A CITY STEPS INTO FUTURE

RAY White Surfers Paradise boss Andrew Bell says much of the development making up a $30 billion boost to the city’s economy over the next decade would not have happened if it was not for the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

The Games have generated a mountain of interest locally, nationally and across the Commonwealth.

This is our time.

Of course, legitimate concerns have been raised about the impact of Games restrictions on traders and travel.

But there is no argument that there will be a permanent, positive legacy from the Commonwealth Games.

The numbers speak for themselves. This is a watershed moment for the Gold Coast, which from now on will be gauged in terms of how the city was before the Games show came to town and its reinvention and direction post-Games.

In many regards what is happening to our Gold Coast reflects the Brisbane story of the 1980s, when Brisbane matured from “a big country town’’ into a true state capital and “the river city’’.

Two events kickstarted Brisbane’s surge in development – its Commonwealth Games in 1982 and, significantly, World Expo in 1988.

The Games of 2018 will prove to be our “Expo’’ moment.

With that comes more visibility and exposure. We have lifted our game so we could host the wonderful sporting event that is now the focus of the Commonwealth. But once the Games are over and the Gold Coast begins the next stage of its story, we cannot regress into a “regional’’ city again, or to be seen as just a holiday town.

All facets of Gold Coast life, transport, business and administration have to take the next step. The defining moment the Gold Coast has reached means the city cannot go back to old ways.

With big city aspirations, we have to adjust to big city reality. An important part of that is public transport. Gold Coasters and tourists have been using light rail, buses and trains in record numbers. The reality of our development ahead means these forms of travel will increasingly become a fact of life long after the Games.

But that is not a get-out-of-jail card for the State Government, allowing it to ignore its responsibility in fixing the M1 which remains our most vital artery; or the council not to boost the local roads network on the strip and the service roads that must be improved to take local traffic off the motorway in the northern suburbs.

We will still need good roads. All of this should have been in place long ago.

The challenge with development now will also be in preserving the things we treasure – the natural environment that makes our Gold Coast a desirable place to live and work. Breakneck speed of development is all very well, but we still stand at a crucial crossroads. This is why issues like The Spit have generated such passionate debate. This is why our beaches must be jealously guarded.

There is a real risk we could turn into another concrete jungle. This must not happen. A sensible and mature approach should ensure we can be a brilliant city with the best of both worlds.