Major boost for projects in council’s 2010/11 budget

Thirteen major projects across the Sunshine Coast have received more than $28 million in funding from council’s 2010/11 budget, with a total of $ 54.89 million provisionally allocated across the next five years.

The funding boost will provide for street scaping, clubhouses, community spaces, transit hubs, new bridges and roads, road upgrades and sporting complexes.

Major Projects Portfolio Councillor Debbie Blumel said council is committed to ensuring these projects are delivered on time, at cost and at quality.

“Major projects are often complex projects that are singled out because of their significance to our community and council’s capacity to manage regional growth,” Cr Blumel said.

“Importantly, these projects often create opportunities to diversify jobs and advance council’s vision to become the most sustainable region.

“Good planning and good project management ensures that these projects will be able to deliver benefits to our community long after construction has finished.”

Funds were provisionally allocated within the five-year budget to the following major projects:

• Bulcock Street: $2.64million to stage and implement street scaping works that will include underground power, street furniture and street tree planting. Design is currently underway.
• Meridan Fields: $2.01million for the ongoing implementation of the master plan including construction of clubhouse and community space through staged construction. The clubhouse is currently under construction, with completion of stage 1 and commencement of stage 2 design to happen in the 2010/11 financial year.
• Bulcock Beach Esplanade Redevelopment: $825,000 for the staged and ongoing foreshore redevelopment. It will provide a focal area within the designated “Tourist Hub” of the Caloundra Central Business Area, an important node along the proposed Sunshine Coast Coastal Path, and a recreational facility within a network of open spaces in Sunshine Coast region. Construction of stage 1 is complete.
• Tooway Bridge: $2.68million of construction works to continue the replacement of the existing timber structure with a modern concrete structure including cycleways and pathways.
• Maroochydore Transit Hub: $8.14million to provide a bus station in Horton Parade with bus stops on each side of the road. It will replace the current under-capacity facility within the Sunshine Plaza complex. Translink Transit Authority will contribute $5.5m to this project. Planning is already underway.
• Brisbane Road Mooloolaba: $5.3million to provide for planning of four lanes between Amarina Avenue and Venning Street, design and construction of two bridges incorporating cycle lanes and a CoastConnect bus corridor. Planning and preliminary design work is underway.
• South Coolum Road: $8.15million for a future road link between South Coolum Road and Suncoast Beach Drive and the extension of Suncoast Beach Drive through to West Coolum Road, Coolum.
• North Shore Community Centre, Mudjimba: $3.7million (including federal grant funding of $3.5million) for the design and construction of a district level community centre for the North Shore. Integrated within a multi sports setting, it will accommodate the community’s needs to come together for social, recreational and cultural activities as well as being a centre for the delivery of community services in the area. Detailed design is currently under review.
• Girraween Sporting Complex: $4.4 million (including $1.5 million of state government funding) to create a Little Athletics facility in the Noosa region. Construction will be staged, and the finished facility will include car parking, landscaping, an amenities building with change rooms and toilets, athletics areas, cycle criterium track and two senior soccer fields.
• Noosa Transit Centre: $10.45million to relocate the main transit centre to Noosa Junction to increase passenger and bus capacity. Planning and design phases have commenced, with construction estimated for completion by the end of 2010. The project is jointly funded by council, Australian Government Infrastructure Australia Grant and the Translink Transit Authority.
• Park Road Noosa: $1.6million to replace the existing pedestrian boardwalk and stabilise the road embankment to provide a more permanent solution to the long term slippage of the roadway. Community engagement is continuing on this project and a community reference group has been formed.
• Streetscape of Maple Street, Maleny: $840,000 to implement stage 3 streetscaping works including underground power, street furniture and street tree planting.