Remember when: there were plans drawn up to demolish and replace Marina Mirage with centre

AS Gold Coasters today stare down the barrel of ASF and Crown Resorts’ plans for The Spit, look back 12 years to a previous proposal.

Gold Coast History: Gold Coast Bulletin 2004, August 19. Front page.

Gold Coast Bulletin, Thursday August 19, 2004

AS Gold Coasters today stare down the barrel of ASF and Crown Resorts’ plans for The Spit, look back 12 years to a previous proposal.

Under plans put forward in mid-2004, one of the Gold Coast’s landmarks, Marina Mirage, was to be demolished and turned into a massive new hotel and shopping centre.

High-profile architect Desmond Brooks was understood to be working on a series of new designs for two of the four companies bidding for the Sheraton Mirage property portfolio.

The sale included not only the 292-room Sheraton Hotel but the Marina Mirage retail precinct and the marine operation, all based on one of the city’s most sought-after addresses, The Spit.

The 300-room Sheraton Mirage in Port Douglas, north Queensland, was also included in the sell-off.

Interest in the properties, established in the early 1980s by the late Christopher Skase, skyrocketed after it emerged that the Gold Coast was almost certain to secure a cruise ship terminal.

DBI Design spokesman Warren Coyle said some `rough ideas’ were being worked together for two prospective buyers.

“I can’t really go into them (ideas), but obviously the buyers want to maximise their return,’’ he said.

Investors say the properties in their current shape were “dated” and little has been spent on them in 20 years, meaning clearing the site and starting again may the best option for getting the most value from the site.

The precinct was zoned tourist facilities by the council, which means it could be used for hotel-type development.

Former Surfers Paradise councillor Max Christmas said the Marina Mirage was a hot property.