$65m to kick-start Karratha town centre, Grylls

Author: Brendon Grylls
Published on: 07-November-2011

The State Government today announced $65million of Royalties for Regions funding will be allocated to complete the first two stages of the Karratha City Centre Infrastructure Works.

Regional Development and Lands Minister Brendon Grylls said the funding reinforced the Government’s Pilbara Cities vision to revitalise key towns in the Pilbara.

“The Karratha City Centre Infrastructure Works project will help deliver significant town centre upgrades to support its development as a city of more than 50,000 people,” Mr Grylls said.

The $65million will go towards the creation of a new main street along Sharpe Avenue; the realignment and upgrade of other town centre roads, including tree-lined streetscapes with shaded walkways and landscaped public spaces; and the relocation of the existing Karratha Seniors’ Village to its new location in the Warambie Estate.

“This is an important project for Karratha in developing it into a world-class city and become the premier City of the North in Western Australia,” the Minister said.

“It will provide a greatly improved public amenity, create a number of commercial development lots which in turn provide opportunities for private sector investment and commercial development.”

Mr Grylls said some boundary realignments and facility relocations would be required to implement the project, including the relocation of the Karratha Seniors’ Village.

“To facilitate this project, a major community engagement program led by LandCorp and the Shire of Roebourne was conducted to work with the seniors and their families,” he said.

“Through consultation we are confident we have now reached a desirable solution that all parties are happy with.”