News that the construction tender for the $18 million Proserpine Entertainment Centre (PEC) has been awarded will be music to the ears of Whitsunday residents who have been missing their dose of live shows, concerts, musicals and theatre.At the ordinary Council meeting in Cannonvale today, J Hutchinson Pty Ltd were awarded the $12.5 million construction contract for the PEC with the first sod to be turned in September and the facility expected to be completed by August next year subject to weather.Mayor Andrew Willcox said the on-going funding and historical issues identified after the PEC was damaged during TC Debbie had been especially frustrating for the Whitsunday community.“It has been rocky journey and saga over a number of years as we went from an initial $500,000 insurance repair bill to a building audit report indicating that demolishing the old facility and building a new one was the best outcome for the community,” he said.“This has also required increased funding and I advocated strongly for Federal and State Government support to ensure the state-of-the art entertainment complex has been fully funded externally.“Getting local government, state government and federal government working together to deliver this funding has been challenging but all tiers have been positive in finding ways to deliver such an important regional facility.“The project will create over 40 jobs during the construction phase and the contractor has committed to prioritising local tradies wherever possible,” Mayor Willcox said.The overall $18 million PEC project includes demolition, project design & delivery management and construction, as well as the installation of a solar system to reduce annual operating costs, additional lighting and specialist theatre fit-out, construction contingency, Ergon costs for the undergrounding of power & removal of the current overhead power lines and a pole mounted transformer.

The Covid-19 pandemic claimed another regional event with Whitsunday Regional Council officially cancelling 2020 Whitsunday Schoolies at their ordinary meeting in Cannonvale today.Councillors voted un…

Whitsunday Regional Council has been successful in receiving over $116,000 in funding from the Queensland Government, to boost disaster resilience through three separate projects in the region.The pro…

On 24 June 2020, Council adopted its 2020/21 Fees and Charges which includes a significant increase to the building and plumbing application fees to ensure:•Council initiates a move towards full cost …

At today’s ordinary meeting in Bowen Chambers, Whitsunday Regional Council voted to discontinue in-house Building Certification Services for new applications effective 30 August 2020.Director of Devel…

The Whitsunday region will soon welcome its second electric vehicle charging station in Proserpine after the success of the trial station installed in Bowen in 2017.The new station is funded by the St…

Delivering essential services for the community is the focus of the 2020-21 Whitsunday Regional Council Budget adopted unanimously at a special meeting in Bowen Council Chambers today.Mayor Andrew Wil…

It’s time to fly and Whitsunday Coast Airport (WCA) is making it easier for everyone to take off with direct flights to Sydney resuming on Saturday.Whitsunday Regional Council Mayor Andrew Willcox sai…

Whitsunday Regional Council has received advice from Minister for Education and Minister for Industrial Relations, Grace Grace, that the request for the Bowen Show holiday to be moved to Friday, 14 Au…