Whitsunday Skyway to go ahead with support from LNP government
An ambitious new Whitsunday tourist attraction is going ahead with projections it will draw more than 250,000 visitors and generate $25m a year.
Mackay
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An ambitious $100 million tourist attraction development is set to deliver a 1km cable car ride from the heart of Airlie Beach to a summit in Conway National Park, promising full panoramic views of the Whitsunday Islands.
The LNP, as part of its 2024 election campaign, promised to kick in $5m in funding to theThe Whitsunday Skyway project, if elected and has confirmed it will provide the funding.
The development is expected to create 400 construction jobs and support 140 jobs once completed.
Whitsunday Skyway is undergoing approvals at State and Federal levels before construction can commence.
Minister for the Environment and Tourism Andrew Powell said the Whitsunday Skyway was the what tourists and locals were looking for as a “unique experience”.
“I’m confident this will be a world-class facility,” Mr Powell said.
The development is expected to feature a cable car, downhill luge, mountain bike trails, junior ropes courses, dining and hospitality facilities, access to bushwalking trails and is expected to draw up to 250,000 visitors annually, delivering an economic impact of more than $25 million a year.
Whitsunday mayor Ry Collins said he was excited the new government was being active in Whitsunday.
“It’s good to see they’re keen to support new tourism experiences in our neck of the woods,” Mr Collins said.
“Tourism is an important industry to us and we’ve had a number of projects that haven’t progressed in recent years … it’s good to see they’re prioritising this.”
Whitsunday Skyway project proponent and Australian Adventure Tourism Group Chair Elizabeth Hackett said she was thrilled by the report.
“We want to get cracking with this amazing project so that locals win in the construction phase with jobs, and then visitors win with the completion of the Skyway with access to the best views in the world,” Ms Hackett said.
Mr Collins said council would be connecting with proponents of the project and look at what will be involved in planning.
He also added this was just one of a number of tourism projects they were keen to move ahead with including Hidden Valley “eco glamping”, adoption of the Whitsunday Coast Airport master plan and the Bowen Jetty construction project, which received funding under the Miles government.
“We’re keen to be working with the state government to get these projects delivered,” Mr Collins said.
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