Inside Palmersaurus wreck: The resort that Clive forgot
LOTS OF PHOTOS HERE http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/travel/australia/inside-palmersaurus-wreck-the-resort-that-clive-fo...
IT’S easy to see why Clive Palmer is the “Wrecking Ball” of Australian politics, and why he has come so close to destroying the nation’s economy.
All you have to do is visit his rundown resort at Coolum on the Sunshine Coast.
When the boofhead billionaire bought the 324-room Hyatt Regency resort in 2011, it was the jewel in the Sunshine Cost’s tourism economy – luxurious, immaculately maintained and full to the brim with happy holidaymakers.
Today, rebadged under the self-aggrandising name of Palmer Coolum Resort, it is a ghost town.
Hunderds of workers have been laid off, bars and restaurants have been closed, and those that remain open are empty and chronically understaffed.
Palmer’s ego appears to be the size of his wallet and his waistline combined.
His gaze follows you everywhere you go at the resort.
Photos of himself adorn the walls of reception and the restaurants. Four of the TV channels in the hotel rooms ar dedicated to promoting his profile and business interests
The Palmer Australian channel features Mr Palmer’s Australian Story and a “best of” from his Lateline interviews with Tony Jones, while Palmer TV1 and TV2 include his 60 Minutes interview with Ray Martin and plugs for his mining company.
Despite the off-peak season, accommodation prices for the hotel’s cheaper suites were pricey, ranging between $230 and $450 per night (access to Palmersaurus and Motorama included) at the self-rated five-star resort.
But everywhere you look there are signs of decay.
The hotel pool areas were unoccupied and the children’s pool was empty except for a puddle of rain water.
The Beach Club – once a drawcard for the hotel - was deserted, with the pool floor peeling away and guests forced to use a phone to contact the resort, more than a kilometre away.
Rubbish had been dumped inside towel chutes, and guests had to take towels from their room because the Beach Club was locked.
In the 300-plus guest carpark, only a handful of cars are parked there overnight.
We spotted more kangaroos wandering around the resort than humans.
“You should have seen that carpark in the heyday, it would be jam-packed. Now you look at it as well as the staff carpark and there’s hardly anyone there,” a local resident said.
At a “special” combined gate price of $60 for adults and $175 for families, visitors can enter Palmersaurus – Palmer’s collection of 160 plastic dinosaurs (many of which need a clean) – and Palmer’s Motorama collection of 85 antique and prestige cars.
Both attractions, which Palmer regularly lauds as being successful, were virtually empty during The Daily Telegraph’s stay.
At check-in, guests are told they can use the gym but not the Spa which is “unfortunately” shut for maintenance. The Palmer Grill – named after the owner - is also closed for business.
“It’s pretty quiet mid-week,” a staff member said.
The Smiling Duck, advertised with big “Asian Food” signs throughout the property, is a yum-cha restaurant but you can’t sit-down for dinner because of a waitress shortage.
“Grab a menu from up there and you’ll have to come back down to the Roo bar. There’s only one girl on tonight,” another staff member said.
At breakfast, The Daily Telegraph was served rancid butter with toast, with the expiry date fast approaching on four packets.
Guest blocks had leaves and branches littered on roofs and staircases.
The mini-bar, usually a staple of any five-star resort, has been dumped with empty fridges greeting visitors.
Despite the lack of guests, staff members managed to retain a smile and were willing to assist where they could.
Palmer Coolum Resort staff maintained a high level of service despite being asked to perform several different roles following job cuts earlier this year.
THE days of 650 staff working under the Hyatt Regency chain and attracting big events like the Australian PGA golf tournament and stars such as U2 and Mick Jagger are a distant memory in Coolum.
Gaye Williams and David Pocock have operated The Shop on the Coolum Esplanade for 11 years.
Ms Williams said losing the PGA and the Hyatt Regency brand had badly affected Coolum businesses and residents.
The PGA was held at the Hyatt for 11 years before the association fell out with Mr Palmer’s resort over signage and “lack of flexibility of dates”.
“The golfers would be here, the media, the crowds and it would be beamed around the world,” she said. “The flow-on effect for Coolum was fantastic but we’ve lost that now.”
She said Mr Palmer had not been an active member of the local business community and had been past their shop once.
“A lot of the staff who worked there used to come down to the shop but we haven’t seen them in a long time now since the staff cuts,” she said.
The resort hires more seasonal casuals and has lost many of its permanent staffers.
Staff levels have reportedly been reduced to just 90.
The Daily Telegraph was told by local business owners, who did not want to be named, that some in the community were too afraid to speak out against Mr Palmer, for fear of legal action.
The ALP, the Greens and PUP, saving us from the budget
