Bruce Bishop carpark: Opposition to sale of Surfers Paradise public property
Surfers Paradise residents reacted with fury at the Gold Coast City Council’s controversial plans to sell the Bruce Bishop carpark, kicking off a long saga.
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THE sale of the Bruce Bishop carpark is again under a cloud.
The Bulletin this week revealed the planned sale of the blue chip site is set to fall through after its expected buyer, a Sydney based company, has not met contractual requirements, including paying a deposit.
Councillors are now left to determine whether to begin negotiations with other groups for the tender.
It’s been a long, strange journey for the carpark, which has long been in the firing line of city leaders hoping to sell the site.
The first serious attempt was in late 2004 when hundreds of locals rallied against the planned sale.
Councillors voted to sell, with the site expected to be razed and replaced with two, 80-storey towers and a giant public carpark.
Most prominent among opponents were then-Surfers Paradise councillor Susie Douglas, former premier Rob Borbidge, former mayor Lex Bell and the long-retired Bruce Bishop himself.
The former MP had rarely made any public comment since his retirement in the mid-1980s but emerged a final time to defend his legacy.
“I can’t believe they are tossing away all our work – this is unimaginable, it’s a backward step,’’ he told the Bulletin at the time.
“I’ve kept out of Gold Coast politics for the last 10 years, and I’ve never commented, even when asked, because I had my time and now it’s theirs.”
It was 18 years ago on Saturday that more than 700 people packed into the Surfers Paradise Transit Centre to fight the decision.
The Bulletin reported at the time: “The biggest cheers were saved for Cr Peter Young when he shouted that the council should be sacked, claiming it had made `decision after decision’ that was contrary to the public interest.
“The biggest heckles were saved for Mayor Ron Clarke, who was booed when he tried to explain his side of the story,” the story read.
“Surfers Paradise MPs Bruce Bishop and Lex Bell were paraded in front of the crowd as they accused the council of asset-stripping the Gold Coast and raping Surfers Paradise”
Mr Clarke was just months into his first term as mayor and was faced with calls for both Mr Borbidge and fellow councillor Rob Molhoek to run against him in 2008.
In the face of public outrage, the sale was put on hold in late December, 2004.
Mr Borbidge did not run for mayor but Mr Molhoek did. Mr Clarke was re-elected after a bitter campaign.
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