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Picnic Bay Public Amenities Renewal

Investment	$900,000
Goal	This project aligns with Townsville City Council Corporate Plan goals: Development of quality places where people want to live, work, play and learn Enhancing existing tourism offerings and creating new landmark tourism destinations (built, cultural and natural environment).
Strategic Purpose	To provide modern, accessible, and sustainable public amenities that enhance the visitor experience and support the local community, aligning with Council’s vision for quality public spaces and tourism development.
Status	Complete

Project Background

Townsville City Council has renewed the public amenities at Picnic Bay on Magnetic Island.

Council is committed to creating enjoyable, well-maintained recreational and open spaces for our growing community.

The amenities, built in the 1980s, served us well over the years until they reached the end of their useful life. Unfortunately, they were no longer functional, financially sustainable, or compliant with accessibility standards.

Council consulted with the Island community from March to April 2023. During this time, Council received 241 submissions as part of a Have Your Say online survey, with 163 submissions in favour of upgrading the amenities in its existing location. You can access the consultation report and supporting documents by visiting Have Your Say Townsville.

Project Overview

As part of this renewal, Council demolished and constructed new amenities, including:

one accessible facility
two ambulant facilities
two standard toilets.

Photos of Completed Public Amenities

Completed amenities block at Picnic Bay

Artist Impression

Site Location

Project Updates

The new amenities block at Picnic Bay is one step closer to opening, with switchboards now successfully installed. Final power connections are scheduled to be completed in late October 2025. Once connected, Council will carry out commissioning and final inspections. If all goes to plan, the facility is expected to be open for November 2025. We look forward to the community being able to enjoy these new facilities soon!

Construction works at the Picnic Bay Public Amenities are nearing completion, with only the switchboard installation, electrical connections, and final commissioning remaining. While these tasks were initially scheduled for completion prior to the school holidays, a delay in the delivery of the SCADA switchboard (currently in transit from overseas) has extended the project timeline.

Completion is now expected by the end of September. In the meantime, as part of the recent Local Street Artist Call Out, a local artist will be engaged to create a mural and bring life to one of the exterior walls.

Construction activities are progressing well. The structural steel is in place, and the installation of the new sewer pump station tank is complete.

As part of this project, Council will also undertake some additional work, including:

removing garden beds, installing new turf and upgrading irrigation around the amenities
installing a dedicated switchboard for the remote management of the pump station
removing an old storage shed across the creek.

Additionally, there is an opportunity for a mural on the amenities block. We will reach out to local artists who participated in our recent Local Street Artist Call Out to express their interest.

Works Notifications

Media Releases

Funding Acknowledgement

This project is proudly funded by the Queensland Government's Works for Queensland program.

Picnic Bay Public Amenities Renewal

Project Background