A bid to revive a 2018 plan to redevelop the Port Douglas wharf region south of the yacht club has been launched by Douglas Shire Council, industry body Tourism Port Douglas Daintree and an influential group of local developers and tour operators.

The group has been working behind the scenes for more than a month in a push to secure state and federal grant money to progress the Port Douglas Waterfront South Precinct project, which would include a new tour terminal, shopping precinct, fisherman’s wharf, 100-space carpark and public boat ramp.

With a new wharf precinct in place, tourism operators would be less reliant on the privately owned Crystalbrook Superyacht Marina, which is currently looking tired and rundown in parts as the owner, Syrian businessman Ghassan Aboud, has been trying to sell up.

The relocation of the boat ramp further out of town may also help open up the carpark region near the Tin Shed for other projects.

Council and TPDD leaders, as well as heavyweight tourism operators such as John Morris, met with State Government Tourism Minister Andrew Powell and local Cook MP David Kempton last month to discuss how the Waterfront South plan could be further progressed, with the DSC this week putting out a call for both levels of government to put money into a new feasibility study for the project.

In a statement released yesterday, the council called the project a “transformative initiative designed to revitalise the local economy, generate employment, and secure long-term economic resilience for the region”, as well as a “vibrant, multi-use waterfront precinct that will serve as a tourism, marine, and employment hub for the Douglas Shire”.

“This is a flagship project that will create a ripple effect across the region,” Mayor Lisa Scomazzon said.

“Now is the time to invest in Port Douglas’s future.”

TPDD executive officer Emma Tunnock said the project had the potential to revitalise the region’s economy and stimulate job creation.

“We are the most tourism-dependent regional economy in Queensland, and the Waterfront South Precinct presents a critical opportunity to secure our economic future,” she said.

Mr Morris said the Waterfront South Precinct would help unlock new industry potential, revitalise the waterfront, and create much-needed tourism and marine-industry jobs.

Creating jobs following the closure of the Mossman Mill was an important aspect of the plan, Mr Morris said. 

“The Waterfront South Precinct offers a pathway to economic diversification through the development of a marine industry,” he said.