The first step in a 10-year, $1 million plan to improve the Nerang River behind Surfers Paradise has begun with a new pontoon for commercial boat operators lifted into place on Friday.
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Future plans include a big riverside swimming enclosure and viewing platform over the Nerang River.
The new pontoon replaces the old structure and breathes new commercial life into a part of the Gold Coast that was beginning to date quickly, Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate said.
The new pontoon is the first part of the Surfer Riverside Plan that is a joint project between Gold Coast City Council and the Gold Coast Waterways Authority.
The plan includes major changes to the river's edge behind Surfers Parade, between Appel Park and Lionel Perry Park on the Nerang River.
City of Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate said the $800,000 project was the first initiative of the Surfers Paradise Riverside Masterplan.
"This is the first breath of the new life we are giving to the Surfers Paradise riverside in partnership with the Gold Coast Waterways Authority (GCWA)," Mayor Tate said.
"By creating a uniquely Gold Coast riverside destination like this we'll draw more people here and tap into the enormous potential of the riverfront and surrounding areas."
The old wharf will be demolished.
The new 28-metre, 70-tonne pontoon on the Nerang River will be ready for use by the end of June.
Waterways Board chairman Gary Baildon said other plans for the Nerang River included a viewing platform and swimming enclosure.
"Of course these projects are planned for implementation in different stages over the next 10 years," he said.
"And we are working on when best to deliver them to accentuate the area's links to the new Cultural Precinct and the 2018 Commonwealth Games."
Mr Baildon said the plan included walkways around the river's edge up to the nearby McIntosh Park.
"So eventually they can do the whole circuit," he said.
