Katherine Town Council has announced it is aiming to give the facility a fresh look that it hopes will reengage residents, in addition to providing an incentive for tourists to extend the time they spend in the region.

As part of the plan, a pop-up cafe and mountain bike rental store could be installed at the hot springs, with exercise equipment also planned for the walking loop from the Low Level Nature Reserve to the High Level Bridge.

Chief executive officer Robert Jennings told the Katherine Times that the council wanted to bridge the void that had developed between residents and the river precinct.

“We’d like to reconnect the river to the town,” he said as he outlined the plan.

“Over time, people have sort of moved away from the river a bit, so we’re trying to reconnect it.”

The council has applied for a grant to finance the exercise equipment and Mr Jennings said that an external operator was planning to obtain their own funding to install the cafe and bike rental infrastructure.

The redevelopment of the hot springs has been broken down into “two or three stages” – including the addition of a disabled access ramp – and Mr Jennings said the majority of work was contingent on the success of grant applications.

However, he admitted that ratepayers could be looking at a bill if the entire project was given the green light by elected members.

“If we only do two bits, the bottom and the ramp, that could be affordable without ratepayers,” he said.

“If we did all of it, there would be some money [the council needs to spend].”​

“It’s contingent on grant money, largely​.”

Mr Jennings said feedback from Katherine tourism operators had been that investing in the hot springs was the “number one thing” the council could do to give the sector a shot in the arm.

“It’s for the tourists, but it’s for our locals as well,” he said.

“It’s about getting people to do the extra day there.”