Two exciting grant opportunities are available in the Mackay City and Waterfront area to create safer and more engaging places. Applications opened yesterday on Thursday (August 1) for the City Safety Grant and the Make Your Place Mackay Waterfront Placemaking Grant. The City Safety Grant aims to improve the late-night economy by delivering safety infrastructure within Mackay city, and the Make Your Place Grant facilitates inspiring and inclusive projects that connect the local community and enc
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One of North Queensland’s most desired regions has welcomed a new era of beachfront luxury at Harbour Beach with seven exclusive homes officially hitting the market last week. Located just seven kilometres from Mackay’s CBD, The Beach Collective by national developer Urbex offers luxury coastal living in Mackay, featuring low maintenance seaside residences that appeal to both local residents and interstate buyers seeking a high-end home with an absolute beachfront lifestyle. Urbex Realty Gener
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The value of Queensland’s agricultural sector is projected to boom to a second-highest-ever valuation of $23.56 billion in 2024-25. New AgTrends figures released last month show a promising year ahead, despite challenges such as declining cattle prices, drier conditions and major natural disasters in 2023-24 leading to a valuation of $22.1 billion for the year. The valuation remains higher than the five-year average and showcases the resilience of Queensland agriculture, with a corresponding sup
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By Kevin Borg, Chairman, CANEGROWERS Mackay The current harvest season in Mackay and Plane Creek is languishing, and it is costing growers, and the regional economy. There’s been a few factors at play, but mill performance and industrial action have dogged Plane Creek and brought on an abysmal season start, and in Mackay, the very poor reliability at Marian Mill has unbalanced crush progress across the milling area as a whole. Added to that mix was the late June rain event of up to 90mm which ma
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This week Season to date Cane crushed 54,338 187,117 Average bin weight 3.84 3.81 CCS 13.13 12.93 Cane variety performance for region Variety % CCS Variety % CCS Q183 23.4 12.70 Q253 16.2 13.60 Q240 19.8 13.43 Q138 2.9 10.81 Q208 12.2 13.60 SRA9 3.8 11.31 KQ228 12.2 14.61 Q242 3.3 12.59 Comments: Plane Creek Mill processed 54,338 tonnes of cane for the week, bringing the season total to just over 187,000 tonnes. Throughput was disrupted on Tuesday morning due to a major derailment at Tedlands si
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Mackay Sugar has reported its 2024 crushing season is well underway. As of 6am last Friday (26th July), Mackay Sugar said in a statement that its three factories have crushed a combined 16 per cent of the predicted crop. “Farleigh and Racecourse mills are experiencing some of the best early-season crushing performance in recent years, with Farleigh delivering as much as 85.4 per cent reliability and Racecourse as much as 90.3 per cent,” the statement read. Despite the evident improvements at t
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Enterprise bargaining discussions between Wilmar Sugar and Renewables and representatives of three unions in Townsville earlier this week on Tuesday have been described as constructive by a Wilmar company spokesman. A Fair Work Commissioner assisted in the discussions and the Wilmar spokesman said that in the course of the day the parties had succeeded in narrowing the gap further between unions’ claims and company offers. The Commissioner, Bernie Riordan, has offered to provide further input
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Get ready for an unforgettable Friday night in Airlie Beach as it transforms into a dazzling spectacle of fireworks and live entertainment, courtesy of Sebel Whitsundays! The Great Barrier Reef Festival kicks off with a bang, inviting you, your family, and your friends to experience an electrifying opening night like no other. At 8:30pm the fireworks will light up the shores casting a mesmerising glow over the Coral Sea – so bring a blanket and get cozy on the beach while the magic begins and w
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The Immerse Art Installations are lighting up the Great Barrier Reef Festival again this year. Scattered across the Airlie Beach foreshore and centered beneath the iconic fig tree, the streets of Airlie will come alive with stories from the heart of the Great Barrier Reef. While the installations are visible by day, the real magic happens at night with pieces illuminated from 6-9 pm. Beginning in 2021 as a modest segment of the festival, this event has grown significantly and now stands as a maj
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On Friday night, watch as hand-crafted lanterns illuminate the town with a vibrant sea of color. Enjoy the sight of children's faces glowing with delight as they pass by. The ever-popular event, is a festival highlight and festival organiser Margie Murphy, emphasised that the Coral Sea Marina Lantern Parade is “one of the signature events.” The Parade departs from the The Garden Bar Bistro at Coral Sea Marina, bringing colour and light along the Bicentennial Boardwalk, past Sorrento’s Restauran
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While the live music is free, you can also book an exclusive VIP area at Point Bar and receive a free cocktail and nibbles with an ocean view.
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The traffic of Airlie Beach Main Street will come to a halt on Saturday, for an action-packed day of colourful community events that will take over the town. Starting with the sound of engines, the Revvin the Reef car show will dazzle spectators, with Hot Rods, Muscle and Classic Cars. Car enthusiasts from all over the region are ready to show off their unique vehicles. Attendees will channel their inner retro enthusiasts, dressing in their finest 50s and 60s attire while enjoying classic tunes
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Long before the Great Barrier Reef Festival was established, the iconic Rotary Club Street Parade had already become a vital part of Whitsunday culture and is now a key element of the festival. There will be fun for all the family showcasing the creativity of the region’s best businesses, schools, community groups and dancers. The parade’s theme this year is ‘Above and Below,’ which is open to interpretation by institutions, but aligns with the festival’s reef theme. Organiser of the Great Barr
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The Great Barrier Reef Festival Art Exhibition returns in 2024, now hosted at the scenic Whitsunday Sailing Club, offering a stunning setting for the featured artworks. Under the theme, "Whitsunday Wonders: Above and Below the Surface," artists are encouraged to explore both the land and sea of the region. Capture the stunning landscapes, skies, and coastal beauty above, or dive into the intricate marine world, highlighting the symbiotic wonders and delicate relationships that characterise the
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Get ready, get set, and go head down to the Ark Energy Family Fun Day, one of the Great Barrier Reef festival’s well-loved events. This jam-packed day filled with free, crazy, fun and exciting demonstrations, games, competitions and entertainment galore on Airlie Beach’s beautiful foreshore with activities and fantastic prizes up for grabs. Donut miss the delicious donut-eating competition that kicks off the day's festive fun! Once your tummies are settled, get ready for thrilling races, excit
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Calling all athletes, wannabe athletes and fun runners to the Coral Coast Fire Magic Mile. This year’s event is once again hosted by the Whitsunday Running Club adding another element of fun to an already exciting day. The event encourages anyone to participate, and the main aim of the day is to have fun! The mile run, originating in England as a gambling distance, has persisted despite track and field's shift to metric measurements in the 1900s. It gained prominence with the quest for the four-
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Ahoy! All aboard for sustainability. Hoist your sails, grab your ores and get ready for the Recyclable Regatta. Set to be a day of environmental fun, full of competition and creativity. The Recyclable Regatta is one of the festival’s favourite events that brings the community together. The rafts, which are created by recyclable materials, including bottles, plastic pipes, crates and more are prepared ahead of the event. While rafts must be made of recyclables, any type of oar or paddle can be us
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Simon Hood Wilmar Manager Grower Marketing We recently completed a roadshow through Wilmar’s four milling regions with senior sugar traders, Peter Bingham and Neil Foo. Peter and Neil work with Wilmar International and travel to Queensland once a year to meet with growers who choose Wilmar to market their GEI sugar. Peter is based in London while Neil is based in Singapore. Their overarching message was for growers to be conscious that we may not see the elevated prices we witnessed in the la
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A comprehensive lung health check is available at no charge for former Queensland mine and quarry workers local to Mackay, when the HEART5 truck returns in August. The service is operated by Heart of Australia in partnership with Resources Safety and Health Queensland (RSHQ). The B-double truck is packed full of state-of-the-art medical screening equipment and travels around regional and remote Queensland offering tests that detect mine dust lung diseases. Free checks are available to former Qu
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This Tradies Health Awareness Month (August), optometrists are warning tradies in Mackay to better protect their eyes from injury on the job site. This comes after new research commissioned by Specsavers* reveals three in five (61%) tradies admit they have worn everyday sunglasses in place of protective eyewear on the worksite. With a large number (68%) of tradies witnessing an eye injury or an eye safety hazard while on the job, subbing sunnies for safety eyewear is putting their eye health
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The Greater Whitsunday region is set to experience a significant boost in digital capabilities with the launch of the Greater Digital Skills Program. This region-specific training program is tailored to support Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in addressing workforce challenges and skills gaps. Greater Whitsunday Alliance (GW3) Chief Executive Officer Ms Kylie Porter said the Greater Digital Skills Program was one of five successful projects to receive round two of Jobs Queensland ‘Grow Y
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Tuesday Night Trivia Every Tuesday night, Laffos Bar & Pizzeria turns into the go-to spot for enjoyable, family-friendly fun with its Free Trivia Night! Starting at 7pm and finishing by 8:30pm, this event promises a great time with three rounds of 10 questions each. The trivia is expertly hosted by the legendary Joel, who has been at the helm for eight years, while the questions are crafted by Dave Peters, a familiar voice from Mackay’s Triple M radio station. For bookings, call 4898 112 no
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Don’t waste another morning on a regular breakfast! Discover the perfect start to your day at Ocean International with their delightful breakfast menu. Open every day from 6am, Oceans Bar & Restaurant offers a refreshing breakfast experience where guests can enjoy the gentle ocean breeze and a relaxing ambiance by the serene pool. Whether it’s a morning meeting over coffee or a family breakfast with the kids playing at the nearby park, Ocean International provides an ideal setting. Take the
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For just $29.90, Fusion 128 offers a delightful lunchtime special featuring a choice of six main meals, plus a complimentary dessert! The options include a selection of delicious dishes featuring mouth-watering Pork Belly, cooked to perfection with your choice of a Creamy Pasta, Pork Belly with vegetables and mash, Pork Belly with chips and corn ribs, Pork Belly with cheese rolls, Pork Belly Ramen, or Pork Belly with Spicy Korean Noodles. Each lunch special comes with a complimentary Crème Br
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There’s a lot happening this weekend that I want to tell you about, and I can tell you now, you will absolutely love it. If you love sport, then this weekend you will have the biggest smile on your face. Harrup Park is coming alive from today until Sunday with the Century Cricket Competition going off. There are stacks of BBL players competing in this one too. Our local Rays team will certainly show the rest of Australia how good we are. Airlie Beach has their Barrier Reef Festival kicking off
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