Ski park takes shape
WORK on a new waterski park near Babinda is underway with a few small changes to be incorporated.
Competitive waterskier and Cairns businessman Greg Cooper is realising a long-held dream with the construction of the Ski North waterski park on Howard Kennedy Drive.
Original plans for two manmade 700m by 60m lakes costing about $2 million have been downgraded to just one lake.
Mr Cooper said, if the venture was as successful as he thought it would be, he would construct another lake on the 38ha former cane farm in coming years.
“We’ve sort of changed tack,” he said.
“I’m just a working tradesman who has had this dream for a number of years.
“What we ended up deciding is, rather than run a commercial operation, it would be better to privately dig a lake and run an incorporated ski club.
“Hopefully. by the start of December, the excavation itself will be complete and, hopefully over the wet season, it’ll fill up and over the next few months I’ll grass it off and put in finishing touches.
“It’d be lovely if we saw someone skiing there sometime in March.”
But Mr Cooper added he was trying not to get too excited with the start of the looming wet season still unpredictable.
Cairns Regional Council Division 1 councillor Brett Moller said Mr Cooper’s persistence and innovative approach at getting the project “up and running” was “a testament to his character but typifies the community of Babinda and its resilience”.
“I am starting to see a spring in the step of the community knowing they have the council’s support to revitalise the town and on the back of that commitment we give confidence to projects like the ski park being brought forward,” he said.
“The ski park. which will start as a training lake, has the capacity to develop into paddle boarding and other recreational use befitting the open-air nature activity that Babinda promotes, which will bring economic and social benefit to the local community and I am excited to see it progressing.”
Mr Cooper said the main drawcard of Ski North was that keen waterskiers did not need a boat to enjoy the sport.
“We will have a club boat, so it will be affordable for everyone,” he said.