Double Island reopening enters community feedback stage
Double Island is set to enter a new era as locals begin providing early feedback on what the future operation of the island should look like. See the ideas and have your say in the survey.
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Far Northerners are invited to have their say on the future function of Double Island, as Barron River MP Craig Crawford doubled down on calls that any usage rights be awarded to Australian operators.
Following years of neglect, the Queensland Government reclaimed the defunct island in June, stripping Hong Kong investor Benny Wu of his $5.68m lease, acquired in 2012.
Mr Wu’s Fortune Island Holding Company, the lessee, had previously received written notices to comply with the conditions of its lease, ultimately being issued a March 31, 2023 deadline to have day use facilities up to scratch and open to the public, which it failed to meet.
In May, the Queensland Land Court ruled Fortune was in breach of its lease – opening the door the for state government to revoke the agreement.
The island, which featured a once-luxury resort, is now set to enter a new era with Far Northerners encouraged to share their vision for the use of the island with the state’s resources department via an online portal and in-person session at Palm Cove in August.
“It’s actually good to see the department ask the community because I think sometimes this can be a fault where that doesn’t happen,” Mr Crawford said.
“And they go down a road and do something and then the community says, ‘well, hang on a minute, if you would have asked us we would have told you that was a bad idea’.”
Mr Crawford said early feedback he had received was interested locals were pitching for a comparable outcome to that of Green and Fitzroy islands.
“So you’ve got that hotel operation, but it doesn’t become an exclusive lease for the whole island; so that you can still include other tourism operators to set up for recreation, or some nature conservation and build some walks, and some people just want general public access to take the family for a picnic.”
Mr Crawford said there was also a preference that the lead lease be given to “an Australian business so that we don’t go down the mistakes of the past.”
“But if we don’t tell the department what to do, they will simply do what they think is best.”
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Originally published as Double Island reopening enters community feedback stage
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