Island icon waits for removal or a saviour
DANIEL BATEMAN since 2012, after it was deemed structurally unsafe.
Quicksilver Group managing director Tony Baker, whose company owns the historic observatory, said they had been working with authorities to figure out how to remove the structure, which would ultimately be dismantled.
“It failed a structural integrity test some years ago,” he said.
“The great challenge with that is, it not only failed that, it’s got asbestos and a whole bunch of issues like that.”
The underwater observatory, which opened in 1954, is regarded by Cairns Regional Council as a place of historic significance, which “demonstrates aspects of the evolution of tourism associated with the Great Barrier Reef, a major Australian tourist destination and a place inscribed on the World Heritage List.
Queen Elizabeth II was photographed alongside the Duke of Edinburgh and their daughter Princess Anne touring the attraction during their Royal Australian tour in 1970.
Cairns MP Michael Healy, who worked for Quicksilver prior to entering politics, acknowledged the observatory had historic value.
“At the end of the day, it’s lived its full life,” he said. “I think if someone was keen to preserve it, that’s terrific – and that’s an option out there.
“But these days, in a stringent world where we have to ensure that safety is a key component, it was well past its end date. I think the preservation of it would be fantastic, if somebody wants to do it.”
Billy Craig, whose family has operated Marineland Melanesia on Green Island since 1971, said he would be sad to see the observatory removed from the island, but safety was a priority.