Decision taken on new look Sugarworld

Cairns Regional Council has agreed to redevelop its Sugarworld waterpark, rebuilding the attraction with two new slides along with a new 110 metre, four-lane 'mat racer' slide and a children's play area with a tipping bucket, small slides and cannons. The redevelopment will also see the retention of the waterpark's wading pool.

The decision followed a public consultation on three options presented to the Council by leisure and tourism consultants SGL. The options, developed following the closure of the park in April when four of its slides were found to be in a dangerous deterioration, were for:

• Redevelopment as an âinnovativeâ new park comprising the replacement slides; the four-lane racer slide; a children's play area with a tipping bucket, small slides and cannons, and the retention of the wading pool;
• The installation of four new slides similar in design to existing ones, with the removal of the splash pool and its replacement with a flat wet area;
• The development of new waterpark at the nearby Edmonton Leisure Centre including the installation of two slides operating from a single platform.
Cairns Regional Council last week approved a redesigned waterpark based on 80% of 757 public votes backing the proposal.

By contrast, the option to rebuild the slides 'like for like' received just 8% backing.

Mayor Val Schier says that the Council's council decision to conduct a study into the redevelopment was vindicated by strong support for a new design, telling The Cairns Post that its decision not to bow to a "vocal minority" that wanted the waterpark rebuilt without any major changes was confirmed by the backing for a new design.

Mayor Schier explained "I'm really glad that we are now not locked into providing facilities that are 30 years out of date.

"I think it's really interesting that people are saying, 'well this (decision) was going to be obvious' (as) it wasn't obvious because the 'like for like' vocal minority was really trying to push their view."

However, The Cairns Post reported that Paul Drabble, who campaigned for the 'like for like' option as sating the public consultation was an example of excessive red tape holding up projects and wasting ratepayers, money.

Drabble, part of a group of locals who tendered for the feasibility study after receiving quotes that showed the slides could have been replaced in six months, stated "after all the time they spent on it (the study), only 757 people, in the end, voted.

"It just shows how with this council we are locked into this process of countless red tape where planning for anything is extended out to a point where nothing gets done for months."

Drabble added that the poorly-attended public briefing should not have been held on State of Origin night and should have been closer to the Edmonton area.

The Council has budgeted $4 million for the redevelopment.

For more information on SGL consultants go to /www.sglgroup.net/index.html

14th July 2010 - SGL TAKES ON SUGARWORLD WATERPARK FEASIBILITY STUDY