The $33.5 million Cairns Aquarium project is moving into an important stage, and its Chief Executive says once built, it will bring economic benefits to the entire region.

Daniel Leipnik spoke with The Newsport yesterday, and could not hide his enthusiasm for the development of the Cairns tourist attraction.

"Aquariums in every city, but especially in Cairns, is going to generate far more interest in people coming to the region, and so more people flying in and visiting Cairns is just going to add to more people wanting to go to Port Douglas. It will definitely have that regional impact," Mr Leipnik said.

The aquarium has been selected as Australia’s first major tourism infrastructure project to receive Commonwealth Government Assistance under the Department of Resource, Energy and Tourism’s Tourism Major Project Facilitation (TMPF) program.

Mr Leipnik received notification from the Federal Minister for Tourism, Martin Ferguson, granting TMPF status to the Cairns Aquarium and Reef Research Centre Pty Ltd.

“We are delighted to receive Commonwealth support on this exciting landmark project for the Cairns Region...” said Mr Leipnik.

This support will take the form of assistance in progressing legislative components of the project including water issues, design and building applications, and even acquiring species from the wild.

Mr Leipnik said he is expecting submissions from specialist aquarium architect firms from around the world in the coming days as the date for the closure of expressions of interest nears.

“We will select the successful firm by the end of this month and begin the design process in April after contract negotiations, with the expectation of submitting architectural plans of the building envelope and structure (Development Application) to Cairns Regional Council by the end of August, 2013.

"We're looking to do something that's completely new. We've looked at about 40 or 50 public aquariums around the world and tried to pluck a little gem from every single one of them and build an aquarium that is a combination of the best features from the successes of other projects.

Mr Leipnik said the Cairns Aquarium will be unique in that it will be home to species native to the Wet Tropics region exclusively, and there will be a strong focus on education of its visitors with guided tours to be a feature.

"We're looking at all the different ecosystems; the Great Barrier Reef, open ocean, coastal shoreline, mangroves, the terrestrial part of rainforests, and then rivers and streams from rainforests.

"It will showcase all the incredible creatures that exist in this region," Mr Leipnik said.

"The second point of difference will be a real emphasis on customer service. With a lot of aquariums you pay your entrance fee and they show you a direction to walk in and you're on your own.

"You've got such a wonderful level of happy people, it's very cultural, people are really alive here, and I want to let that shine through staff interacting with the clients."

Mr Leipnik said he was "receiving all the right signals" at a Federal Government level in terms of financial assistance for the project, but was not optimistic about State Government support due to its current economic challenges.

"Governments around the world recognise the economic value that aquariums bring to cities," he said.

The aquarium will be situated on land bordered by Abbott, Florence, and Lake Streets in Cairns.