My real estate agent sent this email to me today! Looks like I'll be holding onto all my geraldton properties longterm.
“Geraldton to become State’s
largest regional city:
Watch out, Albany!”
This was the front page headlines for the Geraldton Guardian on Monday, May 7th 2007. The article goes on to say,”Geraldton is expected to surpass Albany and become W.A.’s biggest regional city under a forecast iron ore boom. The findings come from the Mid West Iron Ore Alliance’s new report – Mining Expansion in the Mid West: Social and Economic Benefits, which says Geraldton is set to become second only to Perth in WA in population size over the next 25 years”
Over the past couple of years there has been a lot of talk about the boom in Geraldton, and the continuation of the good fortune that is seeing Geraldton grow as a major economic player in Western Australia. However, the Mid West Iron Ore Alliance report is the first report to actually state boldly the effect the pending boom will have on the city Geraldton, by claiming “Geraldton is set to become the biggest regional city, surpassing Bunbury and Albany in the not too distant future.
Supporting this theory is the prediction of an increase in the local workforce of about 8500 people, adding to this figure their families, this increase would be a 40 per cent increase in the regions population. Current trends say 90 per cent of these people will most likely choose to live in coastal areas around Geraldton.
Adding weight to the Mid West Iron Ore Alliance’s report is the information supplied in the Major Projects Summary produced by the Mid West Development Commission. The scale of new projects current being undertaken and in the planning stage is a long list indeed. The majority of these projects are related to the Mining Industry, with the expansion of the Geraldton Port, Southern Transport Corridor Stage 2 and of course the long await development of Oakajee.
Now reading these entire figures, one could be forgiven for thinking they are fantasy. Economist and co-author of the Mid West Iron Ore Alliance report, Dr Brian Martin said he had never seen anything like this before and that the numbers were dramatic. “This is our report and these numbers are as good as we get. They are not optimistic, they are realistic”, he said. Mr Brown stated is almost certain that a second port, Oakajee would be needed requiring new infrastructure.
Alliance Chairman said “We are looking at billions of dollars of investment over a short period to develop the mines, increased population, above all opportunities for young people to acquire skills and secure long term careers.”
The City Council and the State Government now have reliable information they need to make the necessary decisions to ensure adequate infrastructure is in place to help drive and cope with the boom.
Estimated June 2006 population figures for Regional WA:
Albany 33,364
Geraldton / Greenough 33,040
Bunbury 32,499
Kalgoorlie / Boulder 29,152
Busselton 28,649
“Geraldton to become State’s
largest regional city:
Watch out, Albany!”
This was the front page headlines for the Geraldton Guardian on Monday, May 7th 2007. The article goes on to say,”Geraldton is expected to surpass Albany and become W.A.’s biggest regional city under a forecast iron ore boom. The findings come from the Mid West Iron Ore Alliance’s new report – Mining Expansion in the Mid West: Social and Economic Benefits, which says Geraldton is set to become second only to Perth in WA in population size over the next 25 years”
Over the past couple of years there has been a lot of talk about the boom in Geraldton, and the continuation of the good fortune that is seeing Geraldton grow as a major economic player in Western Australia. However, the Mid West Iron Ore Alliance report is the first report to actually state boldly the effect the pending boom will have on the city Geraldton, by claiming “Geraldton is set to become the biggest regional city, surpassing Bunbury and Albany in the not too distant future.
Supporting this theory is the prediction of an increase in the local workforce of about 8500 people, adding to this figure their families, this increase would be a 40 per cent increase in the regions population. Current trends say 90 per cent of these people will most likely choose to live in coastal areas around Geraldton.
Adding weight to the Mid West Iron Ore Alliance’s report is the information supplied in the Major Projects Summary produced by the Mid West Development Commission. The scale of new projects current being undertaken and in the planning stage is a long list indeed. The majority of these projects are related to the Mining Industry, with the expansion of the Geraldton Port, Southern Transport Corridor Stage 2 and of course the long await development of Oakajee.
Now reading these entire figures, one could be forgiven for thinking they are fantasy. Economist and co-author of the Mid West Iron Ore Alliance report, Dr Brian Martin said he had never seen anything like this before and that the numbers were dramatic. “This is our report and these numbers are as good as we get. They are not optimistic, they are realistic”, he said. Mr Brown stated is almost certain that a second port, Oakajee would be needed requiring new infrastructure.
Alliance Chairman said “We are looking at billions of dollars of investment over a short period to develop the mines, increased population, above all opportunities for young people to acquire skills and secure long term careers.”
The City Council and the State Government now have reliable information they need to make the necessary decisions to ensure adequate infrastructure is in place to help drive and cope with the boom.
Estimated June 2006 population figures for Regional WA:
Albany 33,364
Geraldton / Greenough 33,040
Bunbury 32,499
Kalgoorlie / Boulder 29,152
Busselton 28,649
