The Cooktown rail trail boardwalk unveiled to community members when it was set to officially open in May 2025. Photo: Cooktown Stay Another Day.
Almost a year after the opening of the Cooktown rail trail boardwalk was halted due to regulatory issues identified by Cook Shire Council, project representatives and the council have managed to come to an agreement.
Key details surrounding the project’s progress, issues that arose and what steps will be required to complete the approved boardwalk section were discussed at a meeting between the council and Stay Another Day Railway Trail project representatives Jola George and Veronica O’Brien on Thursday, 12 March.
The council’s CEO Brian Joiner said the meeting was held to ensure everyone had a clear understanding of the facts.
“There has been a lot of discussion about this project over the years, so it was important to sit down and go through the timeline together and ensure there is a shared understanding of what has occurred,” he said.
Ms George said she felt the meeting helped the council and community members get on the same page, adding that Mr Joiner agreed to meet with representatives every two to three months to discuss progress.
“The meeting was positive. I left quite happy and almost fully satisfied,” she said.
“I really care about this project, so I would say we would like to know what’s going on and we will be happy to participate in the progress.”
At the meeting, Mr Joiner and manager of planning Lisa Miller presented a timeline showing key council decisions, development approvals, regulatory advice and project milestones dating back to early concept discussions in 2016.
The timeline outlined how a development application for a 110-metre boardwalk section was approved in June 2024, subject to standard planning and building conditions and Queensland Government referral agency requirements.
When works started later that year, council officers identified construction activities outside the scope of the approved works, without all required permits in place.
While the boardwalk was set to open in May 2025, the project was halted. According to Ms George, the $400,000 to $500,000 secured for the project was redirected to other projects around town.
Under Queensland legislation, the council needed to notify relevant state regulators and undertake further environmental and engineering assessments to determine what approvals would be required to make the project compliant.
Mr Joiner said the council stepped in to manage the process and progress the project safely, including allocating $162,310 from the budget to address environmental remediation, engineering rectification and approvals.
“Rather than leaving the project unresolved, council made the decision to step in and progress the regulatory approvals and rectification work required to complete the approved boardwalk section and works outside the original scope,” he said.
Ms George said she was disappointed community advocates for the boardwalk had been blamed for issues with the project. She said she believed the necessary paperwork could have been completed before local contractors were engaged to start the job.
However, she was keen to move on from the past and eager to find out how the community could be involved as the project progresses.
“I hope we will be able to keep it tidy because at present the boardwalk, which is quite new and never officially opened yet, it’s already really messy,” she said.
“I think the community will be happy. I will be happy myself to go and clean it up, but we’re not allowed to go there to do any job.
“We haven’t got an answer yet, so we hope in the near future we will know when we can step in and which part of the project we will get permission to do.”
