Sale part of low rates grand plan

MAYOR Tom Tate says council’s decision to sell the Bruce Bishop carpark is linked to a master strategy to keep rates under control.

The strategy is also about encouraging the way residents and tourists view travel and get them to use public transport.

While the council does not want to sell all the city’s carparks like Brisbane, keeping all of the facilities will doom the city’s transport plan to fail.

Cr Tate maintains the maximum amount of vehicles using the central Surfers Paradise carpark is 640 at its peak.

“So we’re saying well there’s over a 1000 car parks laying dormant,” Cr Tate said.

The council will lock-in a deal with the buyer where an extra 100 car parks on top of the 640 must be provided in the new development.

“So we’re moving 1000 car parks which are not being used to the new arts and cultural precinct,” Cr Tate said.

His argument is “no-one is using the open space” on the 1.6ha site at the Bruce Bishop carpark and transferring that parkland to Evandale will get more people enjoying the green space and fulfil the wishes of the land’s benefactor.

In 1938, the late Charles Joseph Hicks gave the land to city to be preserved as a recreational reserve.

The sale of the site will also help fund a second bridge across the Isle of Capri.

“Now if you can get all of that done and get all the benefit, then all this extra infrastructure is not an added burden to ratepayers.”