Nambour Groups: Council risks seriously knee-capping the very type of activity it should be encouraging

Rhonda Billett “Car parks are an essential ingredient of a thriving and profitable CBD and I think the reason so many locals are so upset over this proposal is because so many of the community use it.”

Nambour Groups chair Rhonda Billett says the backlash over the Howard Street car park highlights a wider issue: housing is welcome, but not at the expense of what keeps the CBD working.

Ms Billett said Nambour was entering a period of renewed activity after years of limited investment which brought with it opportunity and pressure. She said by selling the carpark, Council risked seriously knee-capping the very type of activity it should be encouraging.

“Car parks are an essential ingredient of a thriving and profitable CBD and I think the reason so many locals are so upset over this proposal is because so many of the community use it,” she said. “It enables the business that does happen in the CBD to happen and this cannot be overlooked.

“Nambour and surrounds are growing and there is more growth coming,” she said. “As a town we are not accustomed to this type of economic activity, having been starved of any significant government or private investment in our CBD for a long time.”

She said while proposals such as land acquisitions for development were common across the Sunshine Coast, the local impact on the Howard Street precinct needed to be carefully considered. “These types of acquisitions do happen frequently in other areas of the Sunshine Coast, this is not just a Nambour thing,” she said.

However, Ms Billett said the strong and immediate community response reflected how heavily people relied on the Howard Street car park.

Ms Billett said Nambour Groups supported investment and renewal, but not at the cost of core infrastructure. “Our Nambour Groups will always warmly welcome economic investment and improvements into the Nambour CBD,” she said.

“These elements are essential to see Nambour thrive into the future so we can all live, work and play here in our charming part of the Sunshine Coast. We just need to get the balance right for the community in this instance.”

• Council has deferred a decision on the proposed sale of the Howard Street/Sydney Street car park – to Coast2Bay for a housing dvelopment – after widespread community opposition. Local organisations including the Nambour Chamber of Commerce, Nambour Groups and community advocacy group NAMBOUR NOW all oppose the sale. Readers can view and sign a petition raised by Nambour Now opposing the sale at www.change.org via https://c.org/BbTtMCWyYN