Roads key to the future

WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT THE GOLD COAST? “The openness, the Broadwater, the beaches and the hinterland, how they all work together in the one place and create something pretty special.

“I think if you go around the world you wouldn't see much like it – very rare to see something as good as what we’ve got.

“It’s something I think about nearly every week and I tell my kids every week about how good we’ve got it here.”

WHAT DO YOU THINK CAN BE DONE BETTER ON THE GOLD COAST? “Traffic is the biggest bugbear on the Coast, that accounts for most of the comments I get through my restaurant – I talk to about 1000 tourists a week.

“I can see the traffic problems building. I’m sure people have it in hand about improving it, but I think it’s the biggest single thing that needs to be fixed.

“If tourists have to sit in traffic on their holidays, they probably won’t come back.

“For the place to expand on an even keel, I think we’ve really got to concentrate on getting the traffic better.”

IN YOUR TRAVELS, WHAT HAVE YOU SEEN ELSEWHERE YOU THINK COULD WORK HERE? “Capitalising on our assets. Overseas if you go to Miami, Florida, they have a massive international cruise ship market.

“They’ve capitalised on what they have to offer and that’s why it’s so successful.

“I went to Florida and the ships were in and I could not hire a car in the whole city, I

could not get a room in the city and I couldn’t eat out in the city.

“There were people who had flown from all over the world to get on those ships.

“I think that’s a classic case of concentrating on your assets and working them to their best ability.

“The other thing they do well in the States is the superyachts ... that brings a lot of people to the city and it’s not

only the money they bring in, it also brings in atmosphere and makes it more exciting for everyone who visits.”

IF MONEY, LAWS, TIME AND APPROVALS WERE NO ISSUE, WHAT IS ONE BIG PROJECT YOU’D UNDERTAKE TOMORROW? “Wavebreak Island. There’s 320m of usable beach on

Wavebreak – the rest of the island is useless.

“You can’t let your kids in there because of what might be in the long grass.

“I would improve it and make it a boaties’ haven.

“South of Wavebreak, I would build an international Olympic sailing circuit, which has been flagged before to rave reviews from a lot of Gold Coast locals.

“There are sailing regattas all over Australia and to have an international regatta here would be a first for Australia and would draw so many more competitions to the area.

“That would also go to the visual aspect of tourism and superyachts and making people excited to be here.

“To have sailing regattas in the middle of Southport, surrounded by land at The Spit and parklands would be spectacular.

“For Wavebreak the first thing you’d need to fix is the dredging, to make it more accessible around the whole island.

“Barbecues, toilets, bins, some camping areas, playgrounds – a really familyorientated lifestyle set-up.

“You could do a mooring system to make things safer and more pleasurable, rather than boats banging into everyone.

“You’d have to make all four sides of the island accessible with weather to make it safe.” WHAT CONVERSATIONS SHOULD GOLD COAST MOVERS AND SHAKERS BE HAVING?

“Traffic would be my first one.

“I’m very pro-development but it needs to be planned, not out of control.

“We need more attractions, I feel as though the main theme parks are not enough – there are only so many times you can take your kids to those three attractions.

“I get the feeling, talking to tourists every night that they’re getting a bit sick of it too – ‘I’ve done Dreamworld again, we did it last year’.

“No-one’s bagging it, and they’re an essential part of the Gold Coast, but I think we need more.

“The skyrail they were going to do, that would be great – the one at Cairns is an amazing success.

“I understand the greenies and I understand they’ve got to have a say and they should be heard.

“Everything they say should be taken into account, but they are a minority.

“We should be expanding and building something really special on the Coast on the attraction side of things.”