and cultures from around the world. The 1974 Brisbane flood which ravaged much of Brisbane largely left Paddington proper alone. The main roads and shops of Paddington were on the ridge tops and it was only the houses in the gullies and dips that were affected. The same cannot be said of the Rosalie area or that part of Paddington near Milton where flood waters affected most properties, at some points reaching roof lines. In 1975 the suburb of Rosalie was merged into Paddington with Rosalie being accorded neighbourhood status within Rosalie. Paddington was one of the first suburbs in Brisbane to undergo "gentrification" in the mid-1980s. Accommodation prices rose sharply as younger white collar workers moved closer to the CBD as factories, and factory workers, were relocated to the outer suburbs. As a result, there was much development in the area. The old Paddington Hotel in Given Terrace was demolished and an American style "tavern" was built in its place, whilst across the road the Paddington movie theatre was demolished in 1981 and a shopping arcade, "The Paddington Centre", was built on its site. On Latrobe Terrace the basic brick functional "Paddington Central" shopping centre (formerly the Paddington Tram Depot) was demolished and a more modern shopping centre was built. The Hale Street Inner City Bypass North-West Ring Road effectively split Petrie Terrace from Paddington and Red Hill and upset the local community greatly. What was a suburban street became a 4 lane main road. In the process a number of houses were resumed by the State government who already had been criticized for a lack of community consultation. To make matters worse the residents of the area were elderly or workers and otherwise people without a political voice. Some of those whose houses were to be resumed refused to be evicted and were forcibly ejected by the Queensland Police. The only local benefit was that when the development occurred, land, previously unallocated state land, was given to the adjoining playground. The 2000s At the turn of century again there was a substantial local opposition to the Queensland Governments proposed redevelopment of Lang Park. The park was widely perceived to be adequate for the Rugby League games it held however the Labor Party State government and the Lang Park Trustees had other ideas of turning it into a modern large scale money making venue. The State government sold the