City is decaying
WITHOUT a doubt Townsville is suffering urban decay.
Unemployment, crime, boarded up buildings, for lease signs adorning numerous buildings, hundreds of homes are empty because home prices have plummeted and real estate promoting that dilemma by advertising “don’t buy one home in Brisbane, buy two or three in Townsville”.
Homes should not be selling for less than 10 years ago, for instance in my street $ 320,000 10 years ago, now $ 265,000.
This city and its leaders were quite happy to ride the mining boom and military, but tourism is what brings growth. Just take a trip to Cairns. It will take more than a football stadium to turn this city around. It all makes me wonder what Townsville Enterprise does. No trouble getting funding for the stadium – now there is a fight over funding for a sustainable water supply, which I believe should have gotten first priority.
What does Townsville offer visitors … an empty city heart.
A freshwater lagoon would be a good idea on The Strand.
Castle Hill – can’t even buy a cold drink once up there – a cable car system would be great.
Magnetic Island – tourists passing through to Cairns have told me once they had been to the Whitsunday Islands no need to visit Magnetic Island. I guess they are right. Townsville doesn’t even have a railway station, it has a rail siding. Anyone had a look at the railway station in Cairns?
No wonder that end of the city is dead. Closing the central rail station took people away from the city – it hasn’t yet died, just hanging on for life.
Government should first up scrap the first home buyers scheme. This is backing up the building of new homes which is great for them, developers and council, and there would be a surplus of homes and units, but not great for the selling of established homes.
Homes in Townsville are not the investment they should be. Then if politicians had courage – scrap negative gearing – it favours the very few. IAN BRAGG,
Wulguru.