A $60 million digital technologies academy will open in Adelaide’s innovation hub Lot Fourteen will follow a financing agreement between the federal and state governments.
The school, which is being developed as part of the Adelaide City Deal, boosts Australia’s IT workforce. It will now go through “detailed project scoping,” with the building set to begin in 2023.
South Australian Premier Steven Marshall said it was “absolutely critical” that the state be able to train individuals to satisfy the surge in “high-tech occupations [that] are coming online here.”
Marshall went on to say that he wants South Australia to be a “beacon” for large technology firms.
“Increasing digital skills and competencies is critical to driving innovation and efficiency in South Australia while allowing our businesses to stay globally competitive,” he said.
Di Dixon, Lot Fourteen’s state project manager, feels the new development “may be a highly complimentary addition to Lot Fourteen’s hi-tech research and industrial concentration,” which has already drawn the participation of large public cloud operators.
“A new educational institution that is closely aligned with Lot Fourteen’s vision and aspirations would be another wonderful economic magnet for the innovation area and the state,” Dixon said.
“Lot Fourteen allows enterprises to co-locate with like-minded organisations, building a collaborative ecosystem of entrepreneurs and innovators in the space, defence, hi-tech, and creative industries.”
Following the grant of $400 million to reuse the old site of the Royal Adelaide Hospital, the proposal for an innovation center at Lot Fourteen was originally mooted in 2018.
