Brisbane to get spruced up ahead of G20 summit people walk through The Brunswick street mall in the Fortitude Valley while the markets are on. 14th of April 2012. Photo: Harrison Saragossi Photo: Harrison Saragossi It is now less than a year before the long lens of the world's media is focused firmly on Brisbane. So when it comes time to shine at November's three-day G20 summit, exactly how shiny will the River City be? Infinitely, according to one of the city's foremost urban planners. The head of Queensland University of Technology's property and planning department, Doug Barker, has described Brisbane as, ""one of the world's best sub-tropical cities"." He said when more than 3000 international media representatives join approximately 4000 international delegates at the summit, catapulting the city into the global spotlight, Brisbane will not disappoint. ""I think it's a stunning little city, I prefer it over any of the other Australian cities,"" Professor Barker, a native of the Canadian province of British Columbia, said. ""It has had its precincts well developed and so much infrastructure development, I think Brisbane is going to be great."" Professor Barker said in comparison to previous G20 host cities, such as Toronto, London and Washington DC, Brisbane was much smaller. That will not stop it from stacking up equally, he said. ""Not only will we compare, we will shine,"" he said. Significant investment in the city's river precinct and parklands in recent years had primed it as a location that would impress not only world leaders but their extensive entourage, Professor Barker said. ""The focus on the precincts along the river has been stunning,"" he said. ""The access to the waterfront has been very good as well, along with the world class bike paths and additional bridges. ""I think we are very fortunate in Brisbane that it is such a green city. ""It looks good even when it's not at its peak."" Security naturally remains the pivotal concern for organisers, with previous meetings in Toronto and to a lesser extent, London, marred by violent protests. Already, anarchist groups have threatened to disrupt proceedings, though more than 5000 operational police will be on the ground to quell dissenters. Security aside, the presentation of Brisbane to the world as a clean and attractive place was a key concern for organisers, Lord Mayor Graham Quirk said. The high-level talkfest presents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to have council's perpetual promotion of Brisbane as ""Australia's New World City"" stamped as reality. "I want to ensure our city puts its best foot forward and will be ensuring the city is clean and attractive and putting on its best presentation when we are the capital city of the world for that week-long period,"" he said in a statement. The finer detail of exactly what will be involved in the clean-up and at what cost is still yet to be revealed. However, one city area council seems to have been conscious of revitalising before the summit has been the once-grungy inner city entertainment hub, Fortitude Valley. While having undergone a rapid gentrification through extensive residential and commercial development in recent years, the city border suburb still has some lingering characteristics of its decidedly working class past. In October, Cr Quirk announced the fast-tracking of the $4 million Brunswick Street mall upgrade, to ensure the revitalisation of the area would be complete before November. "The Valley is one of our most iconic entertainment and dining areas but it has clearly struggled during the day and I believe fast-tracking our $4 million upgrade of the Mall will help give it the economic boost it needs," he said at the time. Queensland Tourism Industry chief executive Daniel Gschwind said the evolving identities of Brisbane's suburbs formed part of the city's appeal and the Valley was no exception. ""The Valley increasingly has very nice restaurants, clubs, bars and hotels and is becoming very stylish,"" he said. ""Part of the charm of Brisbane is you can find your space that fits you best. ""I'd like (G20 visitors) to take away some of the nature of Brisbane. That it's a friendly place that is still evolving, it's still fresh and has a certain sense of the future about it."" Cr Quirk said the long-term economic benefit of the G20 summit for Brisbane had been estimated at $100 million. Professor Barker said while there remained some areas of the city still begging for development, overall, Brisbane was well placed to create a good aesthetic impression to a global audience. ""Brisbane has really come into its own since the 80s,"" he said. ""The downtown area could be spruced up a bit in terms of being greener and the north side of the river could be integrated better. ""It is a lost opportunity, this is not news, but it's a long term, 20 year project. ""Overall in terms of the G20 there's a lot of infrastructure we have put in place. ""I think we are looking really good."" Mr Gschwind said the summit was unique opportunity for Brisbane to stamp its own identity, to separate itself as a tourist destination with as much to offer as its larger and more renowned southern counterparts of Sydney and Melbourne. ""I think we need to show ourselves off, not trying to be something else but to be proud of what we have here and that is the friendly accessibility this city has and its open nature,"" he said. ""In the end, I think the impression people will take away whether they be world leaders, support staff or media will always be saved by the personal contact they have. ""Everybody who comes in contact with you in a destination shapes your impression and we are quite good at that from a tourism point of view. ""Australians are generally very good at making people feel welcome and live up to our destination as a friendly place.""