A weekly re-cap of the events that have made news in Cairns over the past week.

Monday July 30, 2001 25th Edition

Cairns has had an exciting week with the Havana Night Cuban dance troupe bursting onto the city scene. The Cairns Cabbie of the Year has been announced and there are smiles on all tourism operators faces as Japanese arrival figures continue to go against the national trend and news of an innovative new public relations campaign by Cairns Police is announced.

A taste of Cuba in Cairns
Cairns plays host to Cuban extravaganza this week as 53 performers from the renowned "Havana Night " perform at the Cairns Civic Centre. The show is described as a Latin Music and dance extravaganza, which consists of 32 dancers, 8 singers and a 13 piece band. The Havana Night group was formed in Cuba three years ago and they have been touring the world ever since.

Cairns City Council backflip of parking fines
In an announcement that has been greeted with praise by the Cairns community, the Cairns City Council looks set to back down on its decision to raise parking fines from $10 to $30, opting instead for a more middle of the road increase to $20. Inner city traders are welcoming the decision, however it has yet to be confirmed by the Council.

Cairns Cabbie of the Year announced
The Cairns Cabbie of the Year was announced last Thursday 19th July 2001. The winner of the award is Mr Lincoln Hoad, Taxi Number 72. Mr Hoad has been a driver with Black and White Taxis for over ten years.

As winner of this years award Mr Hoad will travel to Brisbane next Tuesday to attend the '2001 Cabbie of The Year" statewide awards. Both the Cairns and the State awards recognise excellent service from individuals.

The "2001 Cabbie of the Year " awards focus on the following points:

1. The industry's commitment to have a good standard of drivers and vehicles and to improve customer service.

2. The recognition of taxi drivers who work under difficult conditions and provide great customer service.

3. The recognition of drivers who take pride in themselves and have a willingness to serve the public.

4. The recognition of drivers who have greater job satisfaction through improved performances.

5. Our commitment to increase driver awareness of their role in promoting tourism within the region.

(Supplied by Black and White Taxis in Cairns)

Students turn up in droves at James Cook University
James Cook University has broken their own record with mid semester enrolments higher than ever before. Acting Rector, Professor Peter Pierce, said that international enrolments for the University have doubled since opening. The increase was attributed to the growing reputation of James Cook University in Australia and internationally.

Japanese arrival figures continue to soar
Going against national trends Japanese arrivals into Cairns have continued to show astounding growth, increasing by 32 per cent for the first seven months of this year, as compared to arrival figures for the same period last year. The national increase was only 2 per cent. Tourism Tropical North Queensland Chief Executive Officer said that this year could turn out to be the best year ever for growth in the Japanese market. As part of this continuing increase QANTAS has announced a number of new flights into Cairns later in the year.

All routes now taken up
Following the collapse of Queensland owned airline, Flight West, all of the companies regional routes have now been picked up by other airlines ensuring that air services continue throughout Queensland. Many of the airlines former employees have also been employed by the other airlines.

Bid for Cairns first nudist beach
A community group has begun lobbying the local Council to legislate a nudist beach north of Cairns. The site, Buchan Point, is already the unofficial nudist beach, however in theory people swimming at this beach naked could face police action. Work has been underway since 1988 to make the site an official nudist beach but the application keeps being bogged down in red tape and a lack of certainty regarding the correct procedure to follow for the request.

Police go public
In an innovative move Cairns police will be visiting inner city businesses to meet owners and managers and to provide them with their direct contact details in an attempt to form closer partnerships with city traders. The business owners and operators will be encouraged to call their police office whenever they have any problems. This is the first time an initiative like this has been conducted in Queensland and it is hoped that it will form a much closer bond and level of communication between police and traders.