RELICS OF OUR RICH GC HISTORY HI-HO HOTEL, BROADBEACH
Here is a selection of surviving treasures of the past in a rapidly evolving city
THE Gold Coast is famous for knocking down the old and putting up something new.
For a century the city has shown little reluctance when giving itself a facelift every few decades.
While this has led to plenty of exciting new buildings, some of the treasures of the past have been consigned to history with little left behind but memories.
In recent decades there’s been a move back towards recreating or retaining some of the city’s most notable sites of the past – the pier at the Broadwater Parklands and the Pacific Hotel at Southport among the most notable examples.
Just this month we saw the Gold Coast City Council vote to put the Old Burleigh Theatre Arcade on the local heritage register.
A Sydney property development company, Weiya Holdings, bought the site for $18.5 million and in August announced plans for a luxury apartment building with a new arcade as its base.
But council and the State Government moved to preserve the complex late this year after an outcry from locals who were outraged that the historic building would be demolished.
While so many older pieces of the city are gone, here are five landmarks which still exist and you can still visit this summer to catch up on that old Gold Coast vibe.
SOUTHPORT TOWN COUNCIL CHAMBERS
Built in 1935, this building became well-known for its art deco design.
It was created as the Town Hall for Southport by Brisbane architecture firm Hall and Philips.
It was the home of civic politics for 40 years, through the amalgamations which eventually led to the forming of the Gold Coast City Council.
But as the city itself grew rapidly in the 1970s, the council administration outgrew the site and they relocated to Evandale in 1976.
A long-time Broadbeach landmark, it has operated since 1958, though the current building itself only dates to 1972.
The original building started as a two-storey motel near the beach before its popularity led to it being replaced by its six-storey successor which stands today.
It still bears its 1950s-era logo on its roof.
THE LENNONS HOTEL SEAL, BROADBEACH
Broadbeach’s first hotel opened in 1956 and instantly became a major landmark of the area, which had barely been developed at the time.
It was the tallest building in the region for three years and was considered highly luxurious in its day.
But it was demolished in 1987 to make way for the Oasis.
A seal sculpture which famously sat next to the pool survived the hotel’s destruction and was bought by the Sakura Japanese gardens restaurant when it was installed on a jetty.
But it later disappeared and was eventually found at the bottom of a Broadbeach canal. It was eventually retrieved through the efforts of Conrad Jupiters Casino and Bond University.
Today you can see it at the entrance of the Gold Coast Convention Centre.
SCOTTISH PRINCE WRECK, OFF THE SPIT
This Scottish-built vessel first sailed in 1878 and transported passengers between Australia and the United Kingdom.
But in 1887 it ran aground near South Stradbroke Island and sank, with its stores washing on to the beach.
Its wreckage has become a popular landmark for divers.
But recent sand movements have seen more of the wreck uncovered again for the first time in many years, making it a terrific dive site for the summer.
KINKABOOL, SURFERS PARADISE
Completed in 1960, it was the Gold Coast’s first high-rise.
Despite its place in history, it was long the target of developers who wanted its prime land.
But it was added to the Local Heritage list in 2009 to ensure it would be preserved for its place as the first piece of the city’s iconic skyline.