Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate has spent the last few months learning to dive in order to officially open the region’s new tourist attraction.
Key points:
- The Wonder Reef dive site will open to the public on June 8th
- The $ 5 million project was funded by the state government and Gold Coast City Council
- Coral was planted on site in late 2021
Building on his confidence in a pool before heading out into the ocean, Cr Tate cut an underwater tape at the city’s new artificial diving site Wonder Reef earlier this week.
Cr Tate said he had been diving two or three times a week in preparation.
Queensland Deputy Prime Minister Steven Miles joined the dive before Wonder Reef opens for business visits from June 8th.
“I would call this an underwater theme park, it’s the Gold Coast style,” Cr Tate said.
The $ 5 million attraction was funded in equal parts by Gold Coast City Council and the state government.
The reef will be located about 2.5 miles off the coast of The Spit at Main Beach and is expected to attract more than 16,000 Gold Coast diving enthusiasts each year.
Wonder Reef was officially opened in early June by Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate and Queensland Deputy Prime Minister Steven Miles. (Provided by: City of Gold Coast)
“We know the incredible economic impact that projects like this can have on our city,” said Queensland Environment Minister Meaghan Scanlon.
“This is expected to generate about $ 32 million for this area over the next 10 years.”
Late last year, coral was planted at the site, which consists of nine floating sculptures tied to the seabed by reinforced concrete and steel pyramids.
Wonder Reef has created a 32,000-square-foot reef habitat. (Source: City of Gold Coast)
First fully booked boats
Gold Coast Dive Adventures owner Harrison Cottrell said the site was already making a splash.
Gold Coast Dive Adventures owner Harrison Cottrell said there is already nationwide interest in the new site. (ABC News: Heidi Sheehan.)
“We’ve been getting a lot of inquiries,” he said.
“We already have the boats fully booked for the first week.”
Cottrell said his company, one of two local companies that would be awarded scuba diving contracts, would operate boats four to five days a week.
“It will draw a lot of attention to coastal diving, I think it’s a very underrated diving area,” he said.
Destination Gold Coast CEO Patricia O’Callaghan said she hoped the new product would “cut” the global market.
“We’re very excited because the new world means we have to compete a lot,” he said.
Cr Tate learned to dive in recent weeks in order to open the Wonder Reef. (ABC News: Heidi Sheehan)
“It attracts not only tourists, but also a dive enthusiast market that we know has a high disposable income to invest not only in the experience but in the city itself.
“It’s very important for an industry that has lost $ 5.6 billion in the last two years as a result of COVID.”
Underwater design by Queensland artist
Matthew Allen, of Reef Construction Company Subcon, said some of the biggest challenges were ensuring that the nine-piece submarine structure survived 18.5-meter waves that could be caused by a cyclone.
The components of Wonder Reef weigh more than 738 tons and create a reef habitat of 32,000 square meters.
Artist Daniel Templeman wanted to create something that “pointed upward toward the sky.” (Provided by Gold Coast City Council)
“The foundations of each of the sculptures weigh 75 tons,” Allen said.
“We’ve also used some renewable materials to create the gravity anchors that hold it in place.”
Artist Daniel Templeman had designed public works in the past, but his creation for Wonder Reef was his first underwater piece.
“I tried to do something that would exaggerate that feeling of buoyancy, something that was pointing up into the sky,” he said.