"To help deter this behaviour in future weather events, the City has made the decision to reshape and strengthen the hillsides."
A thumb in the eye to all those surf fans who laughed at world champion surfer Joel Parkinson’s efforts to stop children sliding down muddy hills following cyclonic rains after the Gold Coast City Council announced its plan to install sandstone terracing at Burleigh and Kirra.
Joel Parkinson aka “Koolie Karen” was famously at the centre a “wild Gold Coast pell-mell involving mud-sliding, tiktok, ageism and alleged hand-to-hand contact!”
Only those living under a rock will be unaware that, days ago, Parkinson approached a group of prepubescent twenty-five-year-olds enjoying a mud slide and told them to knock it off. They appeared to back-sass kicking off a wild pell-mell where it was alleged that the Billabong star knocked a camera into the muck.
Then, yesterday, news footage came to light that appeared to color the 2012 Association of Professional Surfing tour winner in a hypocritical light as he, himself, had partaken in the mud sliding earlier.
Five months later, the Gold Coast teetered on a knife-edge after fears Joel Parkinson would, again, be forced to use his powers of citizen policing after cyclonic rains from TC Alfred turned the usually grassy hill at Kirra into a mudslide with dozens of thrillseekers braving the weather for the ride of a lifetime.
But thanks thanks to the work of Joel Parkinson and complaints from residents, the squeal of delighted children sliding down muddy embankments has become a thing of the past. The Gold Coast City Council has announced it will installing sandstone terracing at Burleigh and Kirra to end the laughs once and for all.
Gold Coast councillor Gail O’Neil explained, “Not only did this cause significant damage to the parks, but it also created serious safety concerns. This has been an ongoing issue for years with both hills continually having to be fixed after storms, using rate payers money to bring them back to an acceptable standard each time. To help deter this behaviour in future weather events, the City has made the decision to reshape and strengthen the hillsides, making them more resilient and much safer for the community.”
Some residents took to social media to voice opposition to the move.
“Let the kids have a bit of fun. The grass has grown back! Money better spent putting in a second bike track from Kirra to Greenmount.”
“That’s absurd. It’s been there for thousands of years and done an all-right job.”
“Rather tax dollars go to fixing the grass on a hill from some locals having fun than some silly new stadium.”
A victory for common sense, yes?
Or are you camp no?
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They’ve put in air sections. Sick
I’m pro-mudslide.
Communities would turn out to go mudlsiding in Hawaii on the big development sites in the 70’s.
Red mud. Good times.
Joel rips but let the youngsters have some fun ffs. They got locked-down for 12 months in 2020 over a cold.
Joel Park-enforcer.
‘Kids never play outside anymore’ – gee, I fucking wonder why…
FFS nobody is having kids anymore, let the few that exist slide around in the mud
Lay down Joel porko smear some mud on your guts and let them have some fun you filthy queenslander
This is why retiring at a young age is a bad idea. Turns you into a grumpy fuck way before your time.