Thousands flock to see dolphin centre

More than 6000 people turned out at the weekend to celebrate the official opening of the new Dolphin Discovery Centre.

Although the centre has been open since December, Friday night marked the official opening with Premier Mark McGowan and Regional Development Minister Alannah MacTiernan unveiling a plaque in front of 250 invited guests.

Mr McGowan said the upgrade of the centre was a great way to create local employment opportunities and now bring significant economic growth to Bunbury and the wider Geographe region.

“It's been terrific to see the redevelopment completed with local content, which created hundreds of local jobs to give Bunbury a boost to the local economy,” Mr McGowan said.

“The wider work being undertaken to enhance the waterfront is transforming Bunbury and if you haven't already done so recently, it’s time to rediscover this city.”

Centre chief executive David Kerr said he was happy with how the entire weekend ran and he had been inundated with positive comments.

“I was very pleased with how the opening night went and all of the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, but also I was pleased with the recognition of the hard yards of those who have been involved over the last 25 years,” Mr Kerr said. “The Premier and Don (Bunbury MLA Don Punch) were most generous in their praise to the organisation so I think that was fantastic, and I think from a profile perspective it’s worked really well.”

Mr Kerr and his team will now be spending the next period looking at how the centre can promote other facilities as well as their own – ultimately getting more people to the region with the hope of creating more jobs and successful businesses across the board.