Portfolio — 5 August 2026

The Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Catherine King, marked the start of construction on Central Queensland University's new Cairns CBD campus with a ceremonial sod turn at the Hartley Street site [TA-260804-infras-d59517a4bfb0:m259819]. The four-storey facility, scheduled for completion in 2028, will deliver 58 courses and specialist teaching spaces in allied health, engineering, nursing, and medical imaging to address regional workforce demand in Far North Queensland [TA-260804-infras-d59517a4bfb0:m259819].

The project represents a $77.5 million federal investment designed to retain local talent by enabling students to study and work in the region rather than relocating to metropolitan centres [TA-260804-infras-d59517a4bfb0:m259819].

**Regional workforce and education infrastructure**

The release positions the campus within the Government's broader regional development agenda, connecting infrastructure spending directly to tertiary education and health workforce outcomes in Far North Queensland. The specialist teaching spaces in allied health, nursing, and medical imaging target sectors facing documented regional shortages. The engineering provision broadens the campus's contribution to local industry capacity beyond health.

The framing emphasises retention — keeping students in the region for both study and subsequent employment — as the core policy logic behind the investment. By co-locating multiple discipline areas in a single CBD facility, the campus is designed to function as a workforce pipeline for the region rather than a feeder institution for metropolitan labour markets.

The choice of the Hartley Street CBD site signals an urban-renewal dimension, bringing higher education infrastructure into the city centre. The 2028 completion timeline places delivery within the current infrastructure investment cycle.