Construction is rapidly progressing on a new commercial marina that would help boost the tourism economy in the Australian city of Brisbane.
Colmslie Wharves will be Brisbane's only dedicated commercial marina, providing overnight berthing for tourism and commercial vessels operating on the Brisbane River and Moreton Bay.
Leasing for the first berths has commenced ahead of an expected opening in the middle of this year.
Colmslie Wharves has received development approval from the Brisbane City Council and is being delivered by Raptis Investments with AU$4 million (US$2.8 million) in support from the Queensland Government's tourism expansion fund.
The marina will feature 50 berths designed to accommodate vessels up to 50 metres in length, together with crew amenities, fuel provisioning, waste management and ample car parking.
The marina has been forecast to inject more than AU$100 million (US$70 million) a year into the local economy and attract almost 110,000 additional visitors to Brisbane per annum.
“For years, marine tourism has suffered with operators forced to work around a lack of infrastructure without the certainty needed to expand or innovate,” said Arthur Raptis, Raptis Investments' Head of Leasing.
“Colmslie Wharves will give operators the confidence to invest in river-based tourism and bay experiences, such as intimate boutique cruises, eco-tourism, adventure sports, private water taxis and much more. It will be a launching pad for new ideas.”
Colmslie Wharves is only nine kilometres from the Brisbane central business district, with excellent access to the river, bay islands and wider southeast Queensland marine network.
Besides existing local operators and new entrants, the marina is expected to attract major interstate marine businesses.
“There has been an increase in the number of tourism operators wanting to service Brisbane and start operations, especially with the Olympics coming up, but there is a lack of infrastructure,” said David Good, Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Commercial Marine Group.
“To put that into perspective, every year thousands of people head north to Hervey Bay to go whale watching, despite having Moreton Bay and whales on the doorstep.”
