NEW VISION FOR CITY
Council seeks your original ideas for fresh CBD masterplan
THREE zones in the Cairns CBD are the focus of a new city centre masterplan.
The Esplanade parklands, an Esplanade dining quarter and a gallery precinct are all part of a new draft strategy into which the council wants input from ratepayers and residents.
A trendy stand-alone Grafton St sector aimed at tourists also is mooted.
OUTDOOR art exhibitions, a pedestrian-only Esplanade with bustling outdoor dining areas and transforming Grafton St into a trendy stand-alone tourist destination have emerged as creative ideas to reshape the Cairns CBD.
Cairns Regional Council has called on residents and tourists to share their suggestions on how to best guide future development and cultural priorities for the city-centre.
Deputy Mayor Terry James said the ideas would help create a new CBD masterplan – a document that desperately needed updating since the “out-of-the-blue” arrival of three new Crystalbrook Collection hotels and the council’s purchase of the former Courthouse Hotel.
“If there’s something that people see, that they’ve had on their mind that isn’t included, let us know,” he said.
“At the moment, there really aren’t any fixed ideas, we want you to tell us what we should be looking at.
“Obviously we’ve got some ideas, but you come up with ideas and they’ll all go into the melting pot.”
Council officers will have stalls set up at Commonwealth Games Festival 2018, which kicks on the Esplanade tomorrow. An online survey has also been launched, as well as an “interactive ideas wall” on the council website where people can post and comment on ideas.
Suggestions have already started rolling in.
One user proposed a casual day-night childcare centre – “a kind of kids’ club” – where visitors and locals could safely leave their children.
“This would allow parents to participate and enjoy adult activities like dining out in the new proposed dining precinct or other activities that are not as appropriate for children,” it continued.
There was a call for a bar and performance space to be created as part of the new gallery precinct, drawing inspiration from the restaurant and cafe mix at the Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane.
Others have suggested the Esplanade be closed on Friday and Saturday nights from the lagoon to the RSL to allow for markets, food carts and extra space for restaurants to spread into al fresco dining.
“Perhaps start with dry season, one night a week, and let it grow – a bit like (Mindil) Beach markets in Darwin,” one commenter said.
There was another proposal to get rid of “boring shops or establishments” on Grafton St and encourage hip, trendy businesses like bars, cafes, clothes shops and book stores to move in.
“Give them grants to adorn their buildings with artwork and murals,” the idea went on.
“Make it the go-to area of Cairns and a hip shopping area. Create a scene like Camden High Street in London or Haight-Ashbury San Francisco.”
Cr James said all ideas would be thrown into the mix, noting that consideration was already under way into proposals to make the Esplanade more pedestrian-friendly.
“We’re already looking at taking the traffic lights out at the corner of Shields St and the Esplanade,” he said.
“It’s just to slow things down, a bit like the crossing on Shields St where everything’s down to 30km/h.
“It’s mixed. You can have people and cars.
“Then how we deal with the Esplanade dining precinct, there’s a lot of ideas out there and a lot of mixed feelings.”
The ideas paper identifies three key areas – the Esplanade dining precinct, the gallery precinct and the Esplanade parklands. Consultation closes on April 30.