Kangaroo Point, Queensland

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Kangaroo Point
Brisbane, Queensland

Kangaroo Point (right), from the lookout on top of the cliffs

Population:

6,495 (2004)^[1]

Postcode:

4169

Area:

1.3 km² (0.5 sq mi)

LGA:

Brisbane City Council,
Central Ward

Federal Division:

Griffith

Suburbs around Kangaroo Point:
Spring Hill	Fortitude Valley	New Farm
Brisbane City	Kangaroo Point	New Farm
Woolloongabba	Woolloongabba	East Brisbane

For other places named Kangaroo Point, see Kangaroo Point

Kangaroo Point is a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia located directly east across the Brisbane River from the Brisbane CBD.

1 Geography
2 Attractions
3 Transport
4 Future Transport
5 History
6 References

[edit] Geography

Kangaroo Point is located on a peninsula formed of harder rhyolite rock which the Brisbane River flows around. On the northern tip of the peninsula the Story Bridge connects it to the central business district and the suburb of Fortitude Valley. In the suburb of Woolloongabba is located to the south. The six-laned Main Street runs from Story Bridge to Woolloongabba.

[edit] Attractions

Kangaroo Point is a popular recreation spot, conveniently close to the city and the South Bank Parklands.

The cliffs and Brisbane River Stage as seen from the QUT on the opposite bank

The Kangaroo Point Cliffs, situated on the east bank of the city bend of the Brisbane River north of the Maritime Museum, opposite the Brisbane River Stage and the Queensland University of Technology at Gardens Point.

The cliffs are a popular picnic, rock climbing and abseiling site. The steepness of the cliffs was increased by quarrying operations which mined the volcanic rock or rhyolite lava flows which form the cliffs. These lavas were deposited in the Tertiary period about 30 million years ago and filled up an ancient river valley. They currently form the banks of the Brisbane River.

The Story Bridge is a prominent landmark, and provides the main means of access to the north of Brisbane. Directly under the bridge is the Storey Bridge Hotel.

[edit] Transport

Kangaroo Point Cliffs after sunset.

By Bus, The suburb is serviced by the South-East Busway transit line.

By Road, Kangaroo Point residents rely on the Story Bridge and Captain Cook Bridge for access to the north, and the South East Freeway for access to the south. Main Street connects the Story Bridge through the suburb to the South East Freeway.

By Bicycle, paths run along the Brisbane River from South Bank to and over the Story Bridge. The bicycle paths are heavily used by cyclists, roller skaters and pedestrians.

[edit] Future Transport

A green bridge is proposed to the west to connect Kangaroo Point to the City and to the east to connect Kangaroo Point to Merthyr Road New Farm.

A busway tunnel is proposed to connect under Kangaroo Point Cliffs from the Woolloongabba Station to the Botanic Gardens underground busway station and onto a new City underground bus loop.

[edit] History

The Queensland Navy's main stores below the Kangaroo Point cliffs, with the gunship "Paluma" moored in the Brisbane River in the 1890s.

Before British settlement, Kangaroo Point was home to the Coorparoo Indigenous Australian tribe.

Stone was quarried from the Cliffs and used as building material.

For many years the suburb was dominated by the factories of heavy engineering businesses, particularly those involved in the maritime industry, such as Evans Deakin, Buzzacott & Co and Evans Anderson & Phelan. The last ships built by Evans Deakin at their dry dock on the eastern side of the peninsula were completed in 1980s and the company vacated the site, with it later being redeveloped for high-rise accommodation.

Until the 1930s Evans Anderson & Phelan built steam locomotives at their Kangaroo Point works for Queensland Railways, however their works were not located near a railway, so the completed locos were delivered along Main Street on temporary track.

Until the federation of the Australian colonies in 1901, the Queensland Navy's main storage facility was located in the suburb. The first ship-based radio transmission in Australia was made between the HMAS Gayundah and the buildings in 1903. The naval stores buildings were occupied by the Royal Australian Navy until 1959, and then by the Australian Army until 1984. The heritage-listed buildings are now used by an adventure company focussing on river activities and rock climbing.

Trolley-buses operated by the Brisbane City Council linked the suburb with Fortitude Valley via the Story Bridge from 1953 to 1969, running along Main Street from Woolloongabba and other eastern suburbs.