Sunday 13 December 2009

Turtle speed development on Cairns wharf

I think the new public art that has appeared on the city wharf redevelopment precinct, is a great symbol of how this is all progressing.

First they ripped out the historic 100-year-old yacht club building, then replaced it with a fence to keep people out.

I'm somewhat amused by the ironic propaganda the adorns the construction fences around the site.

"A place for people" the signage boasts. It was a place for the people. Ordinary people. It seems that it will be the people of the Port Authority's choosing. They didn't really want crusty old sailors and fishermen hanging around a rusty old building, did they?

5 comments:

Bryan Law said...

I’m sick of politicians who get elected to represent the people and then, after election, begin to think their job is “managing” the people’s business. Desley Boyle is not a manager. Steve Wettenhall is not a manager. Jim Turnour is not a manager’s arsehole.

The Cairns Port Authority has a board full of political appointments (read mediocre, talentless hacks) and got so greedy on the rising market that when they looked at the Cairns waterfront all they could see was dollar signs. They got so greedy they screwed us.

Desley Boyle was faced with a choice between screwing the people of Cairns for illusory dollars, or standing up for her constituents and doing something unique, sustainable and welcome to ordinary folk. Gutless, greedy, and stupid, Desley decided that constituents were mugs and money is king.

Now we’ve got a bit of dirt and a couple of signs. A place for people indeed. A place stolen from the people more like.

OK, that was a bit harsh. With effort, Jim Turnour could improve himself to become a manager’s arsehole.

Rob Williams said...

Not harsh enough Bryan. 12,000 people signed a petition to save the 100 year old building on site where it was. The LNP promised $850,000 to refurbish the place. Instead Desley and Anna lied to us about building a $6 million Yacht Club on the point and the history of Cairns went to the wreckers. Desley will retire on the Gold or Sunshine Coast and Cairns will become a forgotten thing of the past for her. Clive Skarott (CPA, CEO,) said, “Why save it, we will all be dead in 20 years!” Seems like it will take that long for the CPA to build something else in the “Peoples Place”.

Lillian at Yorkeys said...

I completely agree with the blokes above. I've always thought it was suss - well, apart from all the suss stuff that happened with the old Yacht Club, that at the time of fighting to retain the Club building on its site, there was a lease signed between Cairns Ports & some crew called South Pacific Bridal. I reckon that there's a story in that one.

Michael said...

As bad as the destroying the yacht club was, the remaining open space is to be developed for the select few and denied to the public except for a narrow band of access along the front. This area had the potential to be the best public land in Cairns but not when the development whores can make a dollar.

Rob Williams said...

You are right Mike. Builders who can't build anything without it leaking and they havent been tested by a Cat 4 yet. Tracy dumped 15 inches of rain in 8 hours, will all those new High Rises cope with that? See CP front page 16/12. Harbour Lights is cracking up already. (Wrong pour concrete), and as the salt water gets into the reo the foundations will explode. Some paid $500K. Poor bastards. My engineer friend may be right. We may live to see the thing tilt into Trinity like the leaning Tower of Pizza. The Hilton is suffering the same fate. Rising salt along Wharf Street. It’s even affecting the Casino pavement.
Every tenant along there should invest in a boat.. But the Aquatic. It was there for 100 years and would have been there another 100 because its was built by decent builders who understood the environment. As for the politicians.. Are they on fire yet?