The State Government's $79 million Hartley St office block has the potential to play havoc with the city's economy.

In addition, it is a poor use of public money for a project that has been subject to inadequate public consultation.

Those are the concerns of the city's construction industry who say that not only could the private sector build the 11-storey complex cheaper, but that it is not needed.

The industry has supported comments from former mayor and now development company Capital Globe director Kevin Byrne that the Stage 2 William McCormack Place project was a waste of public money.

Northern Development Industry Association chairman Greg Wood said there appeared to be flaws with the project, a contract for which has been let to Laing O'Rourke.

On the cost front, Mr Wood said the $79 million equated to three times the cost of similarly green-rated office accommodation on a floor space basis.

In addition, it could create a massive oversupply of premium office space which would be exacerbated by plans to move government departments from other locations in Cairns.

Mr Wood said he had been fielding calls from many in the construction industry who questioned the need for the building at a time when the private construction industry was keeping pace with the demands for commercial office space in the Cairns CBD.

He said there were other badly needed projects on which the $79 million could be spent, including the sidelined Performing Arts Centre and the new hospital.

Mr Wood said his association had also written to Tourism, Regional Development and Industry Minister Desley Boyle questioning the validity of a Parliamentary Public Works Inquiry into the project.

As raised in The Cairns Post on July 30, Mr Wood said he found it difficult to understand why an inquiry was being held after work was supposed to start on the project.

The Minister for Public Works and Housing, Robert Schwarten, defended the inquiry's timing.

"The Public Works Committee is an all-party, independent parliamentary committee which has nothing to do with the Department of Public Works," Mr Schwarten said.

"However, I can say that it is not uncommon for projects like these to be inquired into by this committee.

"Given there has been criticism by people who have vested interests in competing projects, I would have thought that an assessment by an all party committee was appropriate."

 

 

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