Theme park growth ‘critical’ to future of tourism on Gold Coast

Surfers Paradise Alliance wants to see the Gold Coast become a theme park mecca to rival Florida in the coming decades.

SURFERS Paradise Alliance envisions the Gold Coast thriving in a similar fashion to the theme park mecca of Florida in coming decades – if the development bucks keep rolling in.

Alliance CEO Mike Winlaw was thrilled to see $145 million would be pumped into a brand new precinct at Sea World and a radical redevelopment of The Spit at Main Beach.

He believed ramping up development of theme park infrastructure would prove critical for the future of the region’s tourism industry.

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Village Roadshow Theme Parks CEO Clark Kirby with Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, Cameron Dick MP, Jackie Trad MP and Meaghan Scanlon MP.

TRANSFORMATION OF SPIT EXPECTED TO PULL IN MILLIONS FROM DEVELOPERS

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk joined Village Roadshow Theme Parks CEO Clark Kirby, Deputy Premier Jackie Trad, Minister for State Development Cameron Dick and Acting Mayor Donna Gates at Sea World on Saturday to unveil the joint undertaking.

Mr Winlaw was particularly excited about The New Atlantis at Sea World, featuring three new thrill rides and a raft of other additions, a Village Roadshow investment of $50 million.

Surfers Paradise Alliance CEO Mike Winlaw.

He said the Gold Coast could one day rival Florida, home of The Walt Disney World Resort, with its four theme parks and one of the most visited holiday destinations in the world.

“We see our two major theme parks at the moment (Sea World and Dreamworld), they’re continuing to invest and develop,” Mr Winlaw said.

“It’s really important. You can see what’s happened in Florida. (Theme parks) are the main attractor, if you’re looking at the family market. That’s what we need.

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“We need to get the families back to the Gold Coast and continue to invest in this sort of infrastructure. It’s going to be critical to our long term future.

“You look overseas at places like Florida, Disney World. That infrastructure just continues to grow and bring people along.”

Meanwhile, the State Government expects redevelopment of The Spit into the Gold Coast Ocean Park will see developers line up to invest.

Ms Palaszczuk said early works will include improvements to parklands and green areas, an underwater diving and snorkelling attraction, improved boating facilities and better parking.

An artist’s impression of Sea World’s new precinct, The New Atlantis. From left, three new thrill rides: The Vortex, the Trident and the Leviathan.

She said a new master plan for The Spit developed with community consultation over 18 months “created a climate of certainty for businesses, triggering the private investment”.

The Spit project should be finished by 2029, Ms Palaszczuk said, but it’s not clear when construction will begin.

Mr Kirby confirmed the plans for The Spit “provided the catalyst for the big injection of capital into Sea World”, while Mr Dick said the announcement marked “certainty for local businesses and certainty for investors”.

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Acting Mayor Donna Gates said Gold Coast City Council’s initial focus would be on tackling traffic congestion at The Spit.

State Government will put forward $60 million over four years to overhaul The Spit and the council will inject $35 million.

Main Beach Association committee member David Hutley welcomed the plans for The Spit and described it as a win for the community.

A Dreamworld statement congratulated stakeholders and welcomed “the investment of new experiences on the Gold Coast which will drive additional visitation”.