Million-dollar view on the Esplanade needs development to thrive and create opportunity
DARWIN has a million dollar view on the Esplanade but there’s only one problem … there’s nowhere to perch up and enjoy it
Opinion
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DARWIN has a million dollar view on the Esplanade but there’s only one problem … there’s nowhere to perch up and enjoy it.
Navy ships glide along the coastline just a few hundred metres offshore, the sun sets creating amazing colours over the water and sometimes crocs can be seen lurking.
But unless punters pack a picnic and find some greenspace to perch on or relax on their own balcony, there’s nowhere to enjoy a glass of wine or a Great Northern over some Territory-renowned barra while keeping one eye on the magnificent coastline at all times.
Oh that’s unless you’re lucky enough to get up on the fifth floor of Parliament to enjoy the incredible view.
Cottesloe and Scarborough beaches provide a picturesque backdrop over a beverage and some food and the Cairns and Towmsville coastlines can also be enjoyed with mates and a meal.
But Darwin’s best view is limited to a glimpse at eye level from vast green space for locals and visitors alike.
That’s not to say the answer is building an RSL club on the Esplanade car park near the Cenotaph, but what about some rooftop bars or restaurants with an uninterrupted view over the Esplanade green space and water?
The RSL concept for a café and dining establishment overlooking that million-dollar view is what Darwin needs somewhere along the Esplanade.
A development of that kind can be achieved in consultation with traditional owners and without destroying the vast green space Darwin residents and visitors currently enjoy.
It’s a concept Darwin Lord Mayor Kon Vatskalis flagged in September 2018, a year after he was sworn in.
“A lot of our land is unused and can provide an alternative income so we don’t have to raise the rates 3 to 4 per cent every year,” Mr Vatskalis said two years ago.
“The people who dominate the debates (about development) are the negative ones. The lights at Gardens Oval is the typical one.
“The people who didn’t want it were the most vocal. The thousands of people who support the AFLNT stayed quiet.
“If the community wants this place to rise and buzz then they have to come forward and support things to happen.
“Darwin has to stop thinking ‘no more, can’t do’ we have to change to ‘yes we can do’.”
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Mr Vatskalis also told the NT News in 2018 he was keen to see a restaurant in the area near the Cenotaph, potentially off the cliff.
“We’ve got the situation that in the best park in Australia you can’t see the ocean. I thought, ‘Bloody hell, I can’t believe it’.”
He said at the time that the Cenotaph car park was council land and “I want to see that developed into a restaurant overlooking the ocean”.
“We could look at building a boardwalk or a series of boardwalks below the escarpment all the way to Dr’s Gully,” Mr Vatskalis said.
He acknowledged at the time that his views were not going to be popular with everyone but he was willing to wear the negative comments that came with his views some would label controversial.
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While Mr Vatskalis has some hurdles ahead in the fallout from the delayed RSL decision, it’s clear he’s keen to see his vision of development along the Esplanade come to fruitition.
In February, Hospitality NT chief executive Alex Bruce said plans for an Esplanade venue could help the Territory economy.
Development along the Esplanade to cash in on the million-dollar view is essential to support growth and boost the NT economy.
It CAN be done sensitively and it CAN be done without cutting in to the green space.
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