Nobby Beach businesses leave ahead of light rail build
Long-time Nobby Beach business owners are walking out on their suburb because they fear an extension of the light rail south will send them broke. WHERE THEY’RE GOING >>>
Council
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LONG-time Nobby Beach business owners are walking out on their suburb because they fear an extension of the light rail south will send them broke.
With construction expected to begin this year, some businesses are pre-emptively packing up and relocating.
They are worried they will lose customers if they stay or be forced to close like many in Southport and Surfers Paradise did a decade ago during construction of Stage 1.
However, the state government says it has learnt from previous tram rollouts and Stage 3 would “be largely built within the road space to minimise the impact on footpaths and local businesses as much as possible”.
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One of those moving is Nobby Village butcher Steve Whawell, who has operated in the area for 13 years but is off to the Mermaid Waters Shopping Centre.
“We have had huge support from residents, bars and restaurants over many years but commercially we just don’t have the confidence that there will be much stability for our business during the construction of light rail,” he said.
“We have made the decision to move and have taken out a longer lease because we just don’t know where we stand.
“Nobbys Village is going to be a station precinct under the town plan and that means we will need to create a vision for the future of the village to meet the growth expectations that comes with light rail coming through your neighbourhood.”
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Mr Whawell called for an “honest conversation” with the council and state government about the impact construction of the $1.15 billion Stage 3 would have on the area.
Many Southport and Surfers Paradise businesses were forced to close during the three-year construction of Stage 1, between 2011 and 2014. Operators unsuccessfully asked for financial compensation from the council and state government.
Real estate identity and Nobby Beach resident Luke Henderson said the area’s future was “hanging in the balance”.
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While not opposed to the tram system, he said more consultation was needed to explain how the area would be affected by construction.
“The community in general is worried about the future of Nobbys and the disruptions that the construction of light rail may cause to retailers and the broader community in general,” he said.
“As a community we know that some retailers, including the post office and newsagent, have already relocated from Nobbys Village simply to protect their businesses, while others are reconsidering resigning leases because of the uncertainty.
“What we would like from council and the state government is a higher level of engagement than we saw in Southport, Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach during the construction of the first two stages of light rail, but at present we are not seeing that.”
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A start date for construction is yet to be determined as the state government is still in negotiations with contractor John Holland Group.
Work on the 7.6km route between Broadbeach and Burleigh Heads was expected to begin earlier this year but the Bulletin revealed in April that a deal had not been reached with the contractor, forcing delays and cost blowouts.
The federal government tipped in an extra $126 million in this month’s Budget and the state government is set to commit another $200 million in its own Budget in June.
A spokesperson for department of Transport and Main Roads said around 600 businesses along the Gold Coast Highway were visited last year and a “further 1000 registered stakeholders, including businesses, contacted inviting them to submit a questionnaire on their business operations to help with construction planning”.
TMR encouraged all businesses along the proposed highway route to share that information at surveymonkey.com/r/gclr3_businesses.
“During construction, our contractor will maintain regular contact with the local business community,” the spokesperson said.
“They will provide information and assist businesses to continue operations during construction, including notifying them in advance of works. We are committed to minimising disruption, but constructing light rail in a busy urban environment will have its challenges.”
TMR said the critical transport infrastructure was needed to support the Gold Coast and its continued growth over the next two decades, and would connect communities with business and essential services.
An application for a large development at Nobby Beach, which is likely to cause disruption at the shopping precinct, was approved by the City of Gold Coast in December last year, it said.
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