Brisbane City Council today signed an historic agreement with the Shingle Inn to recreate its original shop in City Hall. The original booths, windows and silverware have been saved from the iconic Shingle Inn (pictured left), which operated at its Edward Street address from 1936 to 2002. They will now be unpacked to form part […]

Kangaroo Point residents are angry about Brisbane City Council plans they say will destroy character housing in the area. More than 100 residents attended a meeting with Councillor Helen Abrahams last week to discuss the Brisbane City Council’s Kangaroo Point South Renewal Strategy. Preserve Kangaroo Point spokesman Trevor Gordon said the area’s character housing was […]

Early morning rain and cold did not stop more than 300 protesters gathering at Reddacliffe Place in the city yesterday morning to call for rescue of the historic Regent Theatre. Regent building owner Industry Superannuation Property Trust plans to keep the Regent’s historical components but turn the rest of the building into a 38-storey office […]

Queensland dirt bike riders will form the biggest interstate contingent of riders at the Finke Desert Race in June this year. Finke race sectary, Kelsey Rodda, said more than 90 Queensland dirt bike riders would travel to Alice Springs to compete in the gruelling two-day cross country race.

The City Council’s Two Million Trees for Brisbane program would fail unless they provided ongoing care for young trees planted under the program, a environmental expert said yesterday. Queensland University Planning and Environmental management expert Dr Clive McAlpine said the council needed to ensure ongoing care to prevent a repeat of the failed one billion […]

After more than a year’s planning and despite opposition from the local councillor and some residents, the community garden in Faulkner Park Graceville will officially open today. The site (pictured) was chosen from several possibilities in the area because of its location and accessibility to the Benarrawa Community Development Association. Graceville community garden committee co-ordinator […]

A Toowoomba author and life coach is campaigning for computerised voting registers to stop people rorting the electoral system. Nancy Sommerfield (pictured left) wants polling booths to be equipped with computers so that Queenslanders are flagged state-wide when they vote. “Voting is really important, sometimes there are only six votes difference in elections,” she said. […]

Queenslanders flocked to the Paniyiri Festival in record numbers over the weekend to enjoy all things Greek. More than 75,000 people attended the two-day event compared to last year’s attendance of about 45,000. About 30,000 people went to the Festival on Saturday alone, a 40 percent increase on last year’s attendance for the same day, according to marketing consultant Lorraine Monsorte.

Neighbourhood rows about fences and overhanging trees are set to be reduced following tabling of proposed laws in the Queensland Parliament. Queensland Attorney-General Cameron Dick has called for public consultation on the draft Neighbourhood Disputes Resolution Bill. “We have modernised the outdated laws regarding dividing fences, which were introduced almost 60 years ago, to ensure […]

Two neglected Heritage-listed buildings on the old Sinnamon Farm site are set for rejuvenation with Rotary Jindalee stepping in to do much-needed maintenance. The hand-sawn timber homestead “Beechwood”, built in 1869 (left), and the old schoolhouse are both in a state of disrepair. The homestead, which borders busy Seventeen Mile Rocks Road, is one of […]

The rise in tolls for the Sir Leo Hielscher Bridges was too expensive, two out of three respondents to a NewsBytes survey said today. The toll for the bridges will rise to $3.85 for a private car on July 1. In a poll of 100 people at the opening of the second bridge, 67 said […]

The second Gateway Bridge was showcased to the public for the first time today, with thousands coming to see the bridge and be present for the official naming ceremony. Event organiser Kath Rose said 200,000 people came to walk on the new bridge, equalling the number of visitors who came to see the original Gateway […]

Garden gnome chess and giant scrabble are part of a council-supported Games Night in King George Square. Run on the last Thursday of each month, the free event kicked off yesterday with giant scrabble as the main attraction. Game lovers also played cards, chess and Connect Four on the tables provided. Organiser Amy Saunders started […]

Brisbane church member Constantine Drozdovskii chose public participation over prayer yesterday in an attempt to stop a development proposal casting a shadow over his local church. At yesterday’s Brisbane City Council’s meeting, Mr Drozdovskii urged council members to reject a development application that would see a 20-storey apartment block tower over St Nicholas’s Russian Orthodox […]