MULGR
VE NEWS EDITION 37, MARCH 2013
Removal of the
Gordonvale Water Tower The Gordonvale water tower sits prominently at the southeast corner of Norman Park, and was constructed between 1932 and 1935 using day labour during the Great Depression. After consultation with the local Gordonvale community a decision to remove the structure has been reached. Restoration of the tower was expected to be about $840,000 whilst removal would be about $150,000. The water tower structure is constructed of reinforced concrete and consists of a tank supported by braced legs and foundation. The first Australian Concrete Structures Design Standard was not available until 1934. Therefore, this tank and tower would have been designed prior to any Australian standard for concrete design and most likely used a British Standard for the design. The tower was constructed to supply water to the sugar mill, fire services and as a general water supply. The tank had a capacity of 60,000 gallons or 272,000 litres and was filled using the aid of an electric pump. Water was drawn from the Mulgrave River. During the depression, the government funded a variety of civic projects across the state to provide employment for its citizens during this difficult time, including the Gordonvale Water Tower. Many water towers and other civic projects were built across Queensland and other parts of the country during this time. It is noted that there are many reinforced concrete water towers that can be found
across Australia that were built in the earlier part of the last century. Many are still in use today such as the Innisfail Water Tower, whilst many others are no longer used as water storage but are used for a variety of other purposes. It is noted than within the Local Government Area there are three water towers which have all been decommissioned but are all still standing. These are at Gordonvale, Holloways Beach and Newell Beach which was built in 1963 and had repairs carried out in 1990. In 2012 a community survey was undertaken by Cairns Regional Council which sought public opinion as to whether it should be removed or restored. Of the 353 responses received 158 (48.9%) supported restoration and 165 (51.1%) considered it should be removed. 30 offered no comment. The survey results were summarised by CRC staff and a variety of suggestions were received with the most popular being to use it for a memorial, a monument or a plaque detailing the history of the tower and the town (WW2, settlers, town history, sugar mill, etc – but not cane toads). Using it as an observation deck/lookout was also very popular. Given the costly estimate for restoration, about $840,000, and the restrictions that would be placed on further upgrades to the park, removal of the tower is considered to be the most appropriate option. The tower is also likely to exceed the threshold for listing on the state heritage register. Work is expected to start in the new financial year.
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