Developer says he wouldn’t mind a wave pool for Townsville

Apartments, parking, a waterpark and even a wave pool were floated as potential options for a prime piece of CBD land recently snapped up by a Townsville developer. But what’s he really going to build there? Read his ideas >>

Developer Chris Morris likes the idea of having a wave pool in Townsville.

But whether this will form part of plans for a large land holding he and his friend Errol Stewart have acquired opposite the city’s new stadium remains to be seen.

“I think it will be a combination of things. Residential, retail and maybe even some business stuff. But I wouldn’t mind a wave pool. That’s something I’d like to do and it would certainly be a major attraction for the North,” Mr Morris said.

News that the two hospitality players have bought the 17ha former South Yards railway workshops on Saunders St surfaced earlier this week.

Since then people have been excited at what could occur, with hundreds responding to a Townsville Bulletin post asking what they’d like to see developed.

A wave pool or surf park was a popular choice.

A board rider surfs at the UrbnSurf wave park in Melbourne. Picture: Jason Edwards

There were also calls for more residential development, including apartment towers up to 50 storeys and subsidised housing associations, as has occurred in the United Kingdom.

“I say mixed use apartment/community use (library/community centre/childcare/high school towers) towers with podium level parking, as well as multi-storey carpark, lagoon, water play area, observation wheel. It could be like Docklands in Melbourne but (the) difference is we have the better climate,” one reader says.

There were a lot of calls for more parking for the stadium but Mr Morris said he didn’t think they would do that, partly because people wouldn’t want to pay for parking. Besides there is a lot of parking available around the city on evenings and weekends.

Other people called for an Ikea homemaker centre and Aldi supermarket.

Still others wanted a “round field” stadium combined with a water theme park “so you can watch the cricket then cool down”.

Chris Morris, owner of the The Ville Resort-Casino

Another said: “A cultural, entertainment and dining precinct like Carriageworks or Brisbane Powerhouse. A place where we can gather and go to a music or comedy gig or performance and where there’s a big outdoor space for food markets.”

Mr Morris, who is developing a five-star hotel next to his The Ville Resort-Casino in Townsville, said he thought the South Yards was a “great bit of land” and a “good asset to have” but that he had not really thought too much about what should be developed.

He and Launceston developer Errol Stewart, who he has worked with on projects like the Seaport and Silos hotels in Tasmania, have bought the site through a joint venture.

The property is leased to steel fabrication company Wulguru Steel to 2027 although Mr Morris hinted that “something might come up” before that time.

“These things take a fair bit of planning. We’ll look at all the options,” Mr Morris said.

Originally published as Developer says he wouldn’t mind a wave pool for Townsville