CALL FOR OWNERS TO CLEAN UP CBD’S UGLY STREET OF SHAME
Council desperate to convince owners of decrepit buildings in CBD to take pride in properties and access funds to fix up facades
GETTING plucked, waxed and oiled with your partner beside you was once so popular it required its own unisex body grooming centre right in the middle of Cairns.
At some point the manscaping bubble evidently burst, leaving the city with a rundown building on one of the CBD’s main arterial roads – Sheridan St.
Rust-dripping signs still proudly spruik body piercing, tanning and massage services from days of yore. Letters are falling off, glass louvres are busted and guttering and downpipes are decaying.
The eyesore is the centrepiece of a stretch of dilapidated structures across the road from the First Choice Liquor Superstore on Sheridan St, starting at number 65 and ending next door to the delightfully vintage Music City guitar shop.
The final structure in the tract of run-down shopfronts is currently occupied by tenant Billy’s Coffee – still a popular place for a nice cuppa – where for months the awning has been bolstered by temporary load-bearing jack posts.
Cairns Regional Council has tried numerous times, with little success, to convince owners of decrepit buildings across the CBD to take pride in their properties.
In 2014, it made $100,000 available on a dollar-for-dollar basis for businesses willing to make improvements to their facades, with the council’s contribution capped at $10,000.
Only four businesses made applications that met the funding criteria.
Division 5 Cr Richie Bates suggested the city could follow Fortitude Valley in Brisbane’s lead to get owners across the city to clean up their act.
Brisbane City Council in 2012 introduced by-laws allowing it to compel owners to maintain derelict buildings following a 20-year battle to protect the Walton’s department store from crumbling to rubble.
It was seen as a last resort and Cr Bates said an amicable approach would be preferable.
“Retail all around Australia is doing it tough,” he said.
Cairns Chamber of Commerce president Nick Loukas backed the by-law approach as a final straw. “The council is happy as Larry to give financial incentives,” he said.
“Unfortunately the building owners we want to do something are the ones who don’t want to engage.”
Over in the Boland’s Centre – arguably the most beautiful old building in town – centre manager Kay Bullpitt proposed a volunteer community working group to apply cosmetic touch-ups to some of the city’s battered facades.
“A lot don’t want to spend money because they won’t be reimbursed,” she said.
“Let’s face it, retail is not going to be like it used to be and a lot of those shops are going to sit empty.
“There must be companies that would offer paint and artists willing to help out.
“We’ve got a beautiful city, we just need to communicate.”