Gold Coast coronavirus thank you by Surfers Paradise Q1 tower

The Gold Coast’s tallest tower will be bathed in green light tonight. Here’s why.

The Q1 in Surfers Paradise will be bathed in green light as a thank you to health workers on the frontline of the coronavirus battle -and to signify a return to business for some traders. Picture Glenn Hampson

THE Gold Coast’s tallest tower will be bathed in green light tonight as part of a special brief show to boost morale among traders and as a thanks to city healthcare workers.

Surfers Paradise’s Q1 building will be part of a light show this evening after a long weekend of eased restrictions.

Residents who don’t have a direct view of the Q1 can tune in at 7pm via the Visit Surfers Paradise Facebook page.

The green glow is also expected to be visible to healthcare workers on the top floors of the Gold Coast University Hospital.

Organisers say they want the display to signify new opportunity and a slowly changing tide for the Glitter Strip’s hard hit traders.

Surfers Paradise Alliance CEO Mike Winlaw said business owners in the tourism hubs were struggling through the ongoing crisis.

Mike Winlaw: “It is a critical time.” Picture: Tertius Pickard

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“There’s really only one way to describe Surfers Paradise in terms of trade, (it’s that) people are bleeding,” he said.

“We’ve got 50 per cent of the prime hotel accommodation and most of them are running at zero because they’re not open or in the single digits.

“It is a critical time.”

He added it was important to listen to health authorities as restrictions eased moving forward.

“The ongoing work of healthcare workers and the wider community has been an essential part in fast-tracking our return to normality,” he said.

“It’s important that we continue to respect restrictions in order to help our traders get back to normal in the coming months.

“We want to encourage families and friends across the Gold Coast to stay at home and look to the top of the Q1 for what is a marker of what’s to come, a beacon of light at the end of the tunnel.”