That’s the view of election candidate Murray King, the No.3 member of former mayor Kevin Mack’s team.

“I think we’re missing out on massive tourism dollars because we don’t have a Murray River caravan park,” Mr King said.

“We’re the only river town that doesn’t have one and without being exact the entire population of all the Murray River towns, Echuca, Swan Hill and Mildura, equals Albury’s regional population.

“We’re half the distance of what Melbourne is to Mildura yet Mildura’s caravan parks are booked out years in advance.”

Albury’s riverside Noreuil Park hosted campers from 1929 to the early 1980s when caravans were removed amid concerns about flooding and falling tree branches.

There was also a push to open the area to more people.

“I think Noreuil has had its day, but there are areas south of the Union Bridge which are zoned industrial,” Mr King said.

He suggested a park could be created opposite Wodonga’s Gateway Village and a bridge built across the river to allow access to St Ives hotel and the Gateway Lakes area.

Mr King downplayed potential environmental risks.

“When you look around the world they landed a probe on a comet, which was half a million miles from Earth, so I don’t think raising an area abutting the Murray River would be too difficult a task,” he said.

“I really don’t think it’s a complex project to get going and complete.

“I would find it a bit strange if anyone was against it.”

Mr King also wants houseboats on Lake Hume and would like Albury Council to push state water authorities to permit their use.

“Echuca has houseboats on a river two kilometres wide and we have a lake 40 kilometres wide and we still don’t use it,” he said.

Mr King believes better filtration aboard houseboats as well for water being taken from the lake ensured risks which existed in previous years were mitigated.

He was previously told by Border state MPs Greg Aplin and Bill Tilley it was not feasible to have houseboats on the lake.