Queensland Art Gallery Presscuttings Book 7 : Debate on New Art Gallery and Cultural Centre, 1970-1976

~rge scale use of land ,. - now possible "MORNING HERALD" Sydney, N.s.w. 20 JUL 1970 Nowhere in •• A' scheduled -for completion[ ... ··• 1· . 'I ,• , • US• within 10 years exceeds been a P!) 1uca1 Y ata e raha 1s there greater •S2 196m area. But 1t was onlv dur• · ' f • ' ' · in11 the past few decade• scope ot econom1c Some 364 projects, rang- that a number of other promotion. - In recent years the State Budget hu been consistentlv loaded in favour of these activities, nd social progress : ing in cost fro'?' $200,0(!0 mineral-r:ch areas of the ban in Queensland to. $19~m. are ,nclpded m ?orld t?ecame pnsafe for • this estimate which 1s baaed international investment. Universities Recent and current de- on a survey earlier this. Durina the same period the elopments In this north• yeai:. All these are either handicaps of distance, have stern quarter of the con- ,under way or have been ~n reduced by f,ater and inent arc evidence of the firmly announced. b1111er cargo 1h1pa and trf<lnath of this view. The largest undertakings modern bulk • loading d 'th methods. During the past decade are conceme WI power Enrolments at Queens– land University have in– creased from 'a little over 12,000 in 1964 to • ome t 6,700 at present. A second university at Townsville, with an initial enrolment :he gross value of the generatjon and mineral tale's mineral production processing, ~etalled else- Gratifying · as more than trebled to where fu th11 aupplement, each S300m a year. it is What has made this phen– enain to treble aaain ove I omenal p~oaress in Queens- e next ·decade. ' land possible? ·· Net value of factory A major factor has been roduction rose nearly two the poltcy of the present · nd a half times, passing Oovem~ent, which e~cour• e $700m a year mark. ages, pnvate ent~rpr1se to is figure will at least participate freely in the d~– double durinir the seventies. velopment of the S!at~ s • natural resources. This tn• , Area under crops b~ eludes the welcoming of rown from 3m acres in 'oveneas investment where , I960 to . m • neccuary. present. There is scqpe for ·==..,__ _ _ ___ this fiaurc to be, exc-;eJed Fortuitous four and a half umes, pass- \ ina 20m acres. Various b th land development sctiemes There have een o er: and maior irrigation pro• more • fortuitous facto~s. -· d' Mounting populations, ns• Jccts are now spec ma up ing living standard and the process. rapid technological ad• The beef cattle total has vances in countries sur– climbed to nearly 7m head rounding the Pacific; Ocean and is expected to reach have together created huge at least 8m head by the and expandin,r new markets end of the decade. Queens- in the part of the world land's share of the nation's for products which Queens• beef exports will then well land can supply. exceed the present 56 p.c. · This State was always All these developments, known to have vast land together with an almost res · :.. ·ces and ample scope doubled raw sugar produc- for water conservation. tion and trebled wheat pro- Now the availability of duction, have pushed the developmental capital and value of Queensland's the progress of rural overseas exports to 20 per science have made land cent of the Australian total, utilisation on a large scale against a population share possible. of under 14.S per cent. It was al\\ l!J s 1uspected This ratio rs bound to that Queensland was rich change further in Queens• in minerals. Only now, I land's favour in the next after soaring international few years despite a cli~b- demand has stimulated 1 ing rate of populauon interest in systematic ex- \ growth due to a stronger ploration, has it been estab• flow of overseas and inter- lished that Queensland is, state migrants. in fact one of the great Present total capital minerai treasure houses of commitment on major pub- the world. lie and private projects Queensland has always One of the most 11rati• ' o( I,100, has ·been opened fyinl! aspects of Queen~- this year .,,;_h land's current pro1res1 1s · ,- that it is benefttina the man Well before 1980 in the atreet. Queensland will have a Average weekly earnin1s third university, to be of employed Queenslanders located at Brisbane. Spee. have been rising in recent tacular expansion will talce years at almost twice the place at a number of col– rate of price inflation. Be• leaes of advanced educa– tween 1964-65 and 1968-69 tion which prov.lde alter– the Brisbane consumer native tertiary courses. price index rose 13,4 p.c., \\ , while averaae weekly earn- Brisbane has gained r. I 1 d t sophisticated new theatre n~s per emp oye ma e with an extendable stage. unit increased by 24 p.c. Work will begin within a The current employment few years on a new Queens. position · in the State has land Art Gallery to cost not been bettered for at at least S7 million. 1I least 12 years and has been equalled only once - in I Obviously contributing 1965, Savings Bank de• to the qualit_y of life in posits per head of popu• Queensland 1s a climate lation are at an all-time that bas all the advantages, high and arc climbin11. but none of the health The number of homes hazards of a ~uh-tropical built in Queensland each to tropical environment. year is growing at a much Equallv impo,tant for faster rate than the national 11ood living conditions is total. the fact that Queenslan~ is More tban 71 % of all the most d~ccntr.aliscd homes in the State are State of '\Ustraha. with.out owned or beinl! paid off an excess1ye metropolitan by the occupiers. This is a_,rglomerat1on of popula• also higher than the Aus- t1on. tralian average, Three-quarters of the Queensland Is the only $2, 196m. capital commit• State to make free medical ment on major develop– treatment and hospitalise- ment projects during the lion available lo all . seventies is being investee.: Health and social welfare outside the municipal services absorb more money per capita in boundaries of Brisbane. Queensland than in any This underlines the con– other Australian State. tinuing success of the pre- Tremendous prol!l'ess sent Government's policy t has been nchieved in the of decentralised develop– field of education and art mcnt. I 1~. By BJ ELKE-PETERSEN Premier of QuNnsfancl