This is an article in the Weekend Bulletin - Gold Coast.
It's all about confidence:
Recessions are no more than expressions of sagging confidence, triggered by events both real and imagined. In between these outbreaks of mild hysteria, progressive cities such as the GC make the most of society's normal spirit of optimism and build as fast as they can in the sure knowledge that a bout of pessimism is imminent.
It is no accident that this city, which rose out of sanhills and river plains in the space of little more than 75 years is more exposed thany other to the vagaries of the economy
The handmaiden of spectacular growth is risk. And to take risk is to have courage
In the midst of the current financial maelstrom the gc is calling on all its reserves of confidence to deal with credit shortages, falling property sales, timid buyers and a slowdown in tourism
Our most prominent developer Jim Raptis responsible for creating much of the dramatic skyline between Southport and Broadbeach typifies the can do attitude thatcombines both risk and dreams o
Raptis has a mountain of debt and is being circled by banks and receivers but like most entrepreneurs in this city he is not a quitter...because we realise that without them the city would still be jsut a large retirement village by the sea.
Out of the many booms and busts of the past 40 years, the topdevelopers have created a permanent pool of wealth in the form of high quality buildings that will keep onearning tourism money and investment.
The GC is a cit that relies almost entirely on what is left behind after the risk takers have built their edifices, carved out new suburbs and created marinas and golf courses.
Of course their creativity initially is steeped in self intrerest, but their lasting legacy includes jobs for thousands of people and the delivery of perhaps the most comfortable lifestyle in Oz
This is a brash developer driven city although a reluctance in recent years to understand this culture has artificially slowed growth. Opposition to tourism inititiaties such as cable car projects in the Hinterland and the development of a cruise ship terminal are prime examples of this.
Critics of developers and their work are easy to find, Should a GC developer of financiers fall on hard times, the sneering of capital city commentators about our supposed lack of substance is almost inevitable, but these pundits rarely acknowledge the GC is only starting to realise its potential and that conservatism probably is our greatest enemy.
Our developers have to be adventurers, dreamers and risk takers because we dont have the capital city luxuries of public money or government connections to help us out and because time is of the essence when population growth is so high.
The dark days of this credit squeeze will pass, the 3 year stock of apartments will clear from developersbooks and the bulding industry will begin aner.
When the storm clouds have gone, the knockers might notice that the buildings put up by developers still exist and that the Gc is infinitely richer
