Future Gold Coast: City to develop into mini cities within cities near Light rail, fast rail and Coomera connector

Booming Gold Coast suburbs will evolve to become small “cities within cities” on the back of a surging population and development pipeline, a leading social researcher believes.

BOOMING Gold Coast suburbs will evolve to become small “cities within cities” on the back of a surging population and development pipeline, a leading social researcher believes.

By 2030, major growth centres Coomera, Burleigh, Robina and Southport are tipped by prominent social researcher Mark McCrindle to effectively become their own CBDs.

Mr McCrindle told the Bulletin soaring population growth in the coming decade would see “cities within cities” created at major centres, rather than one dominant central business district.

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Urbana, a housing and tower estate planned for Coomera's Foxwell Road on the Gold Coast by developer Cadmium. Picture: Gold Coast Coast City Council

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He tipped the mooted fast-rail train line extension from Varsity Lakes to the border would spark significant development in the Gold Coast’s southwestern suburbs.

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“The bigger the footprint, the more community hubs you are going to have and the Gold Coast is well-suited to this,” he said.

“As more people move to the Coast the makeup of each suburb will change and we are already starting to see this in areas where there are more universities and transport options.

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Mark McCrindle. Picture: AAP IMAGE/Jordan Shields.

“As soon as that fast trail connection is there it will open up those other areas.”

His comments come on the eve of data to be presented by leading demographer Bernard Salt at today’s Future Gold Coast Forum.

It shows the Gold Coast is growing 1.5 times faster than the rest of Australia, with some of our biggest suburbs set to grow dramatically within 11 years by 2030.

The largest growth will be seen in the Ormeau-Oxenford corridor which will be home to an extra 78,582 people by 2030, taking its population to 220,265 people, a 55 per cent growth.

Bernard Salt.

Mr Salt, speaking at the start of the Future Gold Coast campaign in the Bulletin two weeks ago, urged the city to accept its heritage and its destiny: “The Coast should accept it will top the million mark in the late 2030s.”

Along with Mr Salt, developers, social researchers and political leaders have outlined how the Gold Coast will change.

Heavy development is expected in the city’s north as the population grows. Picture: Gold Coast Coast City Council.

Anticipated construction of the multi-billion dollar Coomera connector and fast-rail extensions will drive a huge wave of development through the Gold Coast’s north and western suburbs.

The Coomera Connector is a gazetted arterial road which will run from Carrara to Stapylton and has been designed to take pressure off the M1.

Burleigh Heads and suburbs through which the light rail’s future stages will travel will be at the epicentre of unit and tower construction according to leading development industry figure Steve Harrison.

Steve Harrison

Mr Harrison, the immediate past president of the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) said: “There will be a continuation of urban renewal along the light rail corridor but this will not occur at the same pace as the greenfill up in the north”.

“Assuming the Coomera connector happens there will be significant growth in and around those interchanges as well as additional industrial and residential projects along with significant open space.

“Once it is agreed the Coast has no more capacity it will have to move out into the canefields of the north, which will also lead to employment growth.”

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Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate. Picture Tim Marsden

The city’s rate of development continues to remain consistent despite a national economic slowdown.

Latest council data shows more than 4400 development applications in the past year with more than 27,000 applications made to council since 2012.

Mayor Tom Tate said sustainable development would continue.

“Finding the balance is the key. We need to cope with between 13,000 to 16,000 people moving to the Gold Coast each year.

“We have to rethink how we live and especially how we get around. A single person driving around in a four-door car is not sustainable for our city. The days of driving your teenage kids to school rather than them walking, riding or busing is not sustainable.”