$1.6M cash splash allocated to three Whitsunday projects

A new water park and skate park, as well as upgrades to a sport park are on the cards.

Pictured is Bowen Seagulls Red's Kaleb Fisk in action at the Paul Bowman Challenge. Photo: File

Three major projects in the Whitsundays will be put forward to share a large chunk of funds offered to the region for COVID recovery.

The Federal Government has made an offer of $1,629,782 to the Whitsunday Regional Council as part of the government’s COIVD-19 stimulus response.

At yesterday’s ordinary council meeting, councillors agreed on three projects that should receive a chunk of the funding.

They resolved $1.2m should be spent on a new Collinsville Water Park, $150,000 for the Bowen Seagulls sport park (Denison Park) and $300,000 for a new Cannonvale skate bowl.

Division 4 Councillor Michelle Wright said it would be “great” to see more than a million dollars spent on a Collinsville Water Park.

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The idea for the park came out of consultation and survey results from the Collinsville community.

Plans for the water park are still being ironed out, but it is expected to be established in the vicinity of the Collinsville Pool so it can share the same filtration system.

“From the survey and community afternoon we got results back in and water park was number one,” Cr Wright said.

“I think it would be a big drawcard for keeping people in the community and bringing families in.

“I think the community has been waiting a long time and I’m really proud to hopefully deliver that next year.”

Cr Wright said funding for the Seagulls’ park was much needed and would be spent on fully fencing the park and irrigation.

“Only three sprinklers are working in the park out of 18 so the club is having to move sprinklers around at their own time and expense,” Cr Wright said.

“With the COVID regulations in place, without having a fence in that lower field they’re struggling to contain the register of people that are coming and going.”

Michelle Wright is pleased to see funds allocated to a new Collinsville Water Park. Photo: File

At Wednesday’s meeting, the council’s development services director Neil McGaffin said the council had been advised it had received the allocation of funding.

The council is able to apply for one or more projects through a nomination process to access the Federal Government funds.

The third project – a new skate bowl at Cannonvale – is the third project to benefit from the cash splash.

Division 1 Cr Jan Clifford said there was an existing skate bowl in Cannonvale, but it needed to be upgraded.

“It’s not the flashest thing on the planet, it really needs to go desperately, so that’s great,” Cr Clifford said.

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