The Lismore Prospectus was launched on Monday evening to a capacity crowd at the Lismore Regional Gallery
Giving it a helping hand were former Lismore boy-turned SBS sports analyst Craig Foster, Lismore Mayor Isaac Smith and Page MP Kevin Hogan.
The council’s new guide to private and public investment and funding opportunities is an update to the original Lismore Prospectus, produced in 2015, and follows the recent anniversary of the flood that engulfed Lismore CBD last year.
‘We felt it was important to a produce a new prospectus in the wake of the flood anniversary and let the world know that Lismore is thriving and ‘open for business’, with solid prospects for future development and growth,’ Mayor Isaac Smith said.
The new publication details major projects and opportunities for investment in Lismore while also providing a snapshot of the lifestyle and culture that makes Lismore an attractive place for people to call home.
‘The Lismore Prospectus details everything our city hopes to achieve in the next two decades – it is the document that needs to find its way to the desks of cabinet ministers in Canberra, senior civil servants in Macquarie Street and private investors throughout Australia.’
The Lismore Prospectus video featuring sports legend Craig Foster highlights many of the key aspects of the printed prospectus and will be used by Council’s Economic Development Manager Tina Irish as she ‘sells’ the city to business and commercial interests throughout the region and across the country.
Major projects included in the new Lismore Prospectus for potential investment by public or private partners are:
- A $36 million major city centre redevelopment including a new library, office block, raised civic plaza and serviced apartments adjacent to theLismore Regional Gallery and Quadrangle.
- Lismore Regional Parkland – a two-stage, $15 million project representing the very best of contemporary urban park design with the potential to attract 400,000 visitors toLismore each year.
- The Bridge to Bridge project – a $20 million scheme to revitaliseLismore by establishing a ‘Southbank’ style precinct along both sides of the Wilsons River.
- Major improvements to the North Coast National (Lismore Showground) valued at $50 million, including a major upgrade of infrastructure, a multipurpose exhibition, conference and entertainment complex, and a separate $25 million equestrian centre.
Featured throughout the pages of the new Lismore Prospectus are the ‘Lismore advocates’ – an eclectic group of local business people and figures from the arts, business, sport, the environment, LGBTQI and refugee communities who each tell, in their own words, what opportunities and strengths they believe the city possesses.
‘The advocates’ stories show the wealth of talent that Lismore possesses,’ Mayor Smith said.
‘They illustrate the diversity of our city and provide fascinating case stories into our lifestyle and reinforce the ‘live + work + play’ aspect of the new Lismore Prospectus. We want to attract more people here so it is important to show them what fantastic facilities we have in Lismore.
‘The new elements of the Lismore Prospectus provide key insights into the employment, education, sporting, cultural and community aspects of Lismore that can act as an enticement for people to move and settle here.
‘The first Lismore Prospectus resulted in many positive outcomes for the city, and we anticipate the new publication will do the same.’
