Ideal place to start over
Southern Cross Austereo general manager ALISON GEALE would like to see our transport network fixed and major public and private enterprise to set up on the Gold Coast
WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT THE GOLD COAST?
“It feels like I live in a place which everyone has chosen.
“Very few people are indigenous to the Gold Coast – although that is changing – everyone here is living or following a dream. “It’s Australia’s fresh start. “The people are fantastic, the opportunities are fantastic and everyone is working towards the common goal of betterment of the Gold Coast every day.
“The Gold Coast is like a teenager on the precipice of adulthood – I feel that we’re on the cusp of greatness, which is what makes it such an exciting place to live.
“I think we’re only just beginning to tap into what’s possible.”
WHAT DO YOU THINK COULD BE DONE BETTER ON THE GOLD COAST?
“I think we could promote better on the world stage. it
“Gold Coast Tourism is doing a fantastic job in some of those markets that are very attractive to us, like the middleclass Chinese, but I think we can go even broader.
“I really think we could attract some big government departments, or big private companies, to base their head offices here.
“We need to attract tourism but we also need to attract other investment.
“The Australia Department of Tourism would be a good start – we are the holiday capital of Australia.”
IN YOUR TRAVELS, WHAT HAVE YOU SEEN BEING DONE ELSEWHERE YOU THINK COULD WORK WELL HERE?
“I moved here from Sydney but before that I was in Hobart and one of the revelatory things I saw that comprehensively elevated and gave a breath of life into their dying tourism industry was the Museum of Old and New Art.
“For a state that was known for its old-growth rainforests and beautiful scenery, it has now become famous for the arts.
“I would very much like the Gold Coast to be famous for more than beaches and theme parks.
“For something like the cultural precinct, we could be looking to MONA for inspiration on how to attract people in different ways than just hanging a painting – and I think that’s what the council has done.”
IF MONEY, TIME, LAWS AND APPROVALS WERE NO ISSUE, WHAT IS ONE BIG PROJECT YOU’D UNDERTAKE TOMORROW?
“If we want to be an epicentre of southeast Queensland, which is going to continue to grow faster than other areas, we have to work out how to get our people around.
“I know plans are afoot to extend the light rail and to connect the heavy rail and address the M1 – but they have got to get started.
“So many thousands of people use that corridor every day for work and the population is continuing to increase.
“We just need to throw whatever money is needed at it and get it done so we can carry this large population forward.
“I would also do something crazy like get a company like Google to base their head office here – even for five years.
“That would help create jobs and allow us to attract and keep good people.”
WHAT CONVERSATIONS SHOULD GOLD COAST MOVERS AND SHAKERS BE HAVING?
“I think they’re already having them at this stage. A lot of key stakeholders in health and education for example have really made huge progress in the past five years in particular.
“I think the movers and shakers are excited about the Commonwealth Games, the expanding population and the health and knowledge precinct. Now is the time for thinking beyond the next five years, well beyond the Commonwealth Games, to what that legacy looks like.”