Page 88 - Tropic Magazine Issue 13

ECONOMY • ANALYSIS

businesses that are doing it tough.” Cr Cairns region, driven by heightened
Manning said. However, feedback that construction activity.”
we’ve sought indicates that confidence Advance Cairns CEO Nick Trompf
levels among small businesses are agrees that confidence is high after
higher now than in previous years. a “decade of difficult economic
“We expect a further boost to key conditions”.
indicators like employment, the real “When Crystalbrook began there
estate market and our population as the were ‘slack’ resources available in the
Crystalbrook hotels come online. The economy so the hotel projects filled
company is in the process of recruiting much of that void,” Mr Trompf said. Nick Trompf Nick Loukas
more than 500 staff and with more “A second wave is likely to add to
projects in the pipeline, tradespeople labour shortages and be the catalyst to is aggressively pursuing new airline
working on the hotels will be deployed more widespread recovery, including connections as well as increasing
to other sites as these ones wrap up. residential real estate which has been frequency and aircraft size for existing
The benefits from the additional anaemic. While tourism numbers are routes. This will be central to renewed
employment and expected increase currently softer this year than last, visitor growth and the next wave of
in tourist nights once the properties the upward trend of recent years is investment.”
are in the operational phase will flow projected to continue over coming Nova City, of course, could be the long-
through the region. But this is just the decades with the emerging middle awaited start of this second wave. The
start of a new era of growth for the class in China and India. Cairns Airport sale of Nova apartments has been slow

BY THE NUMBERS show Cairns far outpaced the modest Mr Faulkner said the Trinity Beach and
Trinity Beach and Smithfield are increase in Townsville’s population, which Smithfield led the way in Cairns with 4.2%
welcoming more new residents than any welcomed just 966 people in the same growth, while in the Cassowary Coast it
other town in North Queensland, fuelling period, resulting in a weak 0.6% growth was Tully (which includes Tully, Cardwell
a strong rate of broader population rate. and Mission Beach) at 1.5%.
growth across the Cairns region. Growth rates on a local government level The 1.2% growth rate for Cairns is
According to analysis by Conus across the region included: expected to climb higher, according to
economist Pete Faulkner, the latest forecasts published last year by Rick
Australian Bureau of Statistics population Yarrabah Aboriginal Carr from Herron Todd White. Mr Carr
data showed Cairns attracted 3061 new Council +3.6% predicted the Cairns region - defined as
residents between 2016 and 2017, a growth Douglas Shire the urban area from the Goldsborough
rate of 1.2%. That figure was higher than Council +1.6% Valley through to Ellis Beach - will grow
the 1.1% growth rate during the 12 months Cairns Regional by 1.4% in the year to 30 June 2018.
to June 2016. Council +1.4% Local economist Bill Cummings has
The updated ABS figures will have Cassowary Coast previously predicted the Tropical North’s
consequences for policy-makers as Regional Council +1.0% population would grow to 550,000
they consider infrastructure spending to Mareeba Shire people by 2050, larger than the current
cater for the growth. The latest figures Council +0.8% population of Tasmania.

88 • Tropic • Issue 14