1. Activity Centre
Performance Toolkit
Toolkit Briefing for
Property Council
Members

2. Pracsys Economics
• Urban and employment economics
• Translating ‘sustainability, livability, prosperity’
objectives into measurable outcomes
• Evidence-based decision making

3. Policy Environment
A tivityC
c entre
Perform eT
anc oolkit
Review of capital city
strategic planning systems
Report to the Council of Australian Governments
23 December 2011

4. Plan for Greater Adelaide
• Promote mixed-use activity centres
• Develop higher density residential within and
adjacent to centres
• Design specialist centres with clusters of key
economic and service activity
• Transform traditional centres into transit-
oriented developments promoting efficient use
of infrastructure

5. What does this mean
for centre owners?
• Redevelopment/expansion plans need to focus
on a range of performance indicators to receive
approval
• Surrounding land uses can contribute to the
success of the retail core
• Increased intensity of residential and
commercial development means more
immediate centre users
• More transport mode options means easier
access and less reliance on expanding vehicle
catchments

6. Toolkit Approach
• Specify outcomes rather than inputs
• Measure outcomes
• Make system transparent and common to all
• Use benchmarks
• Work with market
• Assess function of whole network
• Ensure centre strategies are practical and
implementable
• Achieve common goal of successful centres

7. Method of Assessment
1. Regional economic analysis
• Role of centre within the region
2. Centre performance assessment
• Economic sustainability
• Best practice urban form
3. Benchmarking
• Same level in hierarchy
• Different level in hierarchy
• Centres in other cities
4. Master plan assessment
• Gaps and opportunities

8. Regional Analysis
Activity allocation –
understand the
activity (population
and employment)
load expected of
each centre in the
network

9. Dimensions of measurement
Economic Sustainability Urban Form
Diversity Urban Quality
Intensity Urban Amenity
Employment Centre Mobility
Accessibility Safety

10. Diversity
Mixed Use
 Proportion of jobs in the centre in
categories other than retail
Equitability
 How evenly jobs are distributed to
ensure that all amenities are
represented (and certain land use
categories do not dominate the
mix at the expense of others)
A diverse mix of users and
activity increases trading hours,
multi-purpose trips and local job
opportunities

11. Intensity
Residential Density
 Dwellings per hectare
 400m and 800m walkable
catchment
Employment Density
 Jobs per hectare
 Destination zones
 Plot ratio (if floor space data
available)
Co-locating activity ensures
walkability, social interaction and
economic activation

12. Master Plan Assessment

13. Benchmarkin
g

14. Malls and Main Streets
Economic Metric Marion Norwood
Mixed Use Percentage 38% 82%
Shannon's Equitability
0.54 0.81
Index
Residential Density 400m 9.59 17.97
Employment Density 90 30
Employment Scale 2,979 6,558
Strategic Employment (%) 3% 18%
• All types of centre have a role to play
• Important to look at alternative employment & services
provision within region (i.e. Tonsley Park to provide
strategic jobs within City of Marion)

15. Advantages of main streets
• Monocultural centres find it
difficult to diversify due to
specific built form constraints
• Multiple ownership
presents a greater ability
to adapt the user mix
• Main streets integrate retail,
office, entertainment and
residential uses which leads to
greater diversity, intensity and
employment quality
• Main streets can be a key focus
of urban form improvements

16. PCA members should….
• Prepare centre development plans against all
eight outcome areas
• Explain how these outcomes translate to
‘success’ for the centre
• Encourage decision makers to use evidence to
support their decisions and be outcomes
focused
• Contact Pracsys for a scorecard
www.pracsys.com.au/toolkit-briefing/