Future plans revealed for pavilion land

Plans have been revealed, by Mayor Peter Flannery, to go back to the future on land where Suttons Beach Pavilion has stood for 85 years.

It follows yesterday’s news the iconic pavilion is to close at the end of this month and be demolished on safety grounds.

“(We will) probably go back to the original concept of having toilets there,” he said on ABC Radio Brisbane this morning.

“Some kind of café in the future, food trucks can pull up during the day or weekends, playground equipment, barbecues and that kind of thing.

Consultation

“We’ll be going out to the community and having consultation on future ideas for that site. It will definitely remain in public ownership.

“I want to guarantee to the community it will not be sold to developers.”

When news broke, there was shock among readers on social media and an online petition calling for the pavilion to be saved has almost 6000 signatures in just 24 hours.

Mayor Flannery said the stairs from Marine Pde down to the beach would remain and work is under way to protect and retain the rotunda.

But, the pavilion itself cannot be saved.

'Bad news'

“There’s been water coming in the concrete walls, being so close to the embankment,” the Mayor said.

“Originally, we put half a million dollars into trying to do some repairs there a number of years ago, but it’s just not working.

“We sent the officers away a number of times, we wanted to save the building, but they kept coming back with the bad news.

“On further investigation by the officers we’ve seen there’s deterioration a lot worse than originally thought and the structure’s becoming unsafe.

“Last thing we want to do is demolish a beautiful building which has been there 80-plus years but every report says the same thing. 

"It’s reached the end of its life.”