Boost to Reef Casino profit

THE Brisbane-based senior bureaucrat tasked with delivering the Global Tourism Hub to Cairns is raking up frequent flyer points as he pulls the $1 billion deal together.

State development projects chief executive David Edwards has been visiting Cairns at least once a fortnight for one or two days at a time since the hub was announced in October last year.

The proposal includes a casino and is expected to incorporate high-end hotels and retail. The government’s preferred location is the Cairns City Port precinct in Wharf St next to the convention centre. Year season and strong performances in table games takings and hotel room operations boosted the results compared to the same period last year.

Participants at the entity’s annual general meeting yesterday afternoon also heard a distributable profit of $4.8 million for the first half of the year was estimated. Richard Haire and Keith De Lacey were also re-elected to the board.