TAKE THE PLUNGE EXCLUSIVE
Mayor targets Aussie warship for GC dive site cash bonanza
WE’RE famous for our beaches and our surf, but the Gold Coast’s tourism future could lie beneath the waves.
The city council has its sights set on a recently retired naval warship, HMAS Darwin, to scuttle about 2.3km off The Spit, creating a manmade reef to draw in all sorts of marine species and with them, a thriving dive industry that economic modelling shows would immediately sink $5.4 million into the local economy.
“We need to keep reinventing ourselves,’’ Mayor Tom Tate said yesterday, adding that a dive site was the next logical step in the quest to keep adding attractions to the city’s tourism arsenal.
THE Gold Coast City Council will target a retired naval warship in the hope of sinking it to create a dive site off The Spit, which could bring in an economic high tide for the city.
And in the sights of the city’s periscope is the recently retired HMAS Darwin, a target that tourism industry figures say could deliver millions of dollars to the economy.
Leading the push is Mayor Tom Tate who said a dive site was a logical step in creating new attractions for the city.
“There is no doubt we are one of Australia’s major tourist destinations but one thing about being a tourism city is that we need to keep reinventing ourselves and that means additional infrastructure,” he said.
“Whether that means spending more money on our theme parks or getting our cruise ship terminal ready, the next part will be developing our diving industry.
“This could mean building our own structure but I would prefer to get something historic and significant like a navy ship.
“Everyone knows we are famous for our beaches and the ocean. We could also be famous for what is in our vibrant marine life. It is abundant and is something we can get the world to know.
“The best way to do this would be to have a signature dive site.”
Council modelling suggests it would immediately add $5.4 million in direct and indirect economic benefits to the city. The modelling, completed in 2016, suggested it would immediately create 73 full timeequivalent jobs, with the flowon to bring in another 81 positions and a further $6.1 million within three years.
Cr Tate said the dive industry had the potential to be worth more than $36 million once established.
The Darwin, an Adelaideclass guided missile frigate, served in the Persian Gulf, East Timor and the Solomon Islands during its 33-year career before being decommissioned this month.
A final site has not been named but it is expected to be 2.3km off The Spit at a depth of 30m. A report by town planning agency Cardno said a sunken ship would have “no effect on waves’’ on the Gold Coast.
It would take about 20 minutes to make the boat journey from Marina Mirage.
Gold Coast Tourism chairman Paul Donovan, speaking to the Bulletin from Canada, said there was “no question”.
“It is a missing area for the Gold Coast and if we had something like the HMAS
Darwin we could market it not only in Australia but in Japan and other areas,” he said.
“It would be fantastic and if you look at our tourists, they are coming here but not staying very long and this is something we need to change.”
The council began investigating the attraction in 2010, with a preference for scuttling a naval vessel because it would have iconic and historic value, would become immediately inhabited by marine life and would be the appropriate height for all suitable dive levels.
After being placed on hold in 2013, other options were investigated before focus returned to scuttling a naval vessel in 2016.
The Department of Tourism issued an expression of interest that year but ultimately the Gold Coast missed out on the Tobruk, sparking a battle between Cr Tate and Minister Steve Ciobo.
It is understood the council is prepared to commit more than $1 million to the project from contingency funding in its budget.
We need to keep reinventing ourselves
MAYOR TOM TATE