Kawana golf course misses the cut
Tue 22 May 2007
Grant Reynolds, Journalism
The future of a proposed golf course at Kawana has landed in the rough with Caloundra City councillors thrashing the issue out at a recent council meeting.
The debate lasted most of the meeting’s duration as division four councillor Andrew Champion found it tough pitching the idea to fellow councillors.
Caloundra Councillor Andrew Champion said the $1.8 million course would be built on land at Birtinya near Kawana, and included a parcel of land set to be donated to Caloundra City from developers Stockland.
Division five councillor Gordon Wallace, in whose division the course will be built, was the first to raise doubts about the course.
Cr Wallace said the feasibility study showed the land was in a wetland zone that might experience major flooding several times each year.
“It’s not financially viable; it’s a health risk as far as mosquitoes are concerned.
“It tells us that it floods, the wetlands there extend for a long, long period of time, we know that,” Cr Wallace said.
Cr Wallace said an estimated $150,000 would be required to reduce the mosquito population by 50 per cent.
A figure, he said, would need to be raised each year, greatly increasing the running costs of the course.
Cr Wallace said “not one” of the residents in his division supported building an 18-hole course.
But Councillor Andrew Champion, a passionate supporter of the course, disagreed.
“I think I’ll live to fight another day, there’s 12 months before the next election and I’ll be pushing to see if there’s community support for a golf course at Kawana.
“[I’ll] push for a golf course just like upgrading the Nicklin Way to four lanes, and all the other different things that I’ve pushed for over the last [sic] 20 years,” Cr Champion said.
Cr Champion said he was concerned resistance met with the golf course was more about gamesmanship than looking after Caloundra residents.
“If the attitude by some of the councillors carries over on this golf course we would never have swimming pools, football fields, libraries the whole lot,” Cr Champion said.
Cr Wallace laughed off the suggestion.
“We’ve got a councillor in there telling us that he walked out there a few times and he’s telling us there’s no mosquitoes and it doesn’t flood,” Cr Wallace said.
Caloundra City will now wait for written confirmation Stockland will release the land before further discussion.
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