A $1.3 billion revamp of Cleveland's Toondah Harbour is being hailed as the saviour for those who will lose their jobs when mining ends on North Stradbroke Island.
Deputy Premier Jackie Trad, who visited the ferry terminal on Friday, said 1000 construction jobs and a further 500 ongoing positions would be created when the harbour was redeveloped.
"As the government moves towards phasing out sandmining, there will be opportunities at Toondah Harbour," she said.
No plans of the harbour overhaul were released but they are believed to include a plaza on Middle Street, boardwalks and no changes to the nearby G. J. Walter Park.
Days before Ms Trad visited, the state announced plans to amend legislation prohibiting mining lease extensions on Stradbroke Island after 2019.
The state said there were about 200 jobs at Sibelco's Enterprise mine that would go when mining ended. Others have estimated about 110 Sibelco workers lived on the island.
It also said it would introduce an economic development plan to kick-start the island's economy and create enough jobs to offset any losses.
Toondah Harbour developer Walker Corporation general manager Peter Saba told Ms Trad work at the Cleveland site was likely to start in two years, well in advance of the proposed 2019 mining deadline.
But he said environmental impact assessments had to be completed first and they could take up to two years.
Cleveland MP Mark Robinson said he was relieved the new state government was backing the redevelopment and said the council and previous state government collaboration made the project possible.
Mr Robinson said the state would have to move quickly to try to keep on track after missing the April deadline for public notification.
Mayor Karen Williams said it was likely to take 18months for environmental assessments by both state and federal governments.
She said she had worked closely with Bowman MP Andrew Laming to ensure federal environmental assessments were done at the same time as state reports.
Mr Laming said he was committed to answering all questions on the federal approval process and checking on any environmental concerns.
On Friday, he held a 2000-person SMS poll on what people wanted on Toondah Harbour. Of 750 messages sent, 207 were happy with an overhaul compared with 26 opposing. Details of the project will be released in Walker Corp's draft Environmental Impact Statement and Development Application.
To date, the community has seen the development scheme that will determine land use, planning and development decisions.
Residents had their say on the development scheme last year and the state made changes to reflect the feedback including reducing building heights from 15 to 10 storeys and ensuring no net loss of public open space, including to G. J. Walter Park.
Have your say:
- What would you like to see or not see at Toondah Harbour?