Planning for the city's future has reached a key milestone with the release of the Towards 2050 Growth Strategy Framework.
Since October 2022, Council has been working on the Towards 2050: Shaping Cairns Growth Strategy – a community-led plan for the future that will identify appropriate and sustainable growth for the next three decades and beyond.
Deputy Mayor Terry James said release of the framework was a key step in developing the Growth Strategy and urged the community to provide feedback at upcoming pop-up stalls.
"The Growth Strategy Framework document explains what's happened so far, what we have heard and found out, and what's happening next," Cr James said.
"It looks at how Cairns has grown in the past; our current and future needs in terms of infrastructure, services and amenities; the key emerging and future trends that will impact Cairns; and the competing interests that may arise as Cairns grows.
"Cairns is one of the fastest growing regions in Queensland with the city's population is expected to grow to more than 241,000 by the year 2050, according to revised figures released by the State Government in June.
"That is an increase of nearly 70,000 people, which will create the need for over 32,000 new dwellings over the next three decades."
The newly released document identifies a number of key drivers and challenges of growth including:
- changing community demographics, household dynamics and shifting housing needs
- protecting our rural and natural landscapes to ensure development does not continue to expand into these valuable areas
- maintaining our lifestyle
- recognising the identity and character of the individual communities across the region
- protecting places of cultural heritage significance and recognising the values and aspirations of First Peoples
- ensuring future growth is risk-responsive
- responding and adapting to climate change and encouraging development that is suitable and resilient to our tropical climate.
The Growth Strategy Framework also presents a suite of guiding principles that will inform the next phase of the project, which include housing to meet changing needs, recognising and respecting the region's diverse cultures and heritage, delivering sustainable and resilient infrastructure, and protecting the natural environment.
The community is invited to review the Growth Strategy Framework and provide feedback by 15 October 2023.
Council's project team will be holding pop-up information stalls at various local community events between now and mid-October at the following times:
- Sunday 10 September from 8am to 2pm at Mount Sheridan Plaza Community Markets
- Saturday 16 September from 9am to 2pm at the Babinda Harvest Festival
- Saturday 23 September from 9am to 2pm at CARMA Cairns Multicultural Festival in Fogarty Park
- Sunday 1 October from 8am to 2pm at the Palm Cove Markets
- Saturday 7 October from 8am to 1pm at the Gordonvale Markets
- Sunday 8 October from 8am to 2pm at the Holloways Beach Markets
- Friday 13 October from 5pm to 8pm at Redlynch Twilights Markets, Xavier Herbert Park, Redlynch.
