Almost five years to the week that the Proserpine Entertainment Centre shut its doors following substantial damage in the wake of Cyclone Debbie, the new $18.8 million cultural heart of Proserpine has officially re-opened.
Proserpine Entertainment Centre – “Built Back Better”
With all levels of government working together to see the project come to fruition, the new entertainment centre tells a story of how Councils, State and Federal Government have all been united in rejuvenating the cultural heart of Proserpine.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said that she has personally followed the journey of the rebuild following her visit to the Whitsundays shortly after Cyclone Debbie.
She remembers talking to a group of local ladies who asked her what she was going to do about it and has since made it her mission to help in any way she could.
Mayor Andrew Willcox sad that initially they had expected to fix instead of rebuild the centre and estimated the cost to be around $500,000.
“This project was a bit like an onion – the more we peeled back, the more problems we started to find,” he recalled.
With structural damage proving too significant, it was decided to completely re-build the facility with $5 million funding from the Federal Government thanks to Federal Member for Dawson George Christensen and $5 million funding from State Government thanks to Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.
It wasn’t long, however, before Council realised that the new building would cost significantly more and Mayor Andrew Willcox asked the state government to increase funding.
“This Mayor’s pretty good at knocking on my door, but that’s what you do when a community is so impacted,” said Premier Palaszczuk.
“I could see how much you needed a community centre to be built back and renewed and built back better and what you see now is a really modern, dynamic community and it’s good to have that infrastructure.”
Last year the State Government provided an additional $8 million in funding.
“Without you this project wouldn’t be where it is today, I can’t thank you enough,” said Mayor Willcox.
Federal Member for Dawson George Christensen said the facility was now a valued community venue, acting as an arts and cultural centre, local cinema, conference venue and a social activity hub.
“I am pleased to see the rebuilt centre open and looking better than ever,” Mr Christensen said.
“This is a fantastic example of Australian Government funding in action, increasing the liveability and amenity of our regions by delivering locally important community infrastructure.”
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