‘I’m excited’: Key indicators this M suburb is on the rise
It’s one of Cairns’ infamous M suburbs but there is a positive change in the air as it shakes off the stigma of its crime-riddled past. FIND OUT HOW
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FALLOUT from the state’s most disturbing child killing and home to a notorious accommodation park, Manoora’s had a hard time shaking a crime-riddled and violent reputation, but positive factors now at play suggest a turnaround for the often-maligned area.
Forming part of west Cairns, Manoora is bordered by Saltwater Creek in the north, Mayers St in the east, Moody St in the south and bushland of the Marino Quarry in the west.
One of the most concentrated population densities in Cairns, as per the 2016 Census, Manoora was home to 6027 residents, of which 61 per cent rented and 39 per cent were single parents.
Though boasting plenty of positives including proximity to the Cairns CBD, schools and shopping centres, the suburb has long been synonymous with youth crime, bad behaviour and violence.
And the horrific events that shocked the nation at 11.20am on December 19, 2014, when eight children were stabbed to death at 34 Murray St.
Since then murders, fights, stolen car crashes have plagued the area.
At the centre of many disturbances and assaults is Cairns’ most notorious accommodation provider: The Cairns Villa and Leisure Park.
Horrific levels of violence, rampant drug abuse, alcoholism and premature death are simply part of life for hundreds of residents that call the Pease St park home.
But a new $3.2m Cairns west police station opposite the site is expected to dramatically curb criminal activity when it comes online in June next year.
“The Queensland Government is committed to supporting police operations and enhancing policing services for the Far North community,” Police Minister Mark Ryan said.
Up the road in neighbouring Manunda at Raintrees Shopping Centre, $20m is being spent on a transformation of Cairns’ oldest retail hub.
Swallow St business owner Eddie James grew up in Cairns and knew the history when investing in a venture to start the Sea Birds fish and chip shop with his mother six months ago.
Sensing Manoora’s shift away from crime and violence, he has gone ahead with the venture with optimism.
“Back in the day probably the M suburbs were the ones that you always hear about trouble happening,” he said.
“As a teenager we probably tried to stay away from this area.”
But he said plans for a Baptist church in the area combined with the Raintrees renovation, the new police station and shifting demographic all signalled a departure from Manoora’s troubled past.
“I think (the church) is definitely going to make the area a whole lot better and in five years I think that M title is going to go away,” he said.
“And (the new police station) will be great to have that presence in the area. Probably people will think twice before they do crime or get up to mischief.
“I’m excited for Cairns and this area.”
In the past 10 years the median Manoora house price has increased 16.53 per cent, well above the Cairns average in 2021 of 9.65 per cent.
Currently the median house sales price in the area is $352,500.
According to Australian Bureau of Statistics figures Manoora’s population grew from 5688 people in 2011 to 6032 in 2016, which equated to a growth rate of six per cent.
The suburb enjoyed a massive spike in house sales in 2021 with 82 properties sold compared to 43 houses in the preceding year.
The number has been steadily increasing year-on-year since 2012 when only 28 houses were sold.
Also new to business in the area, Cignall franchisee Marin Maricic has grand plans for his newsagent and tobacco outlet on Reservoir Rd.
“Coming into the business we thought of the area as being a little bit rough, not as polished as some other suburbs in town,” he said.
“But to be honest with you, I think it’s actually been quite a good little community.”
A year ago Mr Maricic came in with a vision to bring the 30-year-old Enmore News tenancy into the modern age and has made a major investment to change the fit out and erect bold new signage.
“Bringing a tobacconist here we were a little bit apprehensive, thinking there’s going to be some trouble, but so far it’s been good,” he said.
“Having that (new) police station around the corner is just a massive bonus for the community. That should make things safer at the end of the day for everybody.”
The business owner said people that had left the area are starting to move back and joined by newcomers to the Far North keen to escape Covid headaches in the big city.
“Recently I spoke with a lady that’s come all the way from Geelong. She’s relocated up here with her family and she’s happy she has a local Lotto store/newsagent here,” he said.
“I can see growth in the area.”
The west Cairns suburb is in the process of shedding its skin to become an in-demand inner city hub but the road to a vibrant new era has not been without tragedy.
MURRAY ST DEATHS
On the morning of December 19. 2014, eight children were stabbed to death at 34 Murray St by Raina Mersane Ina Thaiday, who was found to be of “unsound mind” by the Queensland’s Mental Health Court and not criminally responsible.
The house was bulldozed and eight frangipani trees were planted on the site as a memorial. But the Maroona community was forever changed.
The tight-knit community reeled in shock in the immediate aftermath and the deaths of the children aged between 18 months and 14 years still haunt police officers who witnessed the scene.
Tears flowed at the public funeral held at the Cairns Convention Centre in what was a Cairns tragedy on the grandest scale.
“It’s the innocent little children we think about,” Tjapukai elder Beverly Underwood recalled.
NYE MURDER CHARGE
In the early hours of New Year’s Day this year, around the corner from Murray St a wild all-in street brawl resulted in the death of Jayden Dau.
Caught up in the melee, 17-year-old Mr Dau was rushed to Cairns Hospital by friends but never recovered from a knife wound to the stomach and died.
Cairns police laid murder a charge in the wake of a birthday party that allegedly got out of hand and turned violent after being shared on social media.
A 14-year-old Edmonton boy was remanded in custody after being charged with murder and is due to reappear in Cairns Children’s Court on March 18.
FATAL TEEN CAR CRASH
In February a 14-year-old boy died in the allegedly stolen car on Pease St after crashing at high speed into a tree, near the Saltwater Creek bridge.
Bradley Smith died at the scene and was one of the six juvenile occupants ranging in ages from 12 to 15.
Police later charged a 14-year-old boy at the wheel of the allegedly stolen car with manslaughter.
Samantha Chapman was devastated by the tragic death of her younger brother as it emerged Bradley was in state care at the time after becoming an orphan.
A community expressed anger at the potential for bystanders to be killed and Bradley’s death also raised serious questions about the Cairns residential care system and kids being used in a grab for $53m allocated to outsourced providers each year by the state government.
CARAVAN PARK VIOLENCE
Police had their hands full at the Cairns Villa and Leisure Park in December 2015 after a man allegedly assaulted two women, then was hit by a car while running across a Pease St to assault a third woman.
At the time, Cairns Police Insp Peter Mansfield confirmed officers had been called to the park five times in the early hours leading up to the incident but the other disturbances were not linked.
The incident is one in a long list at the notorious caravan park on Pease St in the heart of Manoora.
For hundreds of residents, the park is a last resort that does offer a roof over their heads but is known to be a hotbed of violence, drug abuse and alcoholism that residents want to leave but find themselves trapped.
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