KEY POINTS:
Browns Bay's town centre turns its back on a glorious kilometre of sandy beach with a swathe of car parks, block walls, business names and trade trash bins.
But there are signs that a long-cherished plan to integrate the town centre and the beach is advancing.
A boardwalk promenade taking shape along the beach esplanade over the past 10 months is the latest improvement - following developments such as an apartment block with ground-floor commercial space and three outdoor cafes in the northern part of Beachfront Lane.
"The vision is to get all those parked cars underground and for businesses opening to the beachfront," said Sally Cargill, a member of the East Coast Bays Community Board.
The $3.3 million landscape project on the esplanade will be officially opened tomorrow and the North Shore City Council has planned family attractions such as the "Starfish" performers from 12.45pm to 1.45pm, face-painting and free ice-cream vouchers.
Ms Cargill said the council was getting the basics right in encouraging businesses to open up to the beach.
It had spent $12.5 million on sewerage measures to ensure the beach would not be closed by pollution.
She said the esplanade once had 19 baches on it but was now all open space, thanks to council policy.
