Redlands councillor Peter Mitchell has rubbished suggestions that the Cleveland CBD is dead and believes new developments will prove a boon for the precinct.
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His claims come amid anger over Redland City Council's decision to tinker with parking time limits in the area and as sections of the public lament CBD shops lying empty.
Cr Mitchell said the centre was evolving and significant developments planned or underway in and around the area would promote more activity.
"People complain about empty shops, but they are not going to be empty once some of these things come through," he said.
Several other development applications are currently before the council, including proposals for apartment towers and a health centre planned for the corner of Middle and Waterloo streets.
Construction has also started on the Vacenti-owned five-storey aged care complex on Doig Street. The centre will also include commercial, medical and retail spaces.
"Once we are through the construction stage, hundreds of new people will be moving and shopping in the town," Cr Mitchell said.
"That is not just the residents of the new building, but the doctors, the nurses and physios. They will all be coming in and hopefully enjoying the core."
Criticism of the CBD's management has spanned several years and multiple councils, with Mayor Karen Williams announcing an incentive package to kick-start the centre's development as far back as 2012.
There were also hopes the Chef's Inc initiative would reinvigorate the area, but it lasted only a few months in 2018 before operators 4 Simplicity went into voluntary liquidation.
Cr Mitchell said the town centre was going through a "renewal" phase and was ripe with business opportunities.
"It is far from dead. Some businesses come and go, which is normal," he said.
"There are various headwinds, including fractured land ownership, inflation and rising building costs, but some incredible opportunities remain."
Cr Mitchell believed the area would continue to evolve for the foreseeable future.
"As we have heard from one particular shopkeeper, there are efforts to aggregate land and that's really one of the big things needed," he said.
"I think the transition period has probably been the last five or 10 years. It will continue to evolve for the next 10, 20 or 30 years.
"It just hasn't been managed in a planned and visible way for all the stakeholders, and I think that is where I can do better, the council can do better, and the media can do better."
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