Chinese New Year festival loses Chinatown home
Twenty-three years of Lunar New Year celebrations are being upended as organisers are pushed out of Adelaide’s central Chinatown district.
The future location of a popular Chinese New Year festival celebration is up in the air, following a council decision to move festivities away from Chinatown next year.
Lunar New Year will be held on February 6, but an Adelaide City Council statement said long-touted Gouger Street upgrades would kick off later this year meaning there could be health and safety breaches if it goes ahead in its traditional area.
The news has disappointed organisers who claim an alternative site suggestion is “not the best idea” for the event that attracts an estimated 30,000 visitors to the multicultural celebrations.
“Holding a large public event in Gouger Street in February 2027, during the proposed works period, has not been considered feasible for public safety and event operation reasons,” a City of Adelaide statement said.
“The works are expected to involve staged construction areas, traffic management, site fencing and changes to pedestrian, vehicle and servicing access.
“Administration does not wish for the event organisers to be compromised in what they are seeking to achieve through the Lunar New Year event, given the planned works on Gouger Street.”
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Chinatown Adelaide of SA are the organisers of the annual Lunar New Year Street Party, an event held annually in Gouger Street and Moonta Street for the past 23 years where two traditional Chinese Paifang gateways stand.
Adelaide City Council staff have held meetings with event organisers, with Victoria Square being flagged as the most likely temporary alternate location for the 2027 event.
Vice president of Chinatown Adelaide of SA Jacky Yang told InDaily the hosting of Lunar New Year celebrations in Victoria Square was “not the best idea”.
“From our point of view Chinatown is always the best place to organise a Lunar New Year celebration,” Yang said.
The Lunar New Year Festival has been held annually on city streets for more than two decades, with the 2026 edition marking the 23rd time along Gouger Street and Moonta Street.
A central stage next to the Chinatown arch hosts live performances throughout the day and night, showcasing the very best of Asian culture with music, singing, dancing and martial arts.
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“From my point of view, the Lunar New Year celebration is not only for Chinese people, it’s actually for every Asian country and all the local Australian people as well,” Yang said.
“It’s a big celebration day for all the nations because we are far away from our home country, and we want to come together, use this special day to celebrate.”
Despite the change in location, Yang was still looking forward to hosting next year’s Lunar New Year celebrations and promised some “new surprises”.
“Because Victoria Square is a big land area, we’re thinking of making the dragon dance more vibrant [by trying to] add more sections because people love the dragon dance,” he said.
“Every year we hold these events they get bigger and bigger and we believe it brings lots of happiness and unites everybody to celebrate culture together.”
The City of Adelaide is set to commence its $15 million redevelopment of Gouger Street later this year.
Designs released in late 2025, which were 70 per cent complete at the time, show enhanced green space and
The street upgrade will feature pavement improvements to retain red brick character, enhance greening, improve pedestrian crossings, upgrade lighting, and install new artworks features.
Gouger Street’s upgrade is expected to be completed by mid-2028 as other main street upgrades commence throughout the city.
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