Market bearing fruit
THE frame has gone up at the site of the new Tropical Fruit Train marketplace at Moresby.
Owner Bob Jenkyns hopes to have it all up and running by March 2019.
The Far North fruit supplier and his family have been hard at work on the new site after flooding in March forced them to close down their previous shop, the famous Frog on Banana at Innisfail.
Mr Jenkyns said, much like the Frog on Banana, he wanted to do something that would attract attention from tourists passing through as well as local buyers. To that end, it will have a steel train statue erected out the front, with carriages lined with market fruit on display.
“We want something that will draw people in, and also let them see and compare what we’ve got to sell,” Mr Jenkyns said. Building the train statue is just one of many jobs ahead for the Jenkyns family because construction work is on hiatus due to the wet weather in the region.
“We’re pulling our hair out at the moment because there’s a lot of rain forecast ahead and, while that’s going on, we can’t do anything,” he said.
“Apart from the rain, we’re also dealing with a lot of paperwork.
“I’m told it will take another 10 weeks for the material change of use forms to go through.
“We’re hoping to have construction finished before then, weather permitting.”
In addition to the train, the new market will have an orchard with 120 tropical fruit trees on site for tourists to peruse, along with an animal nursery for kids.
The Jenkyns family lost over $120,000 worth of stock and equipment in the flood.
Faced with piling bills and rubbish, they were forced to close in July and have been recovering ever since.
Mr Jenkyns, who is currently renting a property with the hopes of eventually building a place to live on the site, said the wait would be worth it in the end.
“We started the Frog on Banana seven years ago and built it up. We’ve got a clientele of farmers that support us from Bowen to Dimbulah, out as far as Georgetown,” he said.
“There’s a lot of work to do between now and March, but I’m confident it will be something to look forward to.”
The Tropical Fruit Train site is located on 50 Moresby Rd, Moresby, about 16km south of Innisfail.
WE WANT SOMETHING THAT WILL DRAW PEOPLE IN, AND ALSO LET THEM SEE AND COMPARE WHAT WE’VE GOT TO SELL BOB JENKYNS