LOCAL event planners can start popping the champagne with several items on their Sugar Wharf wish list set to be ticked off in coming months.
Douglas Shire Council has finished laying down new timber outdoor decking and completed below deck structural repairs including replacing corroded belts, steel fixings, missing bracings and rotting timber.
More works can now start thanks to a $250,000 grant through the Queensland Government’s Building Our Regions program.
(Top row ) Aerial photos by Mac Zimmer. (Above) Event Core’s Nick White setting up for an event on the newly refurbished Sugar Wharf
Douglas Shire Mayor Michael Kerr said all work would be meticulously completed under the watchful eye of heritage specialists.
“The outdoor deck is a stunning location overlooking Dickson’s Inlet making it popular for sunset gatherings,” he said.
“The upcoming works includes five new toilets at the rear of the building, renovation of the original internal timber decking to replace the current patchwork of floor coverings, plumbing and electrical upgrades and installation of a stainless bench and built-in sink in the south-east entrance lobby.
“An interior wall introduced in the 1980s will be removed to create a larger space, increasing capacity, and importantly, capitalise on the lofty raked ceiling and exposed rafters which provide the wow factor of the building.”
Event planners met Council staff and architects on the waterfront late last year to discuss what improvements were needed at the signature wedding and special events location.
State Development Minister Kate Jones said the government was proud to be partnering with councils and the private sector to deliver projects that create jobs.
“We are facing one of the most difficult times in our State’s history. But we know that to fast-track Queensland’s economic recovery, we need to invest in job-creating projects in regional Queensland,” she said.
“This program will not only create hundreds of construction jobs across the regions, it will create more employment opportunities for locals, helping small businesses in these communities and boosting industry supply chains.”
Building our Regions Round 5 focuses on construction and planning projects that will create and sustain long-term employment in regional Queensland.
Visit Council’s project page for more information https://douglas.qld.gov.au/sugar-wharf-upgrade/
Proudly funded by the Queensland Government’s Building our Regions program
