With the structure taking shape, visitors can now get a sense of the building’s position at the end of the Cabra Mall and its relationship with the 1917-built chapel. The new precinct will include classrooms and specialist labs, Think Tanks, teacher prep spaces and an expansive auditorium. Extensive landscaping works here will follow the building’s completion, with plans to renovate the Heart Garden as the new face of the school. We look forward to overseeing this precinct’s further development as we head into 2026.
2025 Project news
Terrific progress is being made on the new Aquinas Precinct Project, which realises Stage Two of the most recent master plan at Cabra Dominican College, Cumberland Park. Kennett is hard at work on site right now, with the steel framing up and concrete poured. The building is expected to top out before Christmas.
In other exciting news, R&Y has been named lead consultant on a new Year 10 campus development for Nazareth Catholic College in Kidman Park. A 4.2-hectare site at 27 Valetta Road has been named for a purpose-built facility where students will commence their transition into SACE (South Australian Certificate of Education) learning.
Initially catering for 400 students, the facility will include The Sanctuary: an expansive, informal learning and gathering space on the ground floor. Classrooms will be flexible and interconnected, and additions will include micro-libraries, breakouts and meeting spaces for groups of various sizes. We are now well into developed design on the project and expect construction to commence mid-year.
At St Joseph’s School in Port Lincoln, we’re looking forward to seeing construction commence on a new “heart of the school.” This central hub will house the main reception, administration and student support facilities, and will be accessed from the existing approach via Mortlock Terrace. Also included in the development will be a new hall for school gatherings, plus outdoor common areas and extensive landscaping. With the tender process now well underway, construction is set to begin in earnest in the New Year.
Construction of the Limestone Coast Technical College in Mt Gambier continues to surge ahead. Local timber and limestone are certainly the stars of this project, capturing the true essence of the Limestone Coast. Structural cross-laminated and glue-laminated timber (CLT and GLT) are new design materialities for R&Y, and it’s been gratifying to see this highly collaborative design process come to life on such a grand scale. As always, Kennett is doing a magnificent job and, with the interiors now close to completion, we’re looking forward to revealing the façade and finishes in our next newsletter.
In Whyalla, designs are also progressing on an upgrade to the Copperhouse Court and Yeltana Aged Care facilities for Helping Hand, with construction to commence soon. A total of eight new rooms will be built across the two sites, including an entire new wing for Yeltana, where a significant upgrade will result in the replacement of all shared rooms and communal bathrooms with individual rooms and private ensuites. New shared spaces at the two sites will include landscaped courtyards, a dining space and a multipurpose activity area.
