A COUPLE who took a gamble on an abandoned castle ravaged by floods and cyclones have told how they rescued it from oblivion.
Bought by Mark and Judy Evans in 1993, the former IT specialists turned business owners turned Paronella Park into a top holiday destination.
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The couple purchased the property in Far North Queensland, Australia after they searched the country far and wide for a business they could call their own.
The duo had lived in Singapore for seven years after meeting in Sydney and living in Perth.
But they decided to pack up, buy a caravan and travel across Australia with their three kids.
At the end of their adventure, Mark and Judy found themselves sitting on a beach in Cairns, when the opportunity fell into their laps.
Speaking to The Sun, Mark said: “After a month or two of sitting on the beaches and relaxing for a bit, we started looking around, and a local guy pointed us in the direction of Paronella Park in Mena Creek.
“We had no idea of its existence. There was a caravan park with a castle and a waterfall, and he sent us down there, and we were lost for words.
“That day we wandered around and we couldn’t believe that such a place existed. We knew straight away that this was it.
“This was the place that we had to purchase and put our time and effort into.
“There was a wow factor. And I think it was just an element of surprise that such an amazing place existed.
“We hadn’t heard of it, and we had no idea of the story.”
A TROUBLED HISTORY
The park was built by Spanish immigrant Jose Paronella who arrived in Australia in 1913 for a better life for himself and his fiance Matilda.
He worked cutting sugar canes, before he began buying, improving and selling sugar cane farms.
After making his money, he returned to Spain in 1924, where he discovered his fiance had married another man.
Instead of returning to Australia as a bachelor, Jose married Matilda’s younger sister Margarita in 1925 and returned to Australia.
In 1929, Jose purchased the 13-acre of bush land in Mena Creek, Queensland, with a dream to build a pleasure garden and reception centre for the public.
The first thing he built was a staircase to shift building material – then a stone cottage was built and the couple moved in on Christmas Eve.
Inspired by childhood memories of Catalan castles, Jose and his workers set to work designing the castle entertainment area.
The park was officially opened to the public in 1935, and featured a movie theatre, a ball room, and a disco ball covered with 1270 tiny mirrors that rotated slowly around the room.
We had no idea of its existence. There was a caravan park with a castle and a waterfall, and he sent us down there, and we were lost for words
Mark Evans
During the mid-sixties the movie theatre shut down, and the hall was used for functions and weddings.
But the property fell into a state of disrepair after a series of floods, and fires in the 1970s.
The first setback came in 1946, when a 50ft wall of water carrying huge cedar logs flooded Paronella Park, and left a trail of destruction.
Despite the floods, Jose rebuilt the park and opened its doors once more six months later.
Tragedy struck once again in 1948 when Jose died, leaving his wife and two children Teresa and Joe as the custodians of his dream.
The property moved hands once more in 1967 when Margarita died. This time the property went to Joe and his wife Val.
After Joe’s death in 1972, Val and their two sons Joe and Kerry, continued until the park was sold in 1977.
But in 1979, a fire swept through the castle, leaving only the walls and the turret as a reminder of what had been.
Battered and bruised by Cyclone Winifred in 1986, the park changed hands several times before Mark and Judy stepped up to the challenge to revive Jose Paronella’s dream.
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A FRESH PERSPECTIVE
Shortly after they bought the property, they were given a chance to speak to original owner’s daughter, Teresa.
In her 70s at the time, Teresa gave the owners a fresh perspective.
Mark said of the visit: “She told us the story from a perspective that only she could tell of when her dad was building Paronella Park.
“She made us realise that the park was incredible. The story was amazing, and that’s the thing, the story captures people’s imagination.”
It’s been 30 years since Mark and Judy bought the derelict park.
Used as a caravan site, the couple were put to work to restore Paronella Park to its former glory.
Mark said: “We turned up at the park on the December 17, 1993 as the proud owners.
“We just had the old caravan that we were travelling in. We didn’t have any equipment, no lawn mowers or shovel.
“There was no doubt that 90 per cent of the local community thought we had no hope. The community thought we were outsiders.
“We heard later that there were people that said we’d only have maybe a year, maybe a little bit more, but we wouldn’t last very long.
“That’s one of the things that we’re very proud of. We’ve now been there for over 30 years.”
This was the place that we had to purchase and put our time and effort into
Mark Evans
In an interview with ABC Australia, Mark said the success of the park really took off around 1999 when they started sharing Jose’s story with the public through guided tours of the property.
Since then, the park has been put on Queensland’s heritage list and has won several tourist awards.
Mark said: “This is the number one thing to do as voted for the people of Queensland.
“The one award that we’re most proud of is the people’s choice, and we’ve won about five times. It’s incredible.”
The business duo are now invited to speak all over Australia and the world about their success.
Mark said: “Just 18 months ago, opened a brand new caravan park, and it’s got 60 sites. It’s totally full.
“The community is getting on board. About 60 of the 70 of the staff are actually locals in our community.
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“That includes the work at Paronella Park, the work at the pub, and also the work at the Skywalk, which we have, the bamboo tropical skywalk.
“It’s exciting because we haven’t stopped.”
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