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Courier-Mail
a day ago
- Business
- Courier-Mail
Mayor makes huge profit on property sale
Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate and his wife Ruth have sold their luxury Surfers Paradise home for $5.4m, making themselves a tidy $1.15m profit in less than two years. It is the latest deal in the high-profile couple's multimillion dollar real estate portfolio which has seen them bank more than $25m from luxury property sales since 2020. The sale, which recently settled, was handled by Russell and Bob Rollington of Surfers Paradise First National, who declined to comment when contacted by this publication. Property records reveal the Tates bought the home at 17 Seafarer Court, Paradise Waters for $4.25m in 2023. MORE NEWS: Business listed for sale complete with a camel called Sandy Party pad that has hosted celebs and sports stars hits the market The property was listed with a $6m price tag in November, 2024, before officially selling in March. 'East to wide water just off the main channel and offering breathtaking Surfers Paradise and Main Beach city skyline views, this extraordinary four-bedroom family home exudes quality and luxury,' the listing states. 'Effortlessly fusing elegant surrounds with easy living and entertaining, this architecturally designed residence is the epitome of an entertainers dream offering an ideal layout for a large extended family.' Photos show minor cosmetic works however no major renovations or improvements were made to the house during their ownership. It was the 10th property the Tates had sold in the suburb over the past 30 years. The couple's recent Gold Coast sales include 36 Buccaneer Court, Paradise Waters, which sold for $3.675m in 2021, and 23 Maryland Ave, which traded for $5.8m in 2023. PropTrack data shows the median house price in Surfers Paradise is $4m, up 33.3 per cent.
Daily Telegraph
07-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Telegraph
‘We won't wait': Brutal reality of life without light rail for Palm Beach
Don't miss out on the headlines from Gold Coast. Followed categories will be added to My News. Mayor Tom Tate warns council will dig up the southern stretch of the Gold Coast Highway to the border for critical infrastructure work, regardless of whether the light rail proceeds. Worn-out underground infrastructure, including pipes, must be replaced in the next few years in Palm Beach, Currumbin and Tugun, he says, something that had been planned to occur during construction of the multi-billion dollar tram extension to the Gold Coast Airport. Artist impression of Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 4 between Tugun and Coolangatta, including Gold Coast Airport and the NSW border. Picture: Department of Transport and Main Roads. But with the project's future in doubt and under State Government review, city leaders have used Friday's council budget to underline the critical need for the tram to be built promptly, saying even a delay until after the 2032 Olympics would force the roads to be dug up twice – once for the pipes and again years later for the light rail Mr Tate followed his budget speech by urging the state government to back in the trams, saying he didn't want to have to perform a 'double-bypass' on the heart of Palm Beach. 'While the state government does their review and consultation, we need to continue planning for underground infrastructure upgrades along the southern end of the Gold Coast no matter what and there is $10m already allocated for (upgrades to) kilometres and kilometres of water pipes, sewer pipes, storm water pipes under the highway,' he said. 'If the (state) report comes back that we have to move and the state wants to delay light rail Stage 4, we won't wait (because) we will have to go and rectify (the) sewer and water now. Mayor Tom Tate and Deputy Mayor Mark Hammel discussing the budget. Picture: Andrew Potts 'It means you've got to dig it up twice, double expenditure and the pain of opening the roads up in Palm Beach and that's what (critics) don't understand.' Council committed $13.8m to progressing light rail Stage 4 in its 2024-25 budget last year but did not list specific new funding for it in this year's budget. However, budget documents do list progressing the business case on the project as a key action for improving connectivity in the city the next financial year, subject to state government approval. The long-planned light rail stage 4 from Burleigh Heads to the border via the airport has paused as the new state government kept its pre-election promise to review the route and perform community consultation, which closed in early May. It is not known when the results of this will be released. Business leaders across the city have backed the extension as essential as the Gold Coast population soars. Artist impression of Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 4 between Tugun and Coolangatta, including Gold Coast Airport and the NSW border. Picture: Department of Transport and Main Roads. Deputy Mayor and city planning boss Mark Hammel said delays and uncertainty around the future of stage 4 were having a serious knock-on effect on the council's own planning for transport infrastructure for the future. 'It's the state government that sets the regional plans projections of the city's future population and it also sets projection of where they expect most that population to be and the coastal strip from Paradise Point to Coolangatta is where the largest proportion of this city's future population will go, light rail or no light rail,' he said. 'We're looking to make investments in infrastructure to support that population growth and the investment the state government needs to make is in public transport to allow that sustainable growth to occur down there, so it is a concern. 'They need to come through with investment in public transport and while Stage 4 is the next (element), that's not the end of it – it's just the next (piece) in a series of projects to deliver the city's long-term public transport network with the heavy rail and the light rail as the two spines connected by east-west links. 'The frustration is the longer we delay this next stage, we waste precious time and energy and increasing costs to see it delivered with every year goes by. 'That's also having an effect on those east-west connections which open up other opportunities for not just population growth but connecting the entire city to high frequency public transport.' It comes weeks after an 'Enterprising City' report, by KPMG, underlined the critical role of light rail in the city's future as it looked forward to 2030 and the city's economy as it evolves from a tourism town to a modern metropolis. 'Longer term, stage 4 of the light rail from Burleigh to the Airport and investments related to the 2032 Olympic Games will further enhance the Gold Coast's attractiveness,' it reads. 'The Gold Coast has always had an unbeatable lifestyle, but the continued creation of highly-skilled jobs and investment in world-class infrastructure truly makes it a global city.' Originally published as Gold Coast light rail Stage 4: Brutal reality of life without tram extension to Coolangatta via Gold Coast Airport
ABC News
06-06-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Gold Coast residents slugged one-off $10 payment in rates for cyclone clean-up
Gold Coast ratepayers will help foot the $50 million clean-up bill from ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred with households charged a one-off $10 levy in the city's budget that was handed down today. It is on top of a general rate increase of 2.7 per cent for owner occupiers which Mayor Tom Tate pegged to Brisbane's inflation figures for the March quarter. The controversial "view tax" on high rise apartments will remain and properties registered as short-term rentals like Airbnb will continue to be pay a premium. The Gold Coast City Council is the country's second largest local government, with a budget of $2.678 billion, an increase of $215 million from last financial year. A record $1 billion dollars will be spent on capital works, with heavy investment in transport and infrastructure in preparation for next decade's Olympics. The city's disaster and emergency management funding increased to $39 million following two major natural disasters in the past 18 months — the 2023 Christmas Day storms which ripped through the region's hinterland and March's cyclone. The mayor said it could take three years before the beaches returned to their former glory. "It's about having the funds build up for future resilience. We don't know what Mother Nature's going to hit us up with so that money will be really for recovery and resilience," he said. "If it means we're going to need more halls and evacuation centres out west, that's what it's going to go to." Previously announced funding of $15 million for the design and business case for Light Rail Stage 4, extending the tram from Burleigh to Coolangatta airport, remains in the budget. But the mayor expressed his frustration that the state government was dragging its feet. "Transport infrastructure is the number one project. Without it, my prediction is that it will be gridlocked down south." Savings were found through job cuts at council but the mayor refused to say how many roles were lost. Deputy Mayor Mark Hammel said the council was using artificial intelligence to reduce operational costs. Despite lobbying from some councillors, Cr Tate also kept in place the 10 per cent early payment discount for rates. "It's been in place on the Gold Coast for the past 40 years and for future mayors, if they want to remove this, I think they take it to an election like I did," Cr Tate said. Hinterland councillor Glen Tozer was the only one to speak against the budget, citing his opposition to money earmarked for a commercial feasibility study in the controversial Springbrook cableway. He said the national park risked being stripped of its World Heritage listing if the project went ahead. "I have grave reservations about the environmental credentials," he said. "I'm not convinced it can be delivered in line with a commitment to a strict environmental assessment."
ABC News
02-06-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Queensland government unveils long-term tourism strategy Destination 2045
The Queensland government has launched an ambitious 20-year tourism plan but won't say how much the new strategy will cost. The Destination 2045 campaign aims to make the Sunshine State the events capital of Australia, support 45 new eco-tourism experiences, and rejuvenate the Great Barrier Reef islands. The government also wants to attract more visitors through targeted marketing and create a fund to secure new direct flights, including from India, as well as enhance connections to regional Queensland. The strategy aims to double the annual total visitor expenditure to $84 billion and add almost 40,000 new tourism industry jobs by 2045. Premier David Crisafulli said the plan is something "industry has been crying out for". "We are determined to make sure that Queensland's tourism offering goes to the next level," he said. "We unashamedly want to be the events capital of the country. We want to have connections from throughout the globe coming here." "We want to have 45 new eco-tourism products by 2045. It's big, it's bold, it's ambitious, but it has to happen." When pressed on the total funding for the strategy, Mr Crisafulli couldn't provide a dollar amount, and instead pointed to the government's first budget due to be delivered later this month. "There will be significant funding in the budget and beyond," he said. Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate has lent his support to the strategy, saying the "Gold Coast is here to help". While only a handful of Gold Coast projects are currently outlined in the tourism plan, Mr Tate is confident more opportunities for the city will "slip in" as the strategy is rolled out across the next two decades. "There will be an ongoing conversation to say, 'have a look at this one you haven't looked at yet'," he said. Mr Tate noted a direct connection between Australia and India was "paramount" for tourism and investment in south-east Queensland, but was agnostic about which airport flights from the subcontinent would arrive. "For me, whether tourists from India land in Brisbane or the Gold Coast, it makes no difference, it's the same destination. It really is team Queensland," Mr Tate said. Queensland Tourism Industry Council chief executive Natassia Wheeler commended the government's partnership with the industry, with more than 1,500 stakeholders involved in the formation of the strategy. "To see a plan today come to life that listens to industry, backs industry, and has a plan that doesn't address what we need 20 years from now, but addresses the challenges on the ground today that industry are facing, is absolutely critical." Tourism and Events Queensland chief executive Craig Davidson pointed to the exclusive Brisbane shows of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo in 2026 as evidence of the pull of the state in the events sphere. "They are here because of a team Queensland approach. They're not here because we have the biggest chequebook," he said. "They're here because they met with all of us in one room, and we can make decisions quickly on the spot. That's why the Military Tattoo is here, and that's the approach we need to take if we're going to win in that event space."
ABC News
13-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Gold Coast City Council endorses fining people sleeping rough
Rough sleepers in south-east Queensland have been dealt another blow with a third local government adopting a hardline stance on homelessness. Gold Coast City Council on Tuesday voted to abandon its welfare-first approach towards people sleeping rough in public places, instead adopting a compliance-led strategy. It means people who have set up tents in parks and other council-run areas could be fined, and their belongings confiscated if they refuse to pack up and leave within a given time. Brisbane City Council and Moreton Bay Regional Council have recently adopted similar strategies. Before the Gold Coast's policy change was adopted Tuesday morning, councillors pushed for two amendments. The first ensures that the council continues to work with services including the Gold Coast Homelessness Network, renewing their commitment to house and support people dealing with homelessness. The second makes it a requirement for the council to give "appropriate training" to frontline staff who speak with rough sleepers and issue compliance notices. "It's a complicated scenario, but I think we're taking a step in the right direction," Mayor Tom Tate said. Chair of the Gold Coast Homelessness Network Maria Leebeek welcomed the council's amendments. "I'm happy that council wants to keep working with us and I look forward to continuing to support people who need our help," Ms Leebeek said. Speaking before the policy was adopted, Queensland's peak body for housing and homelessness, Q-Shelter, said a third council in south-east Queensland issuing move-on orders was concerning. "If people are forced to move on, they just move somewhere else," Q-Shelter chief executive Fiona Caniglia said. "In a region like south-east Queensland, people just walk or travel in some other way, on a bus or whatever it is, to find a location where they can lodge temporarily in the hope that their circumstances change." She said without more social and affordable housing right across Queensland's south-east, the issue of homelessness would not go away. "There still aren't enough homes in the market to see people move into a permanent housing solution," she said. "We know that the problem moves around and what might seem like a solution in one area becomes a problem somewhere else." Cr Tate conceded homelessness was a complex issue and that council staff lacked the legislative power to move people on from public places. "We'll use what's in our power to get them to move on and fining is one of those things that we can do," he said. Queensland Police Service (QPS) said it would not enforce move-on directions issued to rough sleepers by the City of Gold Coast. But QPS said it would support council officers where necessary, particularly if there are safety concerns for officers, rough sleepers or the public.
