City welcomes decision in Transit Centre case

The City will continue to finalise the sale of the Transit Centre, including Bruce Bishop carpark, after today’s Supreme Court decision.

The decision was handed down at 2.15pm by Judge Boddice in Brisbane.

“This is a win for ratepayers,’’ said CEO Dale Dickson.

“It is important to remember that the impending sale of the transit centre makes financial sense because it is a loss making asset and its sale means we don’t have to borrow $48 million to fund the city’s new art gallery, at a cost of over $4 million a year for 15 years.

“There has been a lot of inaccurate commentary by various individuals about the merits of Council’s decision including claims about car parking availability after the sale; the price of car parking; and the valuation of the property. These have proven to be spurious.

“I remain very confident the council has made this decision for the right reasons and with the public interest very clearly in mind. We will now proceed to finalise a contract and move forward.’’

The proposed purchaser, Care Park, has publicly confirmed it will retain the 1600 carparks at Bruce Bishop for the foreseeable future. It has also publicly confirmed that it will be looking to implement a cheaper parking schedule for motorists.

The sale price to Care Park is $48 million with Council imposing conditions including:

The CEO said the sale was expected to be finalised by the end of August.

Council will seek costs against Save Surfers Paradise.