Bruce Bishop car park: Save Surfers Paradise group release research on sale of asset

A Surfers Paradise lobby group have released their own independent valuation of the Bruce Bishop car park, raising questions as to whether the council’s $48 million asset sale was fair value.

SAVE Surfers Paradise says council is intending to sell the Bruce Bishop car park and Surfers Paradise Transit Centre at 30 per cent of its replacement cost.

The lobby group which includes lawyers, a retired judge and other professionals, has been under pressure from Mayor Tom Tate to release its valuation on the major Gold Coast public asset.

Councillors at full council on Tuesday revisited the issue and again a majority voted to sell the car park for $48 million. The group has vowed to continue its legal action to stop the sale.

Cr Tate has called on Save Surfers Paradise to be “honest” and “release your supposed $100 million valuation”.

At a media conference today, Save Surfers Paradise secretary Deborah Kelly used various council documents to determine the centre’s real price.

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Using 2015 parking planning methodology developed by the council, the group considered the existing 980 spaces underground at the higher cost of $75,000 each and the above ground 560 spaces at $32,000 each.

The total construction cost for those spaces excluding the cost of the land was $91 million, Save Surfers Paradise said.

The group then completed a valuation using the developer contribution cost where council places a charge on a developer who does not want to provide the number of car parks required under the City Plan.

The developer can apply for a relaxation on the site and obtains that in exchange for a financial contribution.

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The Bruce Bishop Car park and Transit Centre. Picture: Jerad Williams

After applying the levy for the total 1640 parking spaces, Save Surfers Paradise maintain the total replacement cost for the site including the land but not the transit centre was $137 million.

“Rather than this deal being a win-win for ratepayers as the CEO (Dale Dickson) claims, it looks like the buyers Care Parking and Far East Consortium are getting a huge free kick,” Ms Kelly said.

“This information was not included in the CEO’s report to council recommending the sale, and it should have been. Councillors should have been given the full picture before voting to sell one of the city’s most valuable assets. Why weren’t they.

“Just as concerning, even buying at this bargain basement rate, council documents indicate that the proposed buyer will have to double parking charges to make a reasonable return on investment. Parking charges will skyrocket in Surfers Paradise.”

Ms Kelly said ratepayer would be whacked by a double whammy with council selling a valuable ratepayer owned asset at one third of its replacement value and the public paying double for parking.

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The Bruce Bishop carpark in Surfers Paradise. Picture: Jerad Williams

“The information will form the basis for a further complaint to the Crime and Corruption Commission over the council’s handling of the sale, asking the Commission to look into whether financial mismanagement has occurred,” she said.

Mr Dickson has previously revealed two separate independent valuation reports were undertaken to establish a fair sale price.

A valuation of nearby land in September 2016 advised a value for a development site of $2619sq m would be supportable in the market.

A further valuation report specifically for the subject site in February 2018 used for commercial in-confidence negotiations with tenderers advised a land value of $2750sq m would be supportable in the market.

“The Transit Centre site has a total area of 18,085sq m, which indicates a fair sale price based on independent valuations available would be in the order of $47.3m to $49.7m,” he said.

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Carparking spaces at the Bruce Bishop carpark in Surfers Paradise. Picture: Jerad Williams

Based on the first valuation referred to, a nominal target amount of $40 million was included in the Cultural Precinct funding plan presented to the council in May 2017.

The tender process which concluded in November 2017 did show that the market had difficulty with assessing the valuation impact of council imposed conditions around the ongoing provision of 740 public car parks at the site.

At least 100 car parks would be made available at no cost for community use, together with civic space and transit centre uses.

Despite this complicating factor, the successful tenderer did offer $48m which was in line with valuation reports available to officers and without any notional deduction for the 100 community carparking spaces, Mr Dickson said.

The Bruce Bishop car park entry. Picture: Jerad Williams

Mayor Tom Tate has dismissed claims by the Save Surfers Paradise group about their “supposed valuation” of the Transit Centre site including Bruce Bishop carpark.

“We have had two valuations and released the authorised documentation. Both show the site, with the constraints we placed on it, to be worth between $47 million and $49 million,” Cr Tate said.

“It is dishonest for anyone to try to peddle a valuation based on a site with no restrictions. I challenge them to show a formal valuation, by a registered valuer, as we have done.

“Anything other than a formal valuation is a nonsense.

“Our sale terms compel the new owner to retain 640 public carparks, 100 community carparks, all leases and sub leases at the Transit Centre, and retain open space as part of the sale contract.

“Those restrictions rightly impact on the price a party is willing to pay. This is not a greenfield site and the price agreed to with Care Park is right in the middle of the two formal valuations we had done — and released publicly.

“I’m disappointed that this group, with no apparent legal standing and having lost their Supreme Court action last week, is desperately trying to peddle mistruths.’’