Its bung removed, the defunct 1904 Criterion Hotel on Townsville's waterfront is once again looking neglected . Our Shipping Reporter, the only one north of Tauranga , NZ , last week ran his eye over the locked premises , the subject of a battle between those who want it to remain and others who want it knocked down , the site developed .
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Before.
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Now.
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Clearly visible were signs of neglect from both street frontages -clumps of overgrown grass, fallen palm fronds, collapsed sunshades , assorted litter , part of what appeared to be a pushed in fence .
Strange as it may seem , close by was a City Council sign advertising a Heritage Day event on June 16 in Anzac Park , a feature of which will be tours of another old Townsville building, the adjoining Queen's Hotel ,mentioned from time to time in this blog , also unoccupied . Would it be too hard to arrange a clean up of a piece of the city's heritage, the Criterion Hotel , before the weekend ?
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