Gold Coast bomb sites: Mayor Tom Tate calls for action

Mayor Tom Tate has called for action on so-called “bomb sites” in Surfers Paradise and Southport, some of which have sat idle for decades.

Mayor Tom Tate wants action on so-called “bomb sites” in Surfers Paradise and Southport, calling for owners to use the properties to ensure they don’t continue to sit idle.

Plans were revealed this week to temporarily transform a giant Surfers Paradise site owned by the Sultan of Brunei into a tourist attraction.

The site, which is used as a carpark, has largely sat idle for nearly 30 years.

Mr Tate said he was excited to see the Sultan’s site activated and hoped it would be the first of many.

“There’s underutilised land and from what I see of it (it could be used) to entertain people and (more) tourist offerings. I would welcome it,” he said.

The La Pelago development site between Pine Ave, the Ferny Ave and Norfolk Ave. Picture: Glenn Hampson.

The Sultan has owned the site since 1997 but has never proceeded with developing it despite repeated calls from Mr Tate to push ahead with transforming the land.

The Mayor has directly written to the Sultan during the past decade asking for action.

According to plans lodged with council this week, the giant L-shaped site, which fronts Surfers Paradise Boulevard, View Ave and The Esplanade will become Imaginator, an “attraction which encompasses various indoor walk-through installations that are a multi-sensory immersive experience.

It is expected to be used for this purpose for two years.

The Paradiso Place development site between Ocean Ave, Ferny Ave and Pandanus Ave. Picture: Glenn Hampson.

Both Surfers Paradise and Southport have been littered with empty sites for years.

The development boom of the 1980s saw many of the Coast’s older buildings knocked down in anticipation of a wave of new developments which failed to eventuate because of the early 1990s recession. Another wave of proposals through the 2010s saw more sites cleared but never developed.

Surfers Paradise bomb sites which remain empty, undeveloped and fenced up. A development site between Pine Ave and Ferny Ave. Picture: Glenn Hampson.

Several sites along the Gold Coast Highway through Surfers Paradise remain empty, along with the former Iluka site on the corner of Hanlan St and The Esplande which was earmarked for the failed $1.2bn Spirit tower.

Sultan of Brunei site on the corner of Surfers Paradise Boulevard and View Avenue. Picture: Glenn Hampson.

The 1.14ha site bound by Norfolk, Pine, Oak and Ferny avenues at Budds Beach, once earmarked for Sapphire a $1bn two-high-rise supertower project put forward by failed developer Ralan Group is now being targeted for a giant four-tower project by billionaire Tim Gurner.

However, work is still yet to begin more than a year after being approved.

Work is proceeding on the nearby Vomitron site, with billionaire Meriton boss Harry Triguboff proceeding with a giant three-tower project, Cypress.