Cane paddocks? Has little to do with stagnant growth. It has everything to do with employment. The strong dollar has not been good for Cairns which takes a lot of its economic activity from the tourist dollar. The mining downturn may be good news for the area with skilled workers leaving the mining towns and coming to Cairns but there has to be work for them and there is not much infrastructure development going on. The cuts from the Liberal Govts both state and federal have been devastating to Cairns and the region. Tourist after tourist are all saying the same thing: they have never seen the town so dead. Cairns is not heating up, its scratching its way out of a long slump and it's going to be a slow and long climb. Aquis should not be seen as the saviour because it is not a done deal, far from it.
Doozer, are you suggesting that Cairns doesn't have its own FIFO miners? All the information I have would suggest otherwise. Also, do you have actual tourism stats to illustrate your observations? In relation to infrastructure, this is a snapshot of infrastructure projects from
http://www.cairnsinvestment.com.au/invest-here/current-major-projects, accessed on 30 September 2014:
"Major projects currently underway or planned for Cairns and the region include:
$8.4 billion Aquis Great Barrier Reef Resort at Yorkeys Knob.
$1.4 billion Ella Bay Resort near Innisfail
$1 billion redevelopment of Cairns Airport.
$500 million Mount Emerald Wind Farm on the Atherton Tablelands.
$456 million Cairns Hospital Redevelopment.
$250 million Sheraton Mirage redevelopment at Port Douglas.
$616 million Bruce Highway upgrade at Cairns.
$40 million Cairns Shipping Development Project.
$33 million City Centre Alive project.
$25 million expansion to the Redlynch Central Shopping Centre.
$25 million Homemaker Centre at Portsmith.
$20 million Cooktown Foreshore and Webber Esplanade Revitalisation (details below)
Rainforest Water Australia project (details below)
Plans for multi-million dollar CQ University CBD campus.
Mount Garnet Tin Project.
$1 million upgrade to passenger facilities at Yorkeys Knob Boating Club.
$5 million expansion of the DFO shopping centre"
This website gives a broad picture of what's going on in terms of investment:
http://www.cairnsinvestment.com.au
Also, there are plenty of market stats that support the assertion that the Cairns property market in general is heating up. If you're not into stats, I recommend having a look at the number and rate at which properties are going under contract or talking to a few agents in the area. I also recommend going along to some open for inspections or an auction or two. You might be surprised.
Cheers
Jen