Gold Coast Development: The Spit should be given to Gold Coast community for future decisions
BUSINESS and community elder statesmen say the Gold Coast must assume control of its most valuable asset to stop it being used as a political football by powerbrokers in Brisbane. Here’s who they say should run the show now.
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BUSINESS and community elder statesmen say the Gold Coast must assume control of its most valuable asset to stop it being used as a political football by powerbrokers in Brisbane.
Long-time city leaders say the fate of The Spit should be decided by an independent committee or the Gold Coast Waterways Authority to end 40 years of failed masterplans, developments and broken promises.
They say the future of the area, worth billions of dollars, has too often been determined by out-of-town politicians on the whim of the electoral cycle.
THE SPIT SHOULD BE GOLD COAST’S CENTRAL PARK
GOLDEN AGE — WHAT GOLD COASTERS WANT FOR THE SPIT
“A totally independent body should have the authority and should be involved in (the implementation of) the masterplan,” leading developer and former councillor Norm Rix said.
“It should not be under the influence of the Government or the local authority because their plans may not be what the local people are looking for.
“The Government should keep out of it — let the free enterprise system work.”
PREMIER — THE SPIT MUST BE PRESERVED
Businessman and Gold Coast Suns chairman Tony Cochrane said all decisions about The Spit should be made locally, and Brisbane should back off.
“Locals should have the lionheart of the decisions and it just makes sense given The Spit is in our back yard. How would the people of Brisbane feel if we had a say on the way South Bank was rebuilt for example?
“This would go down like a lead balloon but for some reason the good people of Brisbane think they should have a full say over what we do down here.”
Mr Cochrane said the political agenda on the eve of state elections had put a “handbrake” on the Gold Coast economy.
Since the last change of government, Brisbane’s $3 billion Queens Wharf development and cruise ship terminal have blossomed, while the future of The Spit remains unclear.
“I don’t begrudge them having Queens Wharf, it’s good for them, but equally they should not begrudge us having a big piece of infrastructure,” Mr Cochrane said.
The future of The Spit has long been a political football.
The Beattie government strongly backed the building of a cruise ship terminal in the mid-2000s, developing plans at the northern tip of The Spit.
However, it was abandoned just days before the 2006 election after unrest from some community groups and the threat of the National Party-led Coalition winning seats on the Coast.
In 2012, the ASF Consortium revealed its multibillion-dollar cruise ship terminal and Wavebreak Island development on the back of the Newman government’s Broadwater marine project.
The LNP failed to green light the project and subsequently lost the 2015 election.
Labor terminated the Wavebreak Island development and later cancelled ASF’s subsequent $3 billion resort and casino proposal. Taxpayers were stung with a $9m compensation bill.
Mayor Tom Tate yesterday ruled out any interest in the council taking control of the entire Spit and said it should sit with the waterways authority.
“Council has no desire to take over stewardship of this land. It rightly sits with GCWA as they manage the Broadwater as well,” he said.
“All Gold Coasters want is a firm masterplan and certainty.
“As Mayor, I am pushing for long-term stewardship of Philip Park only as that’s where we are wanting to build infrastructure associated with the oceanside cruise ship terminal.”
Save Our Broadwater president and former councillor Alan Rickard said oversight of The Spit should rest with the waterways authority.
“We need to get away from the mindset that it is State Government land. It is our city’s land,” he said.
“One of the troubles is that you get a new government and they change everything the old government was doing, so there never seems to be any continuity.”
Save Our Spit president Dr Steven Gration agreed, saying a community management committee should be created to oversee the masterplan’s implementation.
Former Southport MP Mick Veivers, a long-serving Nationals member, favoured Gold Coasters taking charge of decision making, saying “people in Brisbane do not know the history of it”.
However, he strongly believed the area should not be developed.
Retired tourism boss Terry Jackman said “the less development, the better” was important for The Spit.
He said it was “a fact of life” that the State would have a say over the area, which is Crown land.
Another former Southport MP, Peter Lawlor, had a different view.
He argued the Government’s State Development Department should have a strong say in the future of any major infrastructure, including The Spit.
The current masterplan process was announced in August last year after the Palaszczuk Government terminated ASF’s second project.
It will be released in mid-2019.
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The masterplan
THE announcement of The Spit masterplan came after the State Government terminated a proposed $3 billion resort planned land just north of Sea World.
But this community-driven process will determine what happens on the peninsular for generations to come.
The process comes as construction begins on Brisbane’s own $3 billion Queens Wharf integrated resort which is expected to be completed in 2022.
Jointly run by the State Government and Gold Coast City Council, one thing is for sure about The Spit’s future — there will be no high-rise development allowed.
A three-storey height limit set in the City Plan in 2016 will remain intact, no matter what the masterplan holds.
But a controversial $500 million cruise ship terminal development is still on the cards.
The master planning process will consider the potential effects of the proposed oceanside cruise ship terminal at Philip Park in relation to its built form, access arrangements, servicing layout and infrastructure requirements.
The state has stressed that this consideration does not imply support or opposition to the development.
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Several community workshops have been held to gain feedback, which has also been given online.
During the first stage of consultation there was 128 completed online surveys and nine submissions made to the State Government by email.
The consultation website was only visited 380 times, with only 34 per cent of those people who visited the website during that time completing the survey.
A final workshop is expected to be held early next year, with the final masterplan to be released in mid-2019.
The door is still open to an integrated resort and casino on the Gold Coast, but it won’t be on The Spit.
Changing the face of The Spit — a timeline
1976 — The Department of Harbours and Marine submitted a basic masterplan to State Cabinet. It proposed two marinas, north and south of Sea World.
1977 — Keith Williams drafted a document proposing a shipping terminal on a new Island in the Broadwater which could have the ability to host small high-rises, dining and a waterspouts island.
1979 — The Gold Coast Waterways Authority is formed on July 1, 1979.
1981 — The Gold Coast Waterways Authority unveils its proposed Spit Masterplan which would have seen at least two resort hotels built as well as multiple marinas.
1984-1987 — The Seaway is built to stabilise the mouth of the Nerang River, Wavebreak Island is also created. The park at its northern tip is dedicated to the memory of late MP Doug Jennings who had fought to preserve the Spit.
1980s-1990s — Significant development takes place on the southern end of the Spit as Marina Mirage, the Sheraton Mirage, Mariner’s Cove, the Sea World Resort and Fisherman’s Wharf are all built. The Wharf is later redeveloped to become Palazzo Versace.
2001 — Architect Desmond Brooks unveils plans for a massive large-scale development on Wavebreak Island to include a cruise ship terminal. The same year the Federation Walk was launched and would eventually become a popular community resource.
2002 — The State Government expresses interest in establishing a cruise ship terminal. Premier Peter Beattie said it will happen ‘within the next few years’.
2003 — The Gold Coast City Council votes to back the Harbour Vision 2020, it’s masterplan for The Spit. The same year the Beattie Government launched a feasibility study of creating a cruise ship terminal on The Spit or Wavebreak Island.
2004 — Ron Clarke is elected Gold Coast Mayor, the Save Our Spit Alliance is formed to fight a proposed cruise ship terminal.
2005 — A consortium unveils its plans for a cruise ship terminal and superyacht marina on the inside of the Broadwater.
2006 — The Beattie Government unveils is plans for a cruise ship terminal but abandons it on the eve of the state election.
2007-10 — The State Government receives detail submissions for the potential redevelopment of crown land on The Spit but these fail due to the Global Financial Crisis.
2012 — The Newman Government is elected Tom Tate unveils a cruise ship terminal plan on the eve of that year’s council election. Developer Bob Ell announces his own rival project at Kirra while Singapore developer Sembawang unveils its own Wavebreak Island proposal but soon leaves.
2013 — The Newman Government pursues its own Broadwater Marine Project and opens tenders.
2014 — ASF announced as the possible preferred proponent by the Newman Government, sparking protests
2015 — The Newman Government is defeated and the new Palaszczuk Government terminates the Broadwater Marine Project but keeps door open for ASF to develop The Spit.
2016 — ASF unveils its own $3 billion integrated resort project on The Spit.
2017 — The Palaszczuk Government terminates ASF’s resort and announces plans for a Spit Masterplan.
2018 — Spit masterplan process begins, the State pays ASF $9 million in compensation over its failed plans.
2019 — Spit masterplan expected to be released.
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