THE CITY OF OUR DREAMS, RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW
GOLD Coast, we have achieved critical mass.
Ever since the mid-90s, the focus has been on the future of our city – how fast it was and would grow, what it could and should be,
Well guys, the future is here and it’s so bright you really do have to wear shades.
For the love of, well, Elvis, even Tom Hanks is going to make our city his home, if only temporarily. But news that the $100 million story of the King of Rock’s life, which will bring the Academy Award-winning A-lister to the Glitter Strip for the shoot early next year, is only the start,
Just this week came headlines that beachfront bars could at last become a reality. Pat Gennari, owner of Marina Mirage’s Glass and the popular Broadbeach venues Koi and The Loose Moose, is ready to spend “millions” to turn his beachfront bar dream into a reality after the success of a temporary one at Burleigh for the Bleach* Festival.
And this is no tacky bar … the plan includes a commitment to funding beach clean-up, green waste disposal and solar power and has been supported by a number of council members.
Industry heavyweight Star Entertainment Group wants in on the action too. The group, which owns the Sheraton Grand Mirage and has previously considered a beach club, would not rule out pursuing something similar at Main Beach.
It’s such an obvious capitalisation of our most fabulous natural asset that you really do have to wonder why the hell it has taken so long.
And then there’s the light rail. Despite the current tug of war between federal and state governments, it seems unthinkable that this major piece of public infrastructure should actually stall.
I’ve been a reporter for this paper in one capacity or another for a very long time. I well remember writing stories in the late 1990s postulating what this city would look like in the new millennium.
To be honest, the growth has been slower than I expected. Can you believe we’re still debating a Hinterland cableway?
But looking at the big picture, it’s plain to see the shape our city is taking.
And while I sympathise with those who long for the quieter days of the 1970s and 80s, that train, unlike the southern light trail, has officially left the station.
You really can’t stop progress and the Coast is nothing if not a progressive city. We live and die by the ever-changing nature of our playground paradise – new rides at theme parks, enhanced natural attractions, better transportation.
This is not the place to live if you’re looking for a quiet retreat. And you’ll only do your own head in arguing against it. Besides, to what purpose?
We need to own who we are and I don’t think we’ve ever been a sleepy coastal town. That’s not to say we should allow development to run riot. Good town planning makes a great town.
Once we make that plan, we need to stick to it and not make exceptions for every Tom, Dick and Harry.
Yet over the past year, I’ve spent hours interviewing some of the city’s biggest and brightest movers and shakers. While those conversations generally last for hours and range over topics both large and small, almost every interview has contained the same insight: we’ve finally hit the big time.
No longer are we the Gold Coast, Australia’s sixth largest
city, home of theme parks, beaches and the Hinterland, and former host of the Commonwealth Games.
No, like the greatest entertainers, we’re on first name basis only now. Like Cher, Madonna and Sting, we’re simply the Gold Coast, no introduction necessary. Don’t they know who we are?
Yes, yes, they do. And that’s why businesses are basing themselves here. That’s why our education institutions, from primary to high school to tertiary, are mixing it with the best in not just the nation but the world. That’s why filmmakers like Baz Luhrmann choose us as their destination.
It’s why we’re home to national sporting teams, even if we don’t yet support them the way we should.
But we’re still growing. We have time to fix those mistakes.
And while some may be saddened by the flashing, noisy nature of our city, I beg you to just think of the children.
My children, in particular. As they grow up, I have every hope they will stay here on the Gold Coast.
Because at long last there are not just jobs on the Gold Coast but careers they can have here at home.
Finally, we’re moving beyond our limitations of hospitality and tourism and creating real industry.
Of course we’ve experienced, and will continue to suffer, growing pains. So does every city that believes in a dynamic future.
But like the light rail, we are on the right track.