MCU22/0094 DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION FOR A CHILDCARE CENTRE AT 28 EENIE CREEK ROAD, NOOSAVILLE · Report

PLANNING & ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE MEETING                                              11 JUNE 2024


  Local Plan Area                  Noosaville Local Plan Area

  Overlays                         Land Subject to Acid Sulfate Soils
                                   Biodiversity, Waterways and Wetlands
                                   Bushfire Hazard

  Assessment Type                  Impact

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This report provides an assessment of an application to develop a childcare centre for up to 96
children on land fronting Hofmann Drive. The centre will include approximately 17 staff, with parking
proposed on site for 31 cars, including 14 in tandem arrangement.

The site is part of the Noosa Business Centre and was created under a development approval,
approved in 2018, to subdivide the centre’s largest parcel into 23 lots. This subdivision application
was the subject of an appeal and as part of a negotiated outcomes a condition was imposed requiring
10 metres of landscaping to be provided to the frontage of the lots within the business/commercial
lots to Hofmann Drive, including the subject lots. These landscaped garden beds were required to
achieve the parklike setting envisaged for the Noosa Business Centre, continue the existing
streetscape treatment along Hofmann Drive established with stage 1 of the centre’s development
and complement the vegetated covenant areas.

Under The Noosa Plan, the land is zoned Major Centre and is included in the Business Park Precinct
– 5A, with future commercial and employment uses to be in this precinct. The proposed childcare
is not consistent with the requirements for the business park precinct as it will not deliver the uses
sought for the precinct. It is noted that the planning scheme details that such a use is consistent in
the Village Mixed Use zone located directly to the north of the subject site.

The proposal also fails to maintain the required 10m of landscaping conditioned as part of the
negotiated settlement of the subdivision of the site. This is an important element to achieve the
parklike, vegetated setting envisaged for the centre, which is synonymous with the Noosa style. The
development also proposes a bio retention device in the front setback which combined with potential
safety issues will result in minimal landscaping to the southwestern corner of the site and further
reduction of the park like setting.

Whilst the provision of carparking spaces on site is considered appropriate the location of bicycle
parking is inappropriate and impacts on pedestrian movements.

The establishment of the required 10m landscaped garden bed would require a significant change
to the site’s layout and accordingly cannot be appropriately conditioned. It is noted that this
requirement was discussed with the applicant on a number of occasions however the plans were not
altered. The application is therefore recommended for refusal.