From Glitter Strip to Boating City
Shopping centres accessible by water, a tourist destination with water parking – that may well be the future of Gold Coast’s glitter strip.
“One of the most wonderful features of the Gold Coast is our waterways, we have 400 kilometres of canals and 160 kilometres of channels, which is far more waterways than Venice,” said Mr Gary Baildon, chairman of the Gold Coast Water Authority.
“In 10 years time, there will be more and more mooring areas for small craft so people can pull in there, go into Surfers [Paradise] and do whatever they want to do and it will even have some sort of metering system, in the way of parking meters.”
The Gold Coast riverside precinct in Surfers Paradise is the subject of a master plan to be developed jointly by the Gold Coast City Council and the Gold Coast Waterways Authority. The first part of the project will be the construction of a new pontoon to enable commercial operators to pick up and drop off passengers.
“We have long identified that the riverside offers enormous potential, so it’s exciting to be teaming up with Gold Coast Waterways Authority to breathe new life into the area,” said Cr Tom Tate, current mayor of the Gold Coast.
Waterways Authority chief executive Hal Morris said that the plans would increase safety as well as making it appealing to locals and tourists. “A river is the lifeblood of any city and it’s a shame that we don’t really appreciate and use our river as much as we could here on the Gold Coast,” Mr Morris said.
The project is part of the Authority’s Waterways Management Program. To view the Program, visit www.gcwa.qld.gov.au.
