is to comprise 140 standard rooms, 26 larger rooms and 48 one or two-bedroom suites across 18 levels.

The hotel would also comprise a two-storey private lounge and public bar, both with 360-degree views of the Adelaide Hills, beach and parklands. 

And Pelligra Group is entering the fray with its approved Keystone Tower in joint venture with the South Australian Freemasons. 

The 37-storey tower would include a 240-key Westin hotel, student accommodation, conference facilities, a business lounge, a wellness retreat and a three-storey observation deck.