Tonsley sale proposal could unlock millions of dollars in economic benefit for the City of Marion

Marion Council will seek ministerial approval to open up a parcel of unusable community land for a sale which could provide millions of dollars in economic benefits for the city.

The City of Marion was recently approached by a developer seeking to acquire Chestnut Court Reserve, at Tonsley, to build a fit for purpose Tesla factory.

Council owns a piece of land on the site, which developer MAB CCT Pty Ltd, is seeking to acquire as part of a larger area owned by State Government departments Renewal SA and SA Housing Trust. Both departments have expressed their intention to proceed with the sale.

The sale is expected to net hundreds of thousands of dollars for Council for land which is currently unusable. The general public have not had access to this site since 2016 due to 
contamination concerns.

Council is considering using any proceeds from the sale to purchase nearby Ash Avenue Reserve.

“The soil of Council’s land is contaminated. It’s not safe for recreation, so it makes sense to have it sealed over with a renewable technology facility,” Mayor of Marion Kris Hanna said.

“The proposed factory is expected to provide about 100 extra local jobs.”

The sale price will remain in-confidence until the finalisation of any sale contract.

Tesla Inc has strong strategic alignment to the Tonsley Innovation District’s vision. They already operate a service hub on-site

This proposal will establish a long-term tenancy for Tesla that will provide a facility for the repurposing of Tesla batteries, and a servicing facility and showroom for Tesla vehicles.

Repurposing of Tesla batteries involves recovering materials in a Tesla lithium-ion battery and recycling it to produce another battery

“If we didn’t proceed, it would have cost 100 jobs to local residents, but it would have had no impact on Elon Musk,” Mayor Hanna said.

“Tesla would almost certainly find somewhere else in Australia to build their factory.”

The application to have Community Land classification revoked will now be reviewed by the Minister for Local Government.

The proposal will also be subject to a future development application. Over 50 trees would be required to be removed. A commitment has been made by the developer to maintain at least 3 of the 4 significant trees on the site.

The developer has also committed to planting substantially more replacement trees than they are legally required to on the development site.

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