Why Surfers Paradise should be next in line for a serious upgrade

It’s beautiful and iconic, but Surfers Paradise could badly do with a facelift. And there’s one simple way we could transform the area, writes Keith Woods.

They all love us now.

From the Prime Minister to the Premier, Queensland and the Gold Coast are suddenly getting a bit more attention.

“How good is Queensland?” exclaimed Scott Morrison during his victory speech on election night.

Just seven days later, it was a case of “How good is the Gold Coast?” as $145 million was pledged to spruce up The Spit.

The rhetorical questions could go one more step. Just how good is Village Roadshow?

No other company has invested so much in Gold Coast tourism, with such electrifying effect.

In just the last two years it has opened the DC Rivals hypercoaster at Movie World, the enormously successful Top Golf attraction just next door, and now has announced a $50 million injection into Sea World that promises to give our tourism industry another massive shot in the arm.

WHEN YOU CAN RIDE SEA WORLD’S HUGE NEW ROLLER COASTER

How Sea World will look when its new $50m theme park precinct is completed.

TRANSFORMATION OF THE SPIT TO BRING MORE DEVELOPMENT DOLLARS

In the process Village has created hundreds of new jobs and remade the image of our theme parks, bruised after the Dreamworld tragedy. And all, our Tourism Minister should note, without the benefit of revenue from a single poker machine.

There are important lessons from this success story.

The Sea World investment is a prime example of what happens when governments create the right conditions for private business to thrive, then let them get on with it.

It was refreshing to see Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on the Gold Coast with her cheque book, pledging $60 million for The Spit.

Council, too, is doing its bit, though it is hard to believe $35 million will be sufficient to fix the area’s traffic problems. A light rail spur line will likely still be needed.

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Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Sea World CEO Clark Kirby speak to media after announcing major investment for The Spit last Saturday. Picture: Richard Gosling.

TWO POPULAR RESTAURANTS GO INTO ADMINISTRATION A DAY APART

As good as the recent Sea World announcement was though, we cannot stop there. It is a template of public-private co-operation to boost tourism that could so easily be repeated elsewhere on the Coast.

And as good as Village Roadshow are, we cannot continue to expect them to do all the heavy lifting for our tourism industry.

When the them parks close their doors at five o’clock, where do the tourists go? As highlighted by the multiple reports of restaurant closures in the pages of the Bulletin in just the last two weeks, our dining scene remains under significant pressure.

Surely we can do better.

It is one area where private business often feels that government is more of a hindrance than a help.

It is also an area where there is huge pent-up demand that is not being filled. Witness the popularity of the Burleigh Pavilion, and the push for beach bars.

We have some great restaurants, some brilliant restaurateurs, but we have not always given them the right conditions to thrive and survive.

Look at the beach offering at our most iconic stretch of sand, at Surfers Paradise. At what should be the centre of our city, facing out to the sea is a McDonalds. Opposite, the uninspiring concrete corner of the Paradise Centre housing ticket offices, next door a Hungry Jack’s. Surely we can do better than this.

We’ve had a master plan for The Spit, and it’s bringing rewards. The next cab off the rank should be Surfers.

Here’s a thought for starters. What if the road between the Soul roundabout and Hanlon Street in Surfers Paradise could be done away with, and the area transformed into a large piazza for outdoor dining? Some of the less salubrious surrounding properties might be incentivised to redevelop to take advantage of the new environment.

It could be a way of bringing dining to the beach’s edge, while revitalising a famous area that is need of a fresh sugar hit.

Just ask yourself, how good would that be for the Gold Coast, and Surfers Paradise?