Strait and pharoah

Council eager to take plunge on pyramid dive site

THE Gold Coast has taken a giant leap towards building a world-first pyramid dive site off Narrowneck, with council formally opening dialogue with designers and builders from tomorrow.

Early estimates put the cost of the Gold Coast Dive Attraction between $3 million and $5 million with predictions it will generate more than 166,000 new, overnight visitors to the city and $32.8 million during the first 10 years of operation.

Dive experts predict it will attract divers from around the world to the Gold Coast.

Mayor Tom Tate said the tender process was the first significant step in realising a long-held aspiration to diversify the city’s dive and eco-tourism opportunities.

“We’re ready, the dive industry is ready and the tourism and business sectors are waiting for this project,” he said. “We’re getting on with this project while waiting on the outcome of our full business case submission to the State Government, as part of its Growing Tourism Infrastructure Fund.

“We’ve been liaising with and lobbying Tourism Minister Kate Jones for the State Government to go 50-50 on the final costs. We’re confident of a successful outcome.”

The ambitious project, which will feature a giant, underwater pyramid structure, has been proposed as an alternative to scuttling a warship off the Gold Coast.

“We want people to come to us with their ideas to design and construct,” Cr Tate said. “This is a very significant stage for the project and we’re confident we are moving towards construction stage.”

Cr Tate said the massive structure would be used by divers of different abilities – including those who could dive only 8m below the surface to advanced divers certified to dive down to 30m.

“Australia has seen enormous growth in the coastal and aquatic activities market, and the Gold Coast is well placed to harness the untapped potential of the dive tourism market, while contributing to the growth of the Queensland visitor economies,” he said.

Cr Tate said the project would “support up to 18 jobs during construction and 80 jobs once built”.

The proposed site is 3.5km southeast of the Seaway and 2.5km offshore from Main Beach. It is two nautical miles off Narrowneck and east of the Scottish Prince wreck.

The dive attraction will be eco-engineered to fast track marine growth and attract marine life. The pyramid will be the first installation in a broader, artificial dive precinct, which could include an underwater ‘garden’.

The Dive Attraction business case has been informed by a 12-month monitoring study of the Main Beach site by International Coastal Management (ICM), in partnership with the Griffith Centre for Coastal Management (GCCM).

Dive the Gold Coast owner Ian Banks said he had been impressed with the council’s “enough-isenough stance for rolling ahead with the construction of a purpose-designed and built dive attraction for recreational divers rather than awaiting fait to deliver a ship”.

Fellow Gold Coast dive enthusiast George Manolis said: “It will be a great boost for diving in this region – provided it has a bit of class and something for us to look at. Where they are planning it means operators will be able to get

to it quickly.”

... WE’RE CONFIDENT WE ARE MOVING TOWARDS CONSTRUCTION STAGE MAYOR TOM TATE