The developer of a $60 million village proposed for Port Douglas has been forced to pull the plug after the Council refused to re-zone the rural land.
Waks Development, which has been heading up local projects for the past 20 years, had planned to build 160 villas for the area, which has over 7,000 residents and no retirement village.
But the Mayor and most of the Council opposed the development as it is west of the Captain Cook Highway.
Check out the photo above. The site is literally across the road from houses, a supermarket and a primary school.
A tale of two towns
Compare this to NSW’s regional city Coffs Harbour where a new developer has just announced a $100 million retirement village and aged care precinct (pictured inset) just 100 metres from the beach.
The Bachrach Naumburger Group plans to build the 183 self-contained units and a 120-bed residential aged care facility – which wouldn’t look out of place in Sydney or Melbourne – to meet a shortage of upmarket retirement options.
In Coffs Harbour, almost 20 per cent of the population is aged over 65. There’s already a waiting list of prospective buyers. It just goes to show – if you build it, they will come.
