Platypus Beach, the Pioneer Valley Rail Trails and the Finch Hatton Mountain bike trail town are the ideas of three separate locals that found a councillor to champion their idea and present the idea to council for consideration.
My primary project has been the Pioneer Valley Mountain Bike trails. This project has never been about building something for the local kids to do on the weekends. The kids still get to use it, but this is the region’s biggest economic development project in two decades.
Mountain biking is the world’s second fastest growing sport, mountain bikers spend serious money on their machines and are willing to travel and spend money on new and favourite experiences.
At last week’s ordinary meeting, council approved tenders for the mountain bike trail head which connects the finish of the trails directly to town. A pump track that is critical to help mountain bikers develop their skills and the first 13 kilometres of mountain bike trail that will be the largest cluster of Airflow trails ever seen in Australia.
There have been some asking why council doesn’t spend on fishing and other tourism products. This council is the first to develop a fishing strategy, recreational vehicle strategy and mountain bike strategy.
It’s personally beyond me why we have never had a fishing strategy, but this council has done it.
There are big players in fishing that are coming to town because of this mountain bike project.
One product by itself can’t carry the load so now mountain biking is here fishing tours have a better chance of being viable.
The 30,000 mountain biking visitors a year will book a fishing or other tour on their rest days. They will buy meals, rent accommodation, and spend money at Finch Hatton, Eungella, Pinnacle, Garget, Walkerston, and Mackay. This will in turn bring more tourism products to the region and more opportunities for more people.
This council is spending money to provide opportunities for its residents, ratepayers, and their children. We used to be the gateway to the Whitsundays many years ago, but we lost that tourism title. This is how we get it back.
Cr Justin Englert
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