Gold Coast development: Paradise Centre Surfers Paradise redevelopment goes ahead after council vote
Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate has defended his decision to back the controversial $30m redevelopment of the Paradise Centre, saying it is “just the beginning” for the Glitter Strip’s revamp.
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GOLD Coast Mayor Tom Tate has defended his decision to back the controversial $30 million redevelopment of the Paradise Centre, saying it is “just the beginning” for the Glitter Strip’s revamp.
A majority of councillors on Tuesday night defied last-minute pleas from Surfers Paradise businesses owners and the area’s own councillor Darren Taylor to retake control of the Crown land when the lease expires in 10 years.
Instead council voted to grant Challenger Group a new 30-year lease which must be drawn up by February 28 next year.
Cr Tate said the site’s redevelopment was an “exciting opportunity” for the city.
“That decision is a welcome one but it is a beginning to the polishing of the jewel of the crown of our tourism destination,” he said.
“Absolutely (the heart of Surfers Paradise has become rotten) and when you are walking through the place there at certain times of the day it is quite odorous and it is disappointing a prime location like that was let go. I don’t lay blame to anyone so what we have to do is turn a lemon into lemonade”
Cr Tate vowed to sit down with the owners of the nearby Spirit supertower site to discuss what was planned for the location and any public beautification works which would come of that.
TUESDAY
COUNCILLORS have controversially voted to give a longer lease to operators of an eyesore Surfers Paradise beachfront mall on condition it carries out a $30 million redevelopment.
A majority of councillors defied last-minute pleas from Surfers Paradise businesses owners and the area’s own councillor Darren Taylor to retake control of the Crown land when the lease expires in 10 years. Instead council voted to grant Challenger Group a new 30-year lease which must be drawn up by February 28 next year.
Mayor Tom Tate, who voted in favour of the lease extension, said Surfers Paradise’s heart was “rotten” and Challenger’s proposed revamp of the area would “get the heart beating again”.
“It is the heart of our tourism offering but this heart is rotten to the core and we all see this deal in front of us for the betterment of tour city, so the opportunity is there to make Surfers Paradise pump again,” he said.
Five councillors voted against granting the new lease – Area councillor Darren Taylor, Peter Young, Brooke Patterson, Mark Hammel and Daphne McDonald.
The existing 50-year lease was not due to expire until June, 2031
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To honour the deal, the centre must be demolished and work begun on a new public plaza and dining precinct within a year of the new lease being signed.
Challenger has two years to finish the project and is required to give the precinct a facelift every 10 years.
Council’s rent on the site will also dramatically increase from $26,000 to $420,000 annually.
The future of the Paradise Centre has been a hot issue in recent years, given its location fronting the Cavill Ave Mall and “run-down” state.
The centre once played an important part of the Gold Coast tourism experience, especially for families, and included the popular Grundy’s water slides.
Surfers Paradise Surf Life Saving Club’s Billy James opposed a lease extension in a submission to the council on behalf of the club, body corporate groups for Allunga and Ballah towers, and Surfers Paradise BIG (Business Innovation Group).
He admitted he was “flabbergasted” by the council’s vote to tear up the lease and grant a new, longer one and insisted the fight was not over, saying “tomorrow is another day”.
“The council cannot just arbitrarily issue a new lease because they will have to come back to (the surf club) before the lease is surrendered,” he said.
“They have a fiduciary duty to do the right thing by the surf club given we are involved in the (Crown land).”
Mr James ruled out taking legal action against the council but instead said the club would try to negotiate a better outcome from city hall.
The Gold Coast Central Chamber of Commerce and retired councillor Gary Baildon also opposed Challenger Group’s new long lease.
Cr Taylor passionately urged opposing the new lease, arguing it was time the council invested more money into Surfers Paradise.
“This is public land, we have been waiting 25 years as this area has become more run down, we only 10 years away from having an opportunity to actually understand what we can make of this area,” he said.
“It is really concerning we have not spent a lot of money in Surfers, we just seem to give away land in Surfers Paradise. we must start investing a and revitalise it in Surfers Paradise.”
EARLIER: Alternative grand plans for the Paradise Centre site were unveiledin a last-ditch effort to win over city leaders and reject a $30m redevelopment.
The plans, drawn up by the Surfers Paradise Surf Life Saving Club, show the foreshore area redeveloped to create a giant public plaza overlooking the beach.
Its key features include an elevated walkway which would rise up behind the surf club, providing a view of the famous stretch of sand.
There would be greenery and shade built into the area, which is currently occupied by shops.
Council’s governance and administration committee sensationally voted on Thursday to extend the Challenger Group’s hold on the Paradise Centre until 2050.
It means the existing lease, due to expire in mid-2031, will be torn up and a new one signed by February 2021.
Surfers Paradise Surf Life Saving Club’s Billy James opposes a lease extension in a submission to the council on behalf of the club, body corporate groups for Allunga and Ballah towers, and Surfers Paradise BIG (Business Innovation Group).
He urged councillors to take the weekend to reconsider their position and overturn the committee decision at Tuesday’s full council meeting.
“I just hope that the wise mind of all the councillors will prevail at the end of the day,” he said.
“The real question is do you want more of the same on public land or do you want to give it back to the public, which is what it deserves.
“What I am doing is asking councillors to really dig deep this weekend and ask what they think is better for Surfers Paradise – a bunch of shops or a public space for everyone.”
The committee decision came with several strict conditions for the leaseholder.
To honour the deal, the centre must be demolished and work begun on a new public plaza and dining precinct by March next year. Challenger has two years to finish the project and is required to give the precinct a facelift every 10 years.
Council’s rent on the site would also dramatically increase from $26,000 to $420,000 annually.
The future of the Paradise Centre has been a hot issue in recent years, given its location fronting the Cavill Ave Mall and “run-down” state.
A number of city and business leaders called for the council to take back control of the land when the current deal expired.
The committee’s decision came 18 months after the then councillor, Gary Baildon, and other identities lobbied for the centre to be returned to ratepayers so it could be redeveloped as a showpiece plaza. The application was declined.
The centre once played an important part of the Gold Coast tourism experience, especially for families, and included the popular Grundy’s water slides.
COMMITTEE’S SENSATIONAL VOTE
THE Holy Grail of Surfers Paradise real estate will undergo a $30m redevelopment — with conditions.
Council’s governance and administration committee sensationally voted on Thursday to extend the Challenger Group’s hold on the Paradise Centre until 2050.
It means the existing lease, due to expire in mid-2031, will be torn up and a new one signed by February 2021.
To honour the deal, the centre must be demolished and work begin on a new public plaza and dining precinct by March next year. Challenger has two years to finish the project and is required to give the precinct a facelift every 10 years.
Council’s rent on the site would also dramatically increase from $26,000 to $420,000 annually.
The future of the Paradise Centre has been a hot-button in recent years, given its location fronting the Cavill Ave Mall and “run-down” state.
FROM GRUNDY’S TO ‘RUN DOWN’ SURFERS’ SAD DECLINE
Challenger Group has been the leaseholder since 1981, soon after the complex was built.
A number of city and business leaders called for council to take back control of the land when the current deal expired.
Area councillor Darren Taylor, who is working on a master plan for Surfers Paradise, gave a passionate and emotional speech at the meeting, pleading with his colleagues to return the land to the city.
He said the prospect of council losing control of the site until 2050 “hurt”.
“We are only 10 years away, we have the opportunity to rescue this piece of land and make a chance,” he said.
“We are purchasing land in the Robina green heart area but when will we invest in the best part of the city?”
Councillors William Owen-Jones, Brooke Patterson, Mark Hammel, Pauline Young and Ryan Bayldon-Lumsden voted in favour of the new lease agreement. Cr Taylor and Cr Daphne McDonald voted against.
It will now go to full council on Tuesday for full approval.
Cr Owen-Jones, the committee chairman, said a redevelopment of the site in the short-term would allow for a boost to the area’s economy and help in the recovery from the COVID-19 downturn.
“This is an opportunity to help reshape the front of the Paradise Centre, which has a long and checkered history, and we have a significantly better proposal than what was originally proposed in previous iterations.
“The best thing we could do is change it rather than let it sit there for another 10 years.”
The alternative was to allow the run-down site to sit dormant for another years when the existing lease will expire, he said.
The committee’s decision comes 18 months after then councillor Gary Baildon and other identities lobbied for the centre to be returned to ratepayers so it could be redeveloped as a showpiece plaza. The application was declined.
The centre once played an important part of the Gold Coast tourism experience, especially for families, and included the popular Grundy’s water slides.
EARLIER: HOW OPPONENTS BEGGED FOR DELAY
OPPONENTS of controversial plans to extend the Paradise Centre’s lease on beachfront Crown land have demanded the Gold Coast City Council delay its decision.
The council’s Governance and Administration Committee on Thursday considers granting the centre an extra 19-year lease on land formerly home to Grundy’s slides.
Lawyers acting for the Surfers Paradise Surf Life Saving Club wrote to councillors on Wednesday night calling for a delay, arguing a lack of stakeholder consultation.
“The fact our client and Body Corporates for Allunga and Ballah have only just recently been made aware of the existence of the Application … in circumstances whereby there has been no consultation with our clients, the Body Corporates for Allunga and Ballah or the public generally is very concerning,” the letter reads.
“It is our clients’ position, that to make a decision tomorrow on the application would be inconsistent with the “local government principles” that apply to any such decision-making process.
“In particular, there has not been a transparent and effective process and the decision making could certainly not be considered to be in the public interest.
“Our client has had no opportunity to consult in detail with advisers, its members and the Council’s representatives. There has simply been insufficient time and very little information made available.
“It is our client’s view that to make a decision (on Thursday) would be in breach of the local government principles and it simply would not pass the ‘pub test’ by any stretch.”
The council meeting will begin at 2pm.
Area councillor Darren Taylor said the decision would be critical to the area’s future.
“We need to ensure this matter is considered in the best interests of us all,” he said. “It will determine what Surfers Paradise will look like in future.
“We need to look at all options and given we still have 11 years until the existing lease ends, to make a decision in the next week could be very disappointing to the people of Surfers Paradise.”
On Wednesday the Paradise Centre leaseholders unveiled a proposed $30 million transformation of the prime Surfers Paradise beachfront site in a bid to convince council to extend its lease.
The future of a controversial “rundown” section of the centre on Crown land will be determined on Thursday when council considers an application to grant owner Challenger Group a 19-year lease extension which would allow it to maintain control until 2050.
Business and political leaders have put pressure on the council to reject the move and instead undertake its own redevelopment of the area once the existing lease expires in mid-2031.
Challenger Group have revealed already approved plans for a $30 million upgrade of the area, which would take two years to complete and see the existing rundown areas transformed into a public plaza with a “world-class” dining precinct.
It is understood construction could begin within a year and completed within two years.
But the works will only occur if the lease extension is granted.
“The commitment of capital expenditure to proceed with the development works is in the order of $30 million and the owners were ready in 2018 to proceed with the work,” Challenger Group said in a statement.
“Because of the significant capital expenditure, the owners need to amortise those capital costs over a viable period of time requiring a lease extension over the Crown land fronting the beach prior to works commencing.”
The matter will go before the council’s Governance and Administration Committee meeting on Thursday afternoon.
The existing 50-year lease is not due to expire until June, 2031 and the mall operators have applied for a longer extension.
It comes 18 months after a similar request created a furore among Surfers Paradise leaders, then councillor Gary Baildon and other identities who lobbied for a return to public ownership so it could be redeveloped as a showpiece plaza. The application was declined.
The centre once played an important part of the Gold Coast tourism experience, especially for families, and included the popular Grundy’s water slides.
Challenger’s pitch to council is the city would receive significantly higher revenue from the land if it agrees to the lease extension.
“Over the past 12 months the owners have been in detailed discussion and negotiation with the council through its property and as a result of those discussions council can now benefit from more commercially favourable terms and conditions over a new 30-year term on the crown land.
“In addition to providing council a significant yearly rental return, the owners will also be responsible for the construction and maintenance of the new public space.
“Most importantly, the revitalisation of this key precinct can happen now.
“We believe it is in the best interests of the City to allow for the reinvigoration and reimagination of this critical part of the Gold Coast, at no cost to the Council and no cost to the ratepayer.
“The owners remain committed and ready to commence the approved development works upon extension of the Crown Lease.”
Surfers Paradise Surf Life Saving Club’s Billy James opposes a lease extension in a submission to the council on behalf of the club, body corporates for Allunga and Ballah towers, and Surfers Paradise BIG (Business Innovation Group).
The Gold Coast Central Chamber of Commerce, sitting area councillor Darren Taylor and retired councillor Gary Baildon also oppose any extension – and support a big public redevelopment.
Destination Gold Coast chairman Paul Donovan has seen the plans and urged council to consider the proposal.
“We support anything which can be done to improve this precinct which has been lagging behind for a while,” he said.
“What (plans) I have seen would really raise the bar considerably and is in line with what the new councillor wants to achieve.
“It will get the centre back to its glory days.”
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