Hervey Bay City Centre car park to be extended

The car park between the Hervey Bay PCYC and the current Hervey Bay Library building will be extended to provide more parking spaces ahead of the construction of a new Hervey Bay City Centre community hub.

At its meeting today, Fraser Coast Regional Council resolved to accept the $2.25 million tender from local company Kirbro Contracting Pty Ltd to construct 162 car parks and complete the associated drainage, pathways, lighting and landscape works.

Council is partnering with the Australian Government through the Hinkler Regional Deal to redevelop the Hervey Bay City Centre, with the backbone of this project being a new Hervey Bay Library and Council Administration Centre (incorporating a Disaster Resilience Centre).

“The transformation of the Hervey Bay City Centre is about to begin, with the new community hub to be the one-stop spot for learning, socialising and accessing Council services,” Council said.

“More than three-quarters of the development will be community space, with study zones, meeting rooms, creative spaces and areas for large functions available for community use, day and night.

“It will also bring hundreds of Council workers from various locations together into the city centre, meaning better collaboration between staff and more efficient services for the community.

“With more people coming into the Hervey Bay City Centre, there will be a need for more car parks, both for the general community and for Council staff.

“That’s why we are extending the car park near the Hervey Bay PCYC, which will be just a short walk away from the new Hervey Bay Library and Council Administration Centre being built on the corner of Main Street and Torquay Road.

“The car park will also be of benefit to users of the Hervey Bay pump track, which will be built in coming months in Fraser Coast Park, behind the current Hervey Bay Library building and the University of the Sunshine Coast’s local campus.”

The project scope will include excavation and earthworks, stormwater drainage, kerb and channel, pavement and new asphalt surfacing, construction of concrete footpaths, line marking to allow for 162 additional car parking spaces, lighting and landscaping.

Work on the car park extension is expected to start later this year and be finished by the end of the year.

The car park extension works are partly funded through the Australian Government’s Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program.

The new Hervey Bay Library and Council Administration Centre (incorporating a Disaster Resilience Centre) is funded by a $40 million Australian Government commitment under the Hinkler Regional Deal, Council’s general revenue and land sales.

Construction of the new centre is starting this month and is expected to be completed by mid-2026.

The Queensland Government provided a $1.3 million grant to Council through the Works for Queensland program to design and build pump tracks in Maryborough and Hervey Bay, with the Maryborough pump track opening in mid-2023.