Belinda Neal (Robertson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to inform members of the merits of the proposed marine discovery centre at Terrigal, in my electorate of Robertson, on the Central Coast of New South Wales. This centre will provide the Central Coast with an environmental, educational and tourist facility that will become, I am sure, a benchmark facility of its type in Australia. Over the last six months I have been actively involved in promoting the benefits of the marine discovery centre. I have hosted two meetings of stakeholders in my Gosford office. There was overwhelming support for the centre, and it was widely appreciated in those meetings and elsewhere that Terrigal was the ideal location for such a facility.

The preferred location is The Haven at Terrigal, an established tourist precinct. There is enormous potential for this centre to bring to the coast a sustained economic boost from tourist dollars. Terrigal Haven is also the preferred location and departure point for tourists, divers, researchers and day visitors, who will be able to dive to the wreck of HMAS Adelaide when it is sunk off the coast of Terrigal. Besides education, research and community facilities, the centre will also be the focal point for a vibrant and potentially lucrative dive industry. The spin-off dollars from associated accommodation and restaurants generated by traffic visiting the centre from tourists visiting the coast will also bring long-term benefits to the local community.

The meetings that I have hosted in my office were attended by representatives of the Community Environment Network, the peak environmental body on the coast; the University of Newcastle’s Central Coast campus, which runs a well established and well regarded marine research centre and course; the New South Wales Department of Lands, on whose land the centre may be built; and the New South Wales Department of Premier and Cabinet. Among all these stakeholders there is a real sense of excitement about the possibilities that the marine discovery centre will open up for the people and the economy of the Central Coast. This is a project that builds on strong and already existing partnerships within the community. The linkages that can be built between education, community interest, environmental groups, tourism, local business and major infrastructure provision make the centre an extremely attractive proposition.

A marine discovery centre at Terrigal will provide a marine research and educational facility for the university and for local environmental groups. It will also be used by community groups and will have a number of associated small businesses operating within it. HMAS Adelaide is a real drawcard that will establish the marine centre and the Terrigal site as a must-see destination. Dive wrecks and artificial reefs based on ships similar to HMAS Adelaide have proved extremely successful and a sustainable tourist destination in other parts of the country. There is already considerable interest in the project among dive shop operators, the hotel industry, restaurants and other small businesses on the Central Coast. The centre has already the in-principle support of Central Coast Tourism, the peak tourist body on the coast. The marine discovery centre and HMAS Adelaide will, I am sure, assume its role as a major drawcard for tourists on the Central Coast. Its proximity to Sydney will attract considerable tourist trade both from within Australia and from overseas. In this role the Terrigal site will provide an ongoing return on the initial investment in such a centre. In short, this is community infrastructure that will pay its way in the future.

One of the challenges to the promotion of this project is the position of Gosford City Council. The stakeholders’ group has so far not been able to secure the support of the council for this project. Despite my best efforts and my promotion of the project with the mayor, I was unable to secure the council’s support in applying for a grant under the Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program, much to my disappointment. This competitive nationwide program funds local government bodies for strategic projects worth more than $2 million. The original $50 million funding was recently increased to $500 million as part of the Nation Building and Jobs Plan, the Rudd government’s response to the global financial downturn. This is a great project and deserves the support of the community. It certainly has my support and I will continue to fight for it. I urge the council to support it also. (Time expired)

Question agreed to.