New $1m Whitsunday car park off limits to residents

The council secured a Federal Government grant to fund the new parking space.

Plans for the new council car park in Chapman St, Proserpine.

FUNDING has been secured for a new car park in the Whitsundays, but spaces will be off limits to the public.

Instead, the $1,050,537 in grant funding will be used to build an off-street car park on Chapman St in Proserpine for people working in the soon to be opened $9.6 million council building.

Whitsunday Regional Council was granted the funding for a road and community infrastructure project as part of the Federal Government's COVID recovery support initiative.

The car park will be built on a block on 7 Chapman St in Proserpine.

The council car park was the priority in a group of three projects put forward for the funding.

These included the construction of a deck and shared cycleway at Airlie Beach lagoon and further development to the Proserpine RV Park.

Speaking in July, infrastructure services director Matt Fanning said the two projects would still go ahead under the council's 2020-21 budget.

For the carpark to be built, the existing building on 7 Chapman St as well as several trees and shrubs will be removed.

 

More stories

HIT AND RUN: Police search for driver after man injured

$2m lifeline to save 'mum and dad' business falls short

Airline shuts down Whitsunday COVID breach claim

 

There will more than 40 car parking spaces surrounded by low fencing as well as several garden beds.

Mr Fanning hoped the new car park would free up space for residents on the main street of Proserpine.

"What it will do is free up public carparking because I think you'll find previously there was quite a lot of parking done around the streets, so this will hopefully provide some off-street parking that will free up a lot of parking for tourism and the like," he said.

"If we provide additional parking for our officers, we free up parking for residents."

Originally published as