05 Dec 2019
Words
Ben Hall Informer Issue 96
Australia's Regional City Rejuvenation
Our capital cities are overloaded and, in some cases, “crushloaded”. Australians living in our big cities are experiencing crippling commute times, over-crowded public transport, school shortages and an under supply of affordable housing.
The numbers don’t lie. Across the country, we're adding almost 400,000 people a year and the populations of Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth have increased by nearly three million people in the past 10 years. Now we're feeling the strain.
Our population is set to get even bigger. There'll be almost 40 million people living in Australia by the middle of the century.
So what to do?
With no clear national plan, the states have had to deal with overcrowding and infrastructure that is struggling to keep up with the population. It’s driven the need for decentralisation and now regional cities have been earmarked for massive infrastructure and social investment. We take a look at the regional rejuvenation taking place in three cities – Sunshine Coast, Wollongong and Geelong - that are set to be transformed into major economic centres in Australia.
SUNSHINE COAST – BUILDING A CITY OF THE FUTURE
Just north of Brisbane, the “Sunny Coast” has for decades been the epitome of the laid-back, innocent Australian beach holiday destination. Thongs, burger bars and families in caravan parks were all part of the Sunshine Coast DNA for decades.
Take the short spin up the M1 from Brisbane today, however, and see how that’s all going.
To say big things are happening is a massive understatement. The former sleepy weekend getaway joint is in the middle of literally building a new city and economy based on a clear 20-year economic plan. More than $20 billion in infrastructure projects and private investment have either been completed, is under construction or in the planning pipeline.
A new city, currently the only greenfield CBD in Australia, is being built now and the $430 million Maroochydore City Centre is at the heart of the Sunshine Coast’s rejuvenation. The 53-hectare site is one of the largest urban regeneration projects in Australia’s history with a former golf course being transformed into a CBD for the future.
On completion, ‘The Bright City’, as it’s been dubbed, will be a sprawling hub of commerce, technology, innovation, entertainment and inner-city living. New changes to the Queensland government’s priority development scheme will see the delivery of up to 4,000 new apartments.
It all sounds like something that only China would attempt, but there is a raft of other major projects which have been completed and are set for development in the coming years.
SunCentral Maroochydore, the company overseeing design and delivery of the new city centre, was established by Sunshine Coast Council in 2015 to build one of the largest urban regeneration projects in the country.
“With its contemporary urban design as well as it residential, commercial and lifestyle facilities, Maroochydore CBD will cater not only to people of today, but also to future generations,” said SunCentral Maroochydore chief executive John Knaggs.
A new A$1.8 billion tertiary teaching hospital opened in 2017 and the Sunshine Coast Airport is to be expanded to deliver Australia's next international airport. The construction of a new $347 million runway at Sunshine Coast airport is underway and will result in direct flights to and from Asia. Independent assessments value the economic benefit of the upgrade at $4.1 billion in 20 years after it opens, with up to two million more passengers attracted by 2040.
Other major infrastructure projects include Aura, one of Australia’s largest masterplanned community developments with a $7 billion investment which will deliver residential homes for 50,000 people.
Then there’s the Sunshine Coast International Broadband Submarine Cable, Sunshine Coast Light Rail (due by 2025), Bruce Highway expansion and upgrade project and expansion plans for the University of Sunshine Coast. (An $81 million expansion of the University of the Sunshine Coast was completed in 2015.)
“Apart from strong business confidence, the region’s population is expected to continue to grow faster than the national average with more than 500,000 residents predicted to call the Sunshine Coast home by 2040,” Knaggs said.
Knaggs said $10 million had already been invested in underground telecommunications and data infrastructure that will ensure the new CBD is one of the most digitally advanced cities in the country.
With these major infrastructure projects either planned or under way, the region’s gross regional product is expected to soar from $16 billion to $33 billion by 2033, triggering a boost to employment and household incomes.
Clearly, this is an important time in the history of the Sunshine Coast as the region becomes a major Australian urban and economic centre.
