Society & Culture Gold Coast CBD/Inner City Watch

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Hey Experimental, you may be interested in this. I was reading an article about the Southport CBD area the other day and it stated $2 billion worth of projects are about to kick off in the area. It specifically said 5000 apartments had been approved which is really interesting to me. My understanding is that the apartments will vary between 1-3 bedrooms but let's just say it adds an extra 12,000 people to the area. I'm not sure how many people currently live in the CBD area but I'm just going to guess the population will be something like 15,000 when those 5000 extra apartments are built. That equates to about 3% of the Gold Coast population all living within a 2 square kms of each other. Compare this to a major city like Melbourne that only has 0.006% of its population living in the CBD area and you get a bit of an idea of how important the Gold Coast CBD could be in the future. I don't think it'll be too long before the CBD area becomes its own suburb. But, of course, the important aspect of a CBD is to have more jobs in the area than any other part of the city. 41,000sq m of commercial and office space also being approved indicates the area is well on its way to achieving the goal of truly being the central business district.

Once the light rail is extended to the heavy rail we'll have two major CBDs connected to each by public transport and that can only be a good thing for both cities.
 
Matchu said:
Hey Experimental, you may be interested in this. I was reading an article about the Southport CBD area the other day and it stated $2 billion worth of projects are about to kick off in the area. It specifically said 5000 apartments had been approved which is really interesting to me. My understanding is that the apartments will vary between 1-3 bedrooms but let's just say it adds an extra 12,000 people to the area. I'm not sure how many people currently live in the CBD area but I'm just going to guess the population will be something like 15,000 when those 5000 extra apartments are built. That equates to about 3% of the Gold Coast population all living within a 2 square kms of each other. Compare this to a major city like Melbourne that only has 0.006% of its population living in the CBD area and you get a bit of an idea of how important the Gold Coast CBD could be in the future. I don't think it'll be too long before the CBD area becomes its own suburb. But, of course, the important aspect of a CBD is to have more jobs in the area than any other part of the city. 41,000sq m of commercial and office space also being approved indicates the area is well on its way to achieving the goal of truly being the central business district.

Once the light rail is extended to the heavy rail we'll have two major CBDs connected to each by public transport and that can only be a good thing for both cities.
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Very interesting indeed man.

I was actually driving around the CBD area and Chinatown last night with my girlfriend. It was somewhat sad to see the old hospital in the state that it's in, but the new Chinatown area was looking pretty cool - mainly after having seen the proposed 'look' for the streets.

I think though that if what you say eventuates and there's a high population in such a small area, the light rail will be very well utilised. So exciting.
 
Experimental said:
Very interesting indeed man.

I was actually driving around the CBD area and Chinatown last night with my girlfriend. It was somewhat sad to see the old hospital in the state that it's in, but the new Chinatown area was looking pretty cool - mainly after having seen the proposed 'look' for the streets.

I think though that if what you say eventuates and there's a high population in such a small area, the light rail will be very well utilised. So exciting.
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What did you think of the Chinatown area? I don't believe the Confucius statue or Asian lanterns have been installed just yet but there are some Asian aspects to the area (besides the stores) such as road crossings being in the shape of Asian flowers and the banners on the light poles. Last time I drove through I was pleasantly surprised to see how well lit the area is these days.

There's no doubt in my mind that the light rail usage will continue to grow as the CBD builds. Some of those approved apartments in the CBD are specifically set aside for students so they alone will use the light rail to get to the university and will probably use it on weekends to travel to Surfers Paradise/Broadbeach for weekend events. It'll go both ways because there are plenty of people who will live in Main Beach/Surfers Paradise/Broadbeach who will travel up to the CBD for work and utilise the light rail to make that happen. Just using Broadbeach as an example, there was an article in the Bulletin about two months ago that pointed out the lack of apartments in Broadbeach compared to the demand. People want to live in Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach but they are struggling a little to keep up with the demand. So we'll see more high rises go up in those areas due to the demand and there will be plenty of people living along the current light rail route.

The really great thing about the light rail in the CBD area is that everything is within 1km of a light rail station. Basically what I'm saying is that everything in the CBD is within walking distance and that will probably lead to people choosing to walk instead of using their cars. That's a positive because people on the Gold Coast are very reliant on their cars and the roads in Southport probably aren't big enough to support that many people using cars.
 

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I drove through the CBD and Chinatown areas at about 10pm on a Thursday so there wasn't much going on, and despite not actually knowing the exact location of the new Chinatown, as soon as I drove down the street I knew straight away. The lights in the trees were there and there was an oriental atmosphere to it but there wasn't much else. Still looked great though.

After I finish my uni course at QUT I'm planning on moving to the GC for full time work at the GCUH, while also studying part time post-grad at Griffith. Sounds like these student apartments at Southport might be good for me!
 
Good stuff mate. You would have noticed the Chinatown precinct is just about right in the middle of the CBD area so it's in the ideal location. It's getting there but there is still work to be done to truly feel like a proper Chinatown.

Not a bad idea moving to the CBD and commuting to the university/hospital every day via tram or car. You're probably already aware that both the university and the hospital have their own individual tram stops and is probably only 10 minutes travel time from the CBD. Then you have Surfers Paradise (10 minutes) and Broadbeach (17 minutes) within manageable distances away also. I think it would be really interesting to actually live in the CBD area now and watch it grow over the next decade.

Getting to Metricon from the CBD is pretty simple as well. You just drive west on North Street and take the Olsen Avenue exit heading south and you'll eventually end up at the T intersection on Nerang-Broadbeach Road. You can't miss the stadium to your right when you get to the intersection. I'm not sure if they run free shuttles to the game from the CBD just yet but I presume they will in the near future.
 
Experimental, little more news on Chinatown in the GC Bulletin today:

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Chinatown gates to be built in Southport by council
CHINESE gates could rise in Southport’s Young St as early as next month as Chinatown takes shape.

Gold Coast City Council will push ahead with building one of the three paifang gates, which will become some of the centrepieces of the precinct.

The gates will be called harmony, harvest and wealth.

The $275,000 “harmony” gate will be paid for by council.

The “harvest” gate will be donated to the city by a group of Chinese investors while the design of the “wealth” paifang has been done by one of the Gold Coast’s China-based sister cities.

The harmony gate will be unveiled on February 19 to mark Chinese New Year.

The launch is also expected to include the unveiling of a 4m tall statue of Confucius at the intersection of Davenport and Young sts.

The statue arrived in Brisbane late last month and will be brought south over the Christmas period.
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Experimental said:
Looking good! I'm hoping the accountant and bulk food store will be moved/closed before everything opens? :\
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All the non-Asian related stores will be moved out eventually and hopefully before the official opening on Chinese New Year in February 2015. The Southport MP is currently working hard to move an adult shop out of the Chinatown precinct. There will also be more Asian stores opening on the eastern entrance with the Australia Fair Metro renovations taking place.

This renovation:

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Currently looks like this:

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Matchu said:
Guess who's finally arrived in Southport Experimental. 4 metres in height.

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Looking great!

What's the go with the Chinatown area now? I drove through a couple of weeks ago and it looks abandoned, with the occasional random non-Chinese shops scattered around. What's the ETA on a thriving and busy Chinatown that we can all be proud of?
 
Experimental said:
Looking great!

What's the go with the Chinatown area now? I drove through a couple of weeks ago and it looks abandoned, with the occasional random non-Chinese shops scattered around. What's the ETA on a thriving and busy Chinatown that we can all be proud of?
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That's a difficult question to answer. I guess it's really up to Chinese/Asian community on the Gold Coast and how quickly/if they accept it as being genuine. You can't buy culture, it evolves over time. According to the GC mayor there will be night time markets held in the precinct every month from April 2015. As you were driving through you may have seen the fenced off area straight in front and to the left, presuming you entered from the north. That building is owned by the Australia Fair Shopping Centre who area apparently very happy to lease it out to Asian businesses in an attempt to build an Asian shopping area and food court. You also have the paifangs (gates) and lanterns that light up hanging over the road to be installed in the near future. Then you have perhaps one of the most important parts of the precinct being proposed to the council last week. It is a two-tower project called Cienna and will be built on the spare land in the western part of the precinct. Pictures:

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Perhaps once this is all completed we will have a vibrant Chinatown precinct that we can be proud of.
 
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The Chinese New Year Festival 2015 will be the first event in the Gold Coast Chinatown precinct to mark the new lunar year in the Chinese calendar.

The Chinese New Year Festival will be dedicated to showcasing the very best and most creative street food traders, multicultural cuisine, activity and entertainment that the city has to offer.

The Chinese New Year Festival 2015 will incorporate an Asian focused street food market component, to inspire a celebration of food for locals and visitors. The street food market will have an eclectic mix of stalls with traditional and modern offerings of Asian street food, as well as cultural merchandise.

This festival welcomes everyone to celebrate our local multicultural community. Bring along family and friends, a picnic blanket and your festive spirit as we celebrate the inaugural Chinese New Year Festival in Gold Coast Chinatown.

Highlights include:
  • Asian Food Market
  • Live roving entertainment and street performances
  • Arts and cultural performances on the main stage - every hour between 3pm and 9pm
  • Interactive cultural workshops
  • Interactive cooking displays
  • Outdoor cinema
  • Fireworks
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Source
 
The renders of these twin towers (88 stories and 40 stories) were revealed yesterday and will be built in Chinatown. Pretty exciting Experimental!

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Kinda reminds me of the wave building in Broadbeach Matchu. I saw that on the news last night actually - they were talking about the new GC CBD and all the new developments. It's all starting to take off!
 
Experimental said:
Kinda reminds me of the wave building in Broadbeach Matchu. I saw that on the news last night actually - they were talking about the new GC CBD and all the new developments. It's all starting to take off!
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Do you recall any other projects they mentioned?
 
Matchu said:
Do you recall any other projects they mentioned?
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Not the names in particular but they focused on the one you posted with the two towers, as well as another one in Southport that was impressively gigantic!
 
Not quite Southport CBD but new plans were revealed for the Gold Coast Cultural Precinct today:

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The second picture shows the new amphitheater nicknamed 'the splash' with the Surfers Paradise skyline in the background. Stage One will cost $37.5 million and will be completed before the 2018 Comm Games. Plans also include a light rail extension to the cultural precinct from Surfers Paradise. Opinions? Experimental?
 
Matchu said:
Not quite Southport CBD but new plans were revealed for the Gold Coast Cultural Precinct today:

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The second picture shows the new amphitheater nicknamed 'the splash' with the Surfers Paradise skyline in the background. Stage One will cost $37.5 million and will be completed before the 2018 Comm Games. Plans also include a light rail extension to the cultural precinct from Surfers Paradise. Opinions? Experimental?
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I think it's a fantastic idea. Extending the light rail there is a stupid and unrealistic idea though - it'll never happen. A bridge and walkway over/through the Nerang River is the only option I can think of given the available space and property, similar to the Brisbane river walk. It's only a few hundred metres from the current light rail line anyway, with an extension costing hundreds of millions for something that'll rarely be used as compared with somewhere like Metricon. Overall though, I'm glad to see so many new projects up and running, especially with the intention of them all being built prior to 2018.
 
Experimental said:
I think it's a fantastic idea. Extending the light rail there is a stupid and unrealistic idea though - it'll never happen. A bridge and walkway over/through the Nerang River is the only option I can think of given the available space and property, similar to the Brisbane river walk. It's only a few hundred metres from the current light rail line anyway, with an extension costing hundreds of millions for something that'll rarely be used as compared with somewhere like Metricon. Overall though, I'm glad to see so many new projects up and running, especially with the intention of them all being built prior to 2018.
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It does seem like a waste of money but it's in the plans from what I've seen. A ferry terminal is also in the plans which I think is a much better option. A quick Google Maps search tells me the walk from the western most part of Cavill Ave in Surfers Paradise to the part of Chevron Island that will eventually have a bridge built is a 1.4km apart. So you're probably looking at about a 1.5km walk from Cavill Avenue to the Cultural Precinct which I imagine most people won't be interested in doing. That's why a ferry terminal is necessary. You can see the planned ferry terminal in this picture:

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Obviously a lot of it will be arts based but the plans also include riverfront dining, cafes, a man-made beach and hotels. There is even a chapel. Perhaps most importantly for the Gold Coast will be the creation of a multistory car park in the precinct on the corner of Bundall Rd and Crombie Ave. A few more pictures and a video:



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Just to give a bit of perspective, this is what the area currently looks like:

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I've noticed more and more things including a ferry service in their plans. Is there any word on if/when the ferry service will be going ahead? It's obviously several years until the Comm Games which is ultimately the goal to have the service up and running, but it'd be good to have it running well prior.

I know there are waterway speed restrictions in place, but I'm not sure who has the control over changing it. Is this the only speed bump?

Quite honestly, the ferry service that's been proposed to run from Metricon Stadium through to Labrador/Runaway Bay would be one of the best things to happen to the GC in a very long time. While the light rail is fantastic, it's very difficult to fund and build given the type of infrastructure and traffic chaos is causes. The ferry is a very different type of infrastructure which only requires the ferries themselves, as well as the terminals to be built. The the state and federal governments, combined with the GCCC, made the light rail a reality so I'd trust that they'd get this moving ASAP.
 
Experimental said:
I've noticed more and more things including a ferry service in their plans. Is there any word on if/when the ferry service will be going ahead? It's obviously several years until the Comm Games which is ultimately the goal to have the service up and running, but it'd be good to have it running well prior.

I know there are waterway speed restrictions in place, but I'm not sure who has the control over changing it. Is this the only speed bump?

Quite honestly, the ferry service that's been proposed to run from Metricon Stadium through to Labrador/Runaway Bay would be one of the best things to happen to the GC in a very long time. While the light rail is fantastic, it's very difficult to fund and build given the type of infrastructure and traffic chaos is causes. The ferry is a very different type of infrastructure which only requires the ferries themselves, as well as the terminals to be built. The the state and federal governments, combined with the GCCC, made the light rail a reality so I'd trust that they'd get this moving ASAP.
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I agree it would be a game changer for the Gold Coast and shouldn't cost anywhere near the amount a light rail extension would. I think I read in the Bulletin that the Gold Coast has double the amount of canals that Venice has so it makes sense. Anyone who has been on the ferry in Sydney knows how well it can work if it's implemented correctly.

The speed restrictions were the only issue as far as I was concerned. To the best of my knowledge there are plans in place for ferry terminals at Broadwater Parklands (Southport), Appel Park (Surfers Paradise), Cultural Precinct (Bundall) and Metricon Stadium (Carrara). A ferry system already exists in the north that runs to South Stradbroke Island from Runaway Bay, Sanctuary Cove and Main Beach. So some of the infrastructure is probably already in place.

Would Jackie Trad (Transport Minister) be the one to contact on this or would the GC Council have all the info?
 
Matchu said:
I agree it would be a game changer for the Gold Coast and shouldn't cost anywhere near the amount a light rail extension would. I think I read in the Bulletin that the Gold Coast has double the amount of canals that Venice has so it makes sense. Anyone who has been on the ferry in Sydney knows how well it can work if it's implemented correctly.

The speed restrictions were the only issue as far as I was concerned. To the best of my knowledge there are plans in place for ferry terminals at Broadwater Parklands (Southport), Appel Park (Surfers Paradise), Cultural Precinct (Bundall) and Metricon Stadium (Carrara). A ferry system already exists in the north that runs to South Stradbroke Island from Runaway Bay, Sanctuary Cove and Main Beach. So some of the infrastructure is probably already in place.

Would Jackie Trad (Transport Minister) be the one to contact on this or would the GC Council have all the info?
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I don't know how they'd do it, because it's south of the Nerang river, but I thought I remember reading that the new Jupiters Casino construction would include a ferry terminal at the back too. Maybe I made it up - not sure haha.
 
Experimental said:
I don't know how they'd do it, because it's south of the Nerang river, but I thought I remember reading that the new Jupiters Casino construction would include a ferry terminal at the back too. Maybe I made it up - not sure haha.
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I think one of the ferry terminals is planned to be around the Jupiters/Convention Centre area. You can't build a ferry system on the Gold Coast without including Broadbeach.

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