Ipswich headlines: Funding for hospitals, schools and the CBD, Winternats organisers hoping for crowd of 30,000
Our state ministers have been donning the high-vis in Ipswich this week, which means they are keen to remind us they’ve been doing something to earn that pay rise
Ipswich
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OPINION
Hospital funding desperately needed
There was one major development and another two important updates regarding hospitals in the West Moreton region this week.
Arguably the most important of these was the announcement of a new 174-bed public hospital section to be added onto the existing Mater Private Hospital at Springfield.
The new public hospital will include an emergency department, intensive care unit and maternity services, with the state government to contribute $177 million to construction.
With about 100,000 new residents expected to call Springfield and Ripley Valley home over the next five years, and Ipswich Hospital already operating flat out, there is no doubt these facilities will be desperately needed.
Ipswich Hospital is in for some improvements of its own, with work progressing on a new 26-bed ward, which is set to open in September.
It was a high-vis extravaganza in Ipswich this week, with several funding announcements around the schools and defence sectors, and Health Minister Yvette D’ath got on board to spruik the ongoing work at the hospital.
Schools funding good news for city
We all know the pollies love getting around in clothes that make it look like they are doing manual work, especially in a week coinciding with them receiving a handy little pay rise.
Education minister Grace Grace continued the high-vis extravaganza in Ipswich this week, gracing us with her presence as the state government spruiked funding for Ipswich High and Goodna Special School, while also breaking ground at Springfield.
Ipswich High’s new $7.8 million STEM building has been used by students across all year levels since it opened at the start of the year.
The new O-block was officially opened by Ms Grace on Tuesday morning, a day after she took part in a sod turning ceremony for a new $10.2 million building at Springfield Central State School.
Goodna Special School unveiled a new $12.2 million multipurpose facility.
Winternats hoping for big win
Ipswich is looking to make up for lost time and money this year, following from a miserable 2020 in which we lost several major events that pull in big tourism dollars.
One of those major events is the Winternats, a world famous drag racing festival that usually brings upwards of 20,000 spectators – about 90 per cent of which come from outside our neck of the woods.
This year, organisers are hoping for 30,000 spectators at the event, despite the fact that the current Covid restrictions mean not everyone can attend from all corners of Australia and the globe as we would usually see.
Here is hoping that events like this can recover from the horrors of last year.
Big call on CBD retailers
There was a big call on the Ipswich CBD recently, which will result in millions being spent in order to prepare empty shop spaces for the arrival of new tenants.
Ipswich City Council has voted to move ahead with work to overhaul its retail buildings as part of its $250 million redevelopment of the city’s CBD, despite being unable to reach a target of having 50 per cent of tenants locked in before proceeding with the work.
The council says it is “confident” with what has been agreed with businesses so far that it should go ahead with upgrades with an expected opening date of Easter 2022.
A motion at last week’s council meeting was passed and $3.7 million in works to get spaces ready for new businesses will now proceed.
It was interesting to note that the two councillors who were voted back in following their dismissal by the state government, Sheila Ireland and Paul Tully, both voted against the motion.
Unfortunately, neither was willing to comment to the QT on their reasons for voting the way they did, but we would have liked to bring you further insight into their thoughts on these developments.
Bad luck Barty
During a tumultuous week in tennis, Ash Barty – as she so often does – was bringing a bit of sanity to proceedings with her common sense approach to the game and to the way she deals with media.
If only the rest of those overpaid Prima Donnas in the tennis world could take a leaf out of the likes of her and Roger Federer’s book.
Unfortunately, the Ipswich tennis sensation succumbed to injury in her second round clash at the French Open this week.
While it is a shame to see Ash bow out, I am certain she will go on being a champion as long as she keeps up her great attitude.
Originally published as Ipswich headlines: Funding for hospitals, schools and the CBD, Winternats organisers hoping for crowd of 30,000
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