Big Orange: the grand plan to return zest to abandoned tourist attraction

A recent development application for the site submitted to Plan SA includes a proposal for a brewery, distillery and restaurant, reigniting hopes that the once popular tourist attraction will be reopened.

This is not the first attempt to reopen the Big Orange. In 2018, Riverland resident Paul Nikolis launched a petition to turn it into a strip club. The petition was a joke, but it drew the site back into the spotlight.

Ella Winnall, mayor of the Berri Barmera council, said it was no secret the community would be excited about any prospect of reviving the nostalgic landmark.

Helen Aggeletos has bittersweet memories of visiting the Big Orange 25 years ago when it was still in operation. She works as the managing director of Venus Citrus, a local family-run citrus packing and processing company, which her father started in 1977.

She describes the site of the Big Orange as a desert. It is next to a highway and for years Aggeletos has driven past it, watching the trees die during the drought.

The proposal includes the construction of a brewery and distillery and an associated bar and restaurant, which Kwiatkowski said would be separate from the original structure. The Big Orange would still feature its original viewing platform, and would have a small cafe inside.

The current owner of the Big Orange, Fred Vallelonga, was approached for comment.