Failing their own Strategies

Surfers Paradise — the thumping, pumping heart of the Gold Coast. It’s the draw card. The gateway for interstate and international visitors. Its mix of big city buzz and beach side chill is a standout offer. The tallest towers are here, shining in the sun, the apex of the Goldcoast skyline like a bar chart of popularity. But what happens when a bold vision is replaced by… beige paving, suburban furniture and misplaced priorities?

Big talk

The concept plan spoke of bold ideas: a grand spine linking river to shore, a place open to all, a supercharged experience, more greenery, and an amplified brand for Surfers. On paper, it sounded like ambition. In reality, the design delivers beige paving, dated lighting, and suburban mall trees. This isn’t a unifying vision; it’s a shopping-centre makeover.

Missing in action

The problem is not the strategies themselves. “Open to All. Supercharge the Experience. Grow the Green. Amplify Brand Surfers.” They sound promising — but they are simply a how to. What is missing is the vision. The driving objective spelled out for all. The why driving the what. 

Without it, the design is piecemeal, broken into zones and disciplines that don’t add up to a cohesive whole and the strategies falter at the first test of delivery. 

The 4 strategies

The revitalisation plan promised four strategies. On paper, they sound inspiring:

Open To All — welcoming spaces for everyone.

Supercharge the Experience — bigger, better, more vibrant activities.

Grow the Green — more shade, more trees, more lush spaces.

Amplify Brand Surfers — show the world what makes Surfers Paradise unique.

So lets see what they made of it.  

Grow the Green — by cutting down trees

We lose a lot before we start. 

A dozen stands of Pandanus Palms providing much sought after low shade from the morning sun rising over the ocean. Palms that have framed postcard views for decades – to go. 

33 Norfolk Pines. They form part of the international language of coastal destination. Grown for ships masts they also provide shade without blocking sight lines – and are slated for removal. 

The Poincianas that line Cavill Avenue touted as exemplary shade trees in the Council’s own 2020 report – are gone. 

These aren’t just trees. They’re part of the Surfers Paradise iconography. They are the tropical character people travel to see.

Instead, the council proposes suburban-style trees, common anywhere, opaque, uninspiring, and prone to breaking in storms – and palm trees. 

Lets build on the established trees we have, retain our icons, their morning shelter, sense of arrival and our world famous sense of place and add new palm trees to that.

Open to All — but not you or you

Drivers, tour operators, delivery vehicles, even marathon runners and skaters — many are effectively excluded. The “inclusive social landscape” promised is only accessible if you fit the council’s narrow definition of pedestrian. People who make the Esplanade thrive in multiple ways are sidelined. Instead of welcoming diverse users, the design reduces choice and access.

Supercharge the Experience — by scaling things down

The natural amphitheatre of the beachfront, which works as easily with small groups scaling up to a quarter-million people on the sand, has a tiny 50-person ampitheatre taking an oversized bite out of the precious esplanade walkway. The iconic sun lounges are gone, replaced by angular concrete mall-style seating. Spaces for large events like the Gold Coast Marathon? Marginalised. Spaces for energy, variety and vitality? Diminished.

The council’s “experience economy” ignores what already exists: a vibrant mix of runners, skaters, scooters, street markets, car enthusiasts, beachfront BBQs, cafés, restaurants and events that fill the Esplanade year-round.

‍“Supercharge the Experience” translates to small manufactured moments dwarfed by nature’s magnificence. Like bringing a sand pit to the beach. 

Amplify Brand Surfers — but there’s no brand vision

Surfers Paradise is about activity, playfulness, and fun. The plan’s design is anonymous — it could exist anywhere. The brief fails to capture the energy, the culture, the subcultures. Instead we get beige paving, clip-art furniture, clumsy pavilions, and dated lighting. Nothing in the design captures Surfers’ cultural DNA.

The Esplanade should tell the world: this is Surfers Paradise, a city built on leisure, sun and outdoor living. It should be unmistakable.

“Amplify Brand Surfers” stalls before it starts because the plan never defines what Surfers Paradise is. Without that clarity, what are you amplifying?

The result

What emerges in the designs is not playful or bold, but charmless and anonymous. The visuals could belong to any suburban centre between Perth and Parramatta. 

The 2023 Concept Plan provides a narrative structure to inform the design but without the clear bold vision the project needs, it doesn’t materialise. The plan shifts from revitalisation to reduction. A shrinking of ambition. A retreat into safety. Surfers Paradise is changing, yes — but to what? Unless the answer is “to something fabulous, flamboyant, stylish, and fun,” the project will fail the very city it claims to serve.

The good news is this: Surfers Paradise has the potential for a bold reinvention that honours its unique culture, its people, and its spectacular setting.

The Opportunity

The Esplanade is already a drawcard destination. With the right design it could be fabulous, flamboyant, stylish, and fun. Capping off Cavill Boulevard – a spine connecting river, city, and ocean – it could be incredible. That is not what is in the visuals. 

The Esplanade is more than paving and furniture. It’s the life blood of Australia’s playground. With a clear vision and respect for its culture, it can be extraordinary. Without it… we get a bland mall from anywhere.

“Surfers Paradise deserves better. Let’s make it bold, playful and full of joy.”