Sir,

May I suggest that if it is tourists that they are after, it might be as well not to emulate the Gold Coast, but to be different from it, and start strenuously protecting the native features that are left on the Sun Shine Coast.

Too much of it has already been "developed" leaving us with bare sites on which to erect replicas of the Gold Coast, pseudo Americanism.

Most of the charm of Maroochydore has already been ruined. Why in the world those superb and unique Paper Bark trees should have been illuminated along the river is something to wonder at ...