Sitting upon the edge of the Broadwater lies the diverse suburb of Southport; the Gold Coast’s official CBD. The suburb is home to the head offices of many Gold Coast businesses, as well as plenty of dining, shopping and recreational areas, including the newly developed Broadwater Parklands.
The suburb dates back to the 1890’s when it was a quiet seaside village, known for its sideshow theatres and pier, but has grown dramatically as tourists flocked to the Gold Coast. Today it is the bustling commercial heart of the city.
The Broadwater Parklands line the water’s edge and provide spectacular views across the the Spit and the towers of Main Beach and Surfers Paradise and feature 2.8 hectares of green space, filled with a large variety of spaces perfect for a family outing. There are plenty of public BBQs and green spaces, perfect for a game of backyard cricket. Or take a stroll out onto the pier, a dip in the rock pools, or a swim in the fully enclosed Broadwater swimming area.
Southport will play a central role in the upcoming Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games and is reaping the benefits of spending for the games. The Gold Coast Aquatic Centre has recently being transformed into a world class venue, ready to stage the swimming and diving Commonwealth Games events and is the perfect place to cool-off with the family on a long hot Summer’s day.
Commonwealth Games spending was also responsible for construction of the light rail, affection known as the ‘G’, which runs right through the middle of Southport, providing easy access North to the Gold Coast University Hospital and Griffith University and South to Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach. The line runs along Queen and Scarborough Streets, stopping directly at Australia Fair.
Australia Fair sits in the middle of Southport and offers some of the best views on the Gold Coast, with the food court overlooking the Broadwater Parklands, the Broadwater and the Spit beyond, with sweeping water views. The shopping centre boats over 210 stores, including a Kmart, Woolworths and Coles, as well as Event Cinemas where you can watch the latest movies in the comfort of Gold Lounge.
Adjacent to Australia Fair is the Southport mall and the Tafe Queensland Gold Coast campus, making the area very popular with students. The Gold Coast campus offers a large variety or courses including nursing, business, design and early childhood eduction and caters to both domestic and international students.
With a large student population Southport is a popular suburb with property investors for student accommodation.
Being one of the older suburbs on the Gold Coast, Southport is home to a lot of older low set houses and is popular with those looking to purchase a property on a large block and undertake some renovations.
Recently the suburb has seen a huge surge in development with the Southport PDA Development Scheme coming into effect, making the suburb a priority development area, which removes many of the barriers to development and fast tracks the approval process for new developments.
Recent additions to the skyline in Southport include the three towers of Southport Central, Pivotal Point and H2O Southport, with many boutique residential apartment blocks now under construction.
The suburb also has good employment prospects, being home to a large commercial area, housing accounting, finance and legal firms. Southport is also home the the Southport Courthouse, which is the Gold Coast’s major courthouse.
Southport is also home to the Gold Coast’s Chinatown, which is currently under development and set to grow into a popular tourist destination for the suburb, hosting regular markets and eclectic food and dining options.
For those looking for the finer things in life, Southport is also home the the Ferry Road Markets, which is an upmarket fresh food and dining development, offering the finest produce and fresh food on the Gold Coast. Ferry Road Markets contains a fruit and vegetable store, deli, bakery, butcher and large seafood market, as well as plenty of dining and retail stores.
Southport is also home to a large number of schools, including the Prestigious boys school ‘The Southport School’ and girls school ‘St Hilda’s School, which are both known for providing a world class education. There are also several primary and secondary state schools.
