Council Report MCU18 0138

mcu18/0138 Material Change of Use – Education - Type 3 Adult at 64 Poinciana Avenue and 5 Moorindil Street, Tewantin

Document information

Author	Coordinator Planning, Patrick Murphy
Environment and Sustainable Development Department

Index	ECM/ Application/ MCU18/0138

Attachments	Nil

APPLICATION DETAILS
Applicant	U3A NOOSA
Proposal	Material Change of Use - Education - Type 3 Adult Ancillary Carpark
Properly Made Date	11 October 2018
Information Request Date	1 November 2018
Information Response Date	21 November 2018
Decision Due Date	17 May 2019
Number of Submissions	9 Properly Made and 1 Not Properly Made

PROPERTY DETAILS
Property Address	64 Poinciana Avenue Tewantin Qld 4565 5 Moorindil Street Tewantin Qld 4565
RP Description	Lot 601 SP 146047 Lot 6 RP867315
Land Area	Lot 601 - 1046m² Lot 6 - 3270 m²
Existing Use of Land	Lot 601 – Professional Offices, Laboratory and Service Industry Lot 6 - Church, Hall & Administration Building

STATUTORY DETAILS
SEQRP Designation	Urban
Locality	Tewantin
Zone	Attached Housing
Overlays	Natural Hazard Overlays (Acid Sulfate Area)
Assessment Type	Impact
RECOMMENDATION
That Council note the report by the Coordinator Planning to the Planning & Environment Committee Meeting dated 10 December 2019 regarding Application No. MCU18/0138 for a Development Permit for Material Change of Use - Education - Type 3 Adult (University of the Third Age – U3A) situated at 64 Poinciana Avenue, Tewantin and:
A.	Approve the application in accordance with the following conditions:
PLANNING
When Conditions must be Complied With
Unless otherwise stated, all conditions of this Decision Notice must be complied with prior to the use commencing, and then compliance maintained at all times while the use continues.
Approved Plans
Development undertaken in accordance with this approval must generally comply with the approved plans of development. The approved plans are listed in the following table unless otherwise amended by these conditions.
Plan No.	Rev.	Plan/Document Name
1	A	Top Floor North submitted to Council on 28.08.2018
2	A	Upper Floor South submitted to Council on 28.08.2018
3	A	Ground Floor North submitted to Council on 28.08.2018
4	A	Ground Floor South submitted to Council on 28.08.2018
Nature and Extent of Approved Use
A maximum of 57 persons are permitted on site at any time, consisting of:
50 students;
5 tutors; and
2 volunteer receptionists
The approved operating times are as follows:
Staff/Tutors on site Monday to Friday between 8.30am to 4pm; and
Students on site Monday to Friday after 9am
Car Parking
A minimum of 12 car parking spaces must be provided and marked on the site, and made available and accessible at all times while the use is operating.
All car parking areas and access driveways must be maintained exclusively for vehicle parking and manoeuvring and kept in a tidy and safe condition at all times.
Advertising Devices
Any advertising sign or device must comply with Council's policies on advertising.
Sunset condition
This development permit lapses on 19 December 2024, unless written consent is provided by Council’s delegate to extend the approval. In assessing an extension to the approval, Council will have regard to the use’s impact on local on-street car parking and any other relevant matters.
B.	Find the following matters relevant to the assessment and sufficient reason to approve the application:
The proposed use provides a highly valued community service and facility for the community and opportunities for social interaction for all members.
The site has not been used for residential purposes for a significant period of time as it was approved for Professional Offices in 1981.
The draft scheme proposes to re-zone the site to Community Facilities Zone (annotation 6 – Educational Establishment) under which the proposal would be a consistent use subject to code assessment.
C.	That Council resolve that any future application fees to change or delete condition 8 will be waived.
D.	Note the report is provided in accordance with Section 63(5) of the Planning Act 2016.

REPORT
PROPOSAL
The applicant seeks approval for an existing Community Use, defined as ‘Education - Type 3 Adult’.  The use is currently operated by the University of the Third Age Noosa Regional U3A Inc (U3A Noosa) within an existing office building located at 64 Poinciana Ave Tewantin (aka Mitchel House), refer to Figure 1. At the time the application was made in October 2018 the applicant advised that Noosa U3A had approximately 800 members.
The applicant describes the proposed use as follows:
“U3A Noosa is a self-help self-managed, not-for-profit organisation catering to the local community who are no longer in full-time work, semi or fully retired.
Members come and learn together, not for qualifications but for its own reward; the sheer joy of discovery.”
The proposal includes utilising part of the existing Catholic church’s car park located at 5 Moorindil Street, Tewantin (refer to Figure 2). The use of this car park is proposed to be secured via a lease agreement between the applicant and property owner.
Specifically the proposed use seeks approval for:
‘Education - Type 3 Adult within the existing building. No changes to the existing building or outdoor area is proposed as part of this application.
A maximum of 57 persons onsite at any time, consisting of:
50 students;
5 tutors; and
2 volunteer receptionists’.
Operating times as follows:
Two Staff onsite Monday to Friday between 8.30am to 4pm; and
Classes onsite Monday to Friday between 9am to 4pm.
27 ‘onsite’ car parks distributed as follows:
12 car parks, including a loading bay, located onsite at 64 Poinciana Ave Tewantin; and
15 carparks located onsite at 5 Moorindil Street Tewantin.
It is noted the applicant’s traffic engineer concludes a peak car parking demand of 39 spaces is required, based on a staff and student survey results (i.e. approximately 1 carpark per 1.4 persons).  Hence there is a shortfall of 12 onsite car parks.  The applicant proposes that these 12 carparks be accommodated by the existing on-street parking, of which there are 47 available on road marked car parks in the immediate area, being:
13 two hour parks on Moorindil Street adjacent to the child care centre;
5 fifteen minute (unlimited between 9.30am and 14.30pm) on Moorindil Street adjacent to the child care;
8 two hour carparks on Poinciana Avenue adjacent to the development;
16 no limit car parks on Poinciana Avenue; and
5 no limit car parks on Moorindil Street, opposite the church.
The applicant submits that there are 146 on road carparks available within 200m of the site, of which 50% are not utilised based on desktop assessment of aerial images during weekdays.
Of relevance to the assessment of this proposal, it is noted:
Part of the required onsite car parking is secured only by a conditional lease agreement between both property owners;
The car parking lease agreement between the applicant and the land owner of 5 Moorindil Street, Tewantin is subject to the following clauses:
“10.	Either party to this agreement may terminate this agreement with 2 weeks written notice to the other party.
12.	The hire is a non-exclusive hire of the area and the Parish cannot guarantee that car parking will be available on all of the days covered by this agreement.”
The car parking at 5 Moorindil Street, Tewantin, is accessed from the existing building via Council’s connecting paths and a pedestrian crossing point across Poinciana Avenue. The pedestrian connection length is about 135m.
A peak demand overflow of 12 car parks is proposed to be accommodated within Council’s existing on-street car parking; and
The traffic engineering report is silent on the likely future availability of the existing on-street car parking.
Council has received several complaints from nearby residents about excessive on-street car parking in the locality. Council investigations into the complaints found that Noosa U3A was operating without a development permit, with sometimes up to 109 students onsite at any one time.
The application is before Council in accordance with the current decision making delegations because the proposed Education - Type 3 Adult is identified as an inconsistent use within the Noosa Plan and associated car parking issues. The following figures provide detail of both site, on-street car parking in the vicinity of the site and the pedestrian connection to the site from the church car park.

Figure 1 - Existing building at 64 Poinciana Avenue, Tewantin, currently approved for Professional Office uses.

Figure 2 - Existing car parking at 5 Moorindil Street, Tewantin which forms part of the site.

Figure 3 - Existing on-street near closest to the site proposed to be used during peak periods.

Figure 4 - Existing on-street closest to the site proposed to be used during peak periods.

Figure 5: Aerial Image of the site, illustrating the pedestrian connection between the car park and proposed building
site details
Background
The site includes two separate parcels of land (i.e. 64 Poinciana Avenue and 5 Moorindil Street, Tewantin) plus utilisation of on-street carparking.
The background of each parcel of land and the on street carparking is addressed separately below.
64 Poinciana Avenue, Tewantin
64 Poinciana Street, Tewantin has been previously approved for several uses as follows:
23 September 1981, a new 2 storey building (570m² GFA) for ‘Professional Offices and a Testing Laboratory’, including a maximum of 26 employees) was approved (Council Reference 1478) (refer to Figure 6). The approval was conditioned to provide permanent covered and sealed car parking on site for 9 vehicles (i.e. no additional visitor spaces). It is understood this development permit commenced as approved.

Figure 6 – Extract from plans of development approved 23 September 1981
26 July 2001, a reconfiguration of a lot (1 into 2 Lots) and new 2 storey ‘Professional Offices and Medical Centre’ building and uses on the resultant vacant lot was approved (21483DA). The approval was subject to a vehicle access easement from Moorindil Street, through 64 Poinciana Avenue to the rear of the new lot.  It is understood this development proceeded as approved and is as currently exists at 66 Poinciana Street.
Noosa U3A (i.e. the Applicant) commenced an Education - Type 3 Adult use in April 2014.
For confirmation, the applicant is aware the existing building is classified Class 5 and hence needs to be reclassified to a Class 9b to support educational uses in accordance with the Building Act 1975. It is understood the applicant is currently undertaking the necessary actions required to reclassify the building.
Of relevance to this application, it is noted the approved car park layout for 13 spaces has changed to what now exists as follows:
A total of 13 carparks to 12 carparks including a loading bay;
Carparks 1 to 7 on the northern boundary converted to 8 carparks;
Carpark 9 and 10 converted to a single PWD bay;
Carpark 13 changed to a Loading Bay; and
Carpark 8 converted to a landscaped area.  The applicant was contacted regarding if it was feasible for them to convert this area into a car park.  The applicant’s response was:
“By the way, with regard to car space 8 that we were discussing the other day, the Committee was quite happy to fund the paving of that extra car space but it just seemed impractical given the planned widening of the path to accommodate invalid chairs and the need to remove a substantial tree just to increase the headcount allowed in house by 2.5.”
It is noted that the subject tree appears to be a well formed and mature Tuckeroo which provides substantial screening to the building and improved visual amenity to the site and wider locality (refer to Figure 7). On this basis, Council officers also consider that the subject tree should be retained and protected.

Figure 7: Photo illustrating tree that would need to be removed to construct Car Park 8
5 Moorindil Street, Tewantin
5 Moorindil Street, Tewantin currently supports a Place of Worship and Car Park as approved on 8 March 1994 (Council Reference TPC2631). Of relevance to this application,
Mass and Service Times are currently 8.30am Monday, Thursday and Friday and 5pm Saturday and 7am and 10am Sunday. These times are subject to change.
The carpark is not sealed and marked. Further there is no connecting sealed path from the carpark to Council’s footpath network, resulting in users crossing an unformed landscape area from the carpark to Council’s footpath on Poinciana Avenue.
Condition 2 of the approval requires 21 sealed onsite car parks in accordance with the approved plan (refer to Figure 8). It is noted the existing car parking contravenes the approval on the basis the:
Carpark arrangement has since changed; and
Carpark area has not been sealed.
On this basis, and post Council’s decision of this application, it is recommended that Council’s compliance officer raises this to the attention of the landowner.

Figure 8 – Extract from Approved Plan highlighting 21 sealed onsite carparks at 5 Moorindil Street
On-street Carparking
Council has received several complaints from residents in Toolar Street about traffic management concerns and in particular, congestion and safety concerns directly associated with what is deemed by them as excessive on-street car parking in Toolar Street.
As a result, Council has undertaken several investigations into the management of traffic at this location including:
Traffic engineering investigations, which resulted in placement of yellow lines (i.e. no parking areas) at the intersection points; and
Land use investigations.
The land use investigations found that there was high use of available on-street carparking which likely resulted from a combination of uses, including use of the:
Masonic Hall
Child Care Centre and Tewantin Noosa Playgroup
‘Private Home Occupation - Medical Centre’ and ‘Service Station’
Ward Park
Mixed multi-unit, duplex and single residential dwellings
Noosa U3A
It is also noted that the area may be used as car parking for employees of business located in Poinciana Avenue. There is no time restriction within Toolar Street whilst the car parks located behind the premises on the southern side of Poinciana Avenue are subject to timed car parking.
Each of the above uses and the associated car parking arrangements is described below.
Masonic Hall
The Masonic Hall was approved on 19 June 1995 for Indoor Entertainment uses.
At the time of the application for the Masonic Hall it was submitted that there was extensive on-street car parking in Moorindal Street should overflow parking be required.  On this basis, Council accepted an informal car parking arrangement that currently exists on the site today. Background information indicates this informal arrangement can accommodate parking for about 15 cars.
Currently the hall is open for hire at any time. It is understood the hall is generally hired by various groups three times a day, being typically twice a day during business hours and again after 5pm, each event hosting about 10 to 30 participants. However events and participant rates fluctuate significantly from week to week.
Child Care Centre and Tewantin Noosa Playgroup
The Child Care Centre and Tewantin Noosa Playgroup are located immediately adjacent the site.
Council designed and constructed the Tewantin Child Care Centre in the late 1970 or early 1980’s. It is understood the existing on-street parking arrangement was constructed at or about the same time to accommodate car parking generated by these uses. These uses have no on-site car parking and fully rely on the existing street car parking.
The Child Care Centre was operated by Council up to early 2000’s (possibly 2005). The centre consists of 3 rooms and cares for children from 6 weeks through to 5 years old. Two of the rooms can have up to 25 children within each room and the babies room can have up to 10-15 depending on ages. Each room has approximately 3 staff and 2 floaters plus the director of the centre.  Hence there can be up to 9 staff onsite at any time. In combination with parents dropping off their children, there can be up to 70 person’s onsite each morning and afternoon. This would occur over a 2 hour time period generally around 7am to 9am and again 2.30pm to 4.30pm.
The Tewantin Noosa Playgroup currently hosts sessions on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 9.30am to 11.00am and can have up to 10 to 15 mothers and babies/toddlers attending. The playgroup have been in this location since 1973.
On this basis, it is likely that on any given morning between 7am and 11am there could possibly be up to 70-90 car movements in and out of the carparking within proximity of the Child Care Centre and Tewantin Noosa Playgroup.
Staff for the Tewantin Childcare are no longer able to park in the on street carpark at the front of the centre as Council last year changed the parking from all day parking to timed parking so to better manage existing car parking issues.
Service Station
A Service Station use exists opposite the site.  This use provides sufficient onsite car parking.
Ward Park
An entry point to Ward Park, is located adjacent to the Tewantin Noosa Playgroup. At this time it is unclear what on street car parking is generated from the use of this entry point, other than it is reasonable to assume that from time to time, some on street car parking is taken up by users of this park.
Mixed multi-unit, duplex and single residential dwellings
It was also noted that the Noosa Plan and New draft Noosa Plan provides for additional multi-unit housing within the locality, which is largely yet to be taken up (refer to Figure 9). If and when developed in full in accordance with Council’s planning provisions, the existing traffic on-street parking concerns will likely increase as a result.

Figure 9: Extract from the New draft Noosa Plan illustrating the site and areas of Medium Density Housing
Site Description
The site includes:
64 Poinciana Avenue, which supports an existing 2 storey building, 11 carparks and 1 loading bay.  The building is currently approved for Professional Offices, Laboratory and Service Industry uses. The site is accessed by vehicle via left in left out arrangement directly from Moorindil Street.
5 Moorindil Street, which supports a Place of Worship building and gravel unmarked carparking. The site is accessed directly off Moorindil Street.
The two parcels of land are separated by Poinciana Avenue, which is identified as a high volume distributor road.
5 Moorindil Street, Tewantin, is accessed from the existing building at 64 Poinciana Avenue via Council’s connecting paths and a pedestrian crossing point across Poinciana Avenue. The pedestrian connection length is about 135 metres. The following figure details the two sites subject to the application.

Figure 10 – Aerial Image of the site
Surrounding Land Uses
Surrounding land uses include:
Child Care Centre and Play Group uses and Ward Park immediately to the north;
Professional Offices and Medial Centre immediately to the east;
Home Occupation Medical Centre, Service Station, Masonic Hall and residential uses across Moorindil Street immediately to the west; and
The wider locality consists of mixed multi-units, duplexes and single dwellings. The locality is generally zoned under the Noosa Plan for attached housing.
The site is located approximately 200m from the Tewantin town centre.

Figure 11 – Aerial Image of the locality
assessment
Instruments for Statutory Assessment
Under the Planning Act 2016 the application must be assessed against each of the following statutory planning instruments to the extent they are relevant to the development:
State Planning Policy;
South East Queensland Regional Plan;
Planning Regulation 2017;
The Noosa Plan.
State and Other Statutory Instruments
State Planning Policy
The Noosa Plan is generally consistent with the State Planning Policy July 2017 (SPP) and the SPP raises no further issues relevant to the proposed development.
South East Queensland (SEQ) Regional Plan
The site is located within the urban area of the SEQ Regional Plan. The proposal is consistent with the regional policies of the SEQ Regional Plan.
Planning Regulation 2017
The proposal is for an urban activity within the Urban Footprint and is consistent with the assessment benchmarks contained in the Planning Regulation 2017 for the SEQ Region.
Statutory Instruments – Planning Scheme
The application must be assessed against the whole of the Noosa Plan to the extent the provisions are relevant to the development.
The proposed use is considered consistent with and/or to advance the plan’s Strategic Framework and Community Vision as the proposed use provides for community well-being, facilitates a passion for learning and provides for a community service reflective of the needs of the population.
Locality Provisions
The subject site is located in the Tewantin and Doonan Locality and is zoned Attached Housing. The proposed use is identified as an inconsistent use with the zone and is required to follow an impact assessable application process.
The proposed use is located within an existing building which has previously been approved for business uses. The proposed reuse of the existing office building is appropriate and impacts of the proposed use, with the exception of car parking, is considered consistent with the previously approved use for the site. As no changes are proposed to the existing building the built form development parameters established under this code are not applicable.
Land Use & Works Provisions
The application has been assessed against applicable codes. The pertinent issues arising out of the assessment against the codes are discussed below:
Code	Discussion
Community Use Code	The code’s overall outcomes, in part, seek: Community Uses are conveniently located, without placing unacceptable burdens on local infrastructure Community Uses offer safe environments for users and operators. Further, the code’s Specific Outcomes and Probable Solutions, in part, seek: The use does not have an adverse impact on the safety and efficiency of the road network; and The surrounding road system is capable of accommodating additional traffic generated by the proposal.
Driveways and Carparking Code	The code’s overall outcomes, in part, seek: Development minimises the environmental and social impacts of transport on the urban environment Development ensures that vehicle access to the development does not compromise the capacity and safety of the road system Development does not increase the scale of the road network beyond that currently planned. Further, the codes Specific Outcomes and Probable Solutions, in part, seek: Sufficient carparking is provided to accommodate the number of vehicles likely to be generated by the development having regard to the specifics of the use including: The type and intensity of land use Any existing parking available on the site Hours of operation Likely numbers of users The peak parking demand periods of uses on the site; and The availability of alternative carparking. Development access does not compromise the functions of particular roads as indicated in the road hierarchy, and does not adversely impact on the safety, capacity and operations of the road system.
For confirmation, methodology used by the applicant’s traffic engineer is generally accepted along with the subsequent proposed carparking rate (i.e. approximately 1 carpark per 1.4 persons) as sufficient to accommodate the number of vehicles likely to be generated by the proposed use.
However, the proposal to utilise carparking at 5 Moorindil Street to assist achieving the required onsite carparking is not acceptable on the basis that there are concerns with safety associated with the pedestrian connection and form of tenure associated with the off-site car park at 5 Moorindil Street. The proposed lease over the car park at 5 Moorindil Street can be terminated at any time with a 2 week notification period. Furthermore, the carparking area is non-exclusive to the proposed development and not guaranteed to be available at any given time.
When car parking is proposed to be provided at a separate location to where the approved land use is to occur it is normal practice to require the car park area to be secured by an easement. This provides certainty that the car parking will be provided into the future and prevents development occurring on the area proposed for car parking. In this instance the owners of 5 Moorindil Street have advised that they are not supportive of an easement being created over their land.
Furthermore, the proposed onsite carpark is located 135m walking distance away from the existing building and on the other side of an identified high volume distributor road (i.e. Poinciana Avenue). Hence the proposed use of the off-site car park increases the risk of users of U3A who would have to access the existing building across Poinciana Avenue as a pedestrian and increases the risk to safety and efficiency of Poinciana Avenue. The car park is also currently unsealed.
When it was first identified that the use was operating without a Development Approval U3A were permitting up to 109 persons on site. U3A have amended their operations to limit the number of attendees to a maximum of 57 people onsite at any time, consisting of 50 students; 5 tutors; and 2 volunteer receptionists’. It is acknowledged that there are times during the day when there is significant demand for on street car parking in the area attributed to the day care facility, playgroup and broader residential and commercial uses.
Due to the concerns with the proposed car parking at the church and the reliance on on-street car parking spaces consideration has been given to limiting the number of persons that could attend U3A to better align with the car parking on site and the demand for carparking within the surrounding area. Limiting the number of persons on site would likely require the re-location of classes to other facilities to enable U3A to continue to provide their current level of service. This approach was discussed with representatives of U3A who expressed concern as the number of attendees at the Poinciana Avenue facility have already been scaled back by conducting classes at other venues. U3A advise that this has resulted in financial implications, noting that users pay a nominal fee to attend classes. Furthermore, the re-location of classes has implications on the social network which U3A provides for its members. It is acknowledged that in addition to the valuable skills which can be developed via the U3A programs the social component of this facility is also a very important community benefit of the service.
Noting the concerns raised by U3A regarding the implications on limiting the number of attendees below that applied for and in order to examine other alternatives approximately 20 inspections were conducted by Council officers to count car parking availability at different times of the day. These inspections identified that on road carking availability was significantly more limited between 9am and midday than after midday. The results of these inspections was relayed to U3A with the suggestion that whilst limits to numbers would still likely be required that the limit would be more stringent in the morning than in the afternoon. At a subsequent meeting with representatives of U3A Council staff were again advised that any limit to attendee numbers would be detrimental on the viability of U3A and for its capacity to provide a valuable service to approximately 800 community members. At around the same time representatives of U3A also met with Council’s Community Services Department to explore additional alternative sites. However, advice from U3A subsequent to this meeting was consistent with previous advice that the cost implications of further reducing numbers at the existing site and incurring additional expenses at new site would be prohibitive.
On further consideration it is noted that despite the concerns regarding the shortfall in car parking there is overwhelming support for the service which U3A provides to a substantial number of community members. It is therefore recommended that the application be supported in its current form despite the likely impact on local car parking with the impact most likely to be within Moorindil Street and Toolar Street. Approving the application based on the 12 car park spaces available on site results in a shortfall of 27 car parking spaces, noting that 47 on road car spaces exist within proximity of the site.
In order to monitor and provide the opportunity to reassess the implications of these impacts it is recommended that the approval include a condition limiting the approval to 5 years. This condition provides an opportunity for Council to review the impact of current operations when considering an application to extend or delete the condition and is consistent with other approvals which have been issued where further review of operational impacts is preferred.
draft planning scheme
The New draft Noosa Plan proposes to rezone the site from Attached Housing to:
Community Facilities Zone (annotation 6 – Educational Establishment) at 64 Poinciana Avenue; and
Community Facilities Zone (annotation 4 – Place of Worship) at 5 Moorindil Street.
The proposed Community Facilities Zone and associated provision are considered to more so support the proposed use over and above the current Attached Housing provisions.
cONSULTATION
Referral Agencies
Nil.
Other Referrals
The application was forwarded to the following internal Council officers:
Engineering
Public Notification
The application was publicly notified for 17 business days in accordance with the Planning Act 2016. Nine properly made submissions and one not properly made submission was received. It is noted all submissions received were in favour of the proposed development being approved in full.
The following table provides a summary and assessment of the issues raised by submitters.
Matters Raised	Comments
Extracts summarised from submissions received raising issues relating to Carparking (it is noted all submissions received highlighted similar carparking experiences as identified below): Plenty of car spaces have always been available; Never had a problem with accessing parking close by, particularly since permit parking has been available at the Catholic Church and which always has available spaces. Parking has improved more so since the carparking agreement at 5 Moorindil Street; Many of the members use public transport, walk or car pool; and Council to provide adequate car-parking solutions that would satisfy the Tewantin resident who lodged the complaint.	Noted that submitters do not consider existing car parking is an issue and request the development is approved in full as proposed.
Extracts summarised from submissions received raising issues relating to Community Benefit (it is noted all submissions received highlighted substantial Community Benefit for similar reasons as identified below): Universities of the Third Age are international voluntary community-inspired educational and social interactive groups that are aimed at providing crucial, wonderful and inspiring opportunities for retirees, seniors, and anyone else in the community, to participate in an incredibly wide range of educational, physical, and social programs. All run voluntarily. On the educational side, Sunshine Coast University also supports U3A Noosa by sending one of their own lecturers to provide a class, once every month, on a voluntary basis. U3A Noosa has been successfully providing an excellent array of activities for members to participate in for many years, and has become a crucial part of the daily life of each of its members, now numbering 800. Very concerned to learn possibly only 30 people at a time might be able to use the building. You should know that there are some truly amazing people living in the Noosa/Tewantin community and they give their time to inspire others In the building, there are a number of rooms: art studio, games room, language room, computer/AV room and the auditorium. The range of classes held is wide - physical fitness, foreign language, audio-visual, computer studies, science, photography, history of religion, several types of painting tuition and much much more. The attendance at a single class probably averaged around 45 people. Under the change of rules, an audience would be limited and all other classes that run concurrently would have to be scrapped. The classes have had a tremendous impact on my life and, in turn, I have been able to inspire others through the various classes I have given. Given our age group, quite a few people have gone through traumas such as being widowed. People have spoken to me sometimes saying they do not know what they would have done without the companionship of other U3A members at a difficult time. I urge you to see what an important service U3A brings to its members and frequently to the wider public. Please don't make changes to a successful valuable operation that is working so well. As a long time member, volunteer and supporter of U3A Noosa, I value the opportunities it provides for sharing experiences in a wide range of interest groups in the pursuit of learning and knowledge accumulation, social interaction, companionship, fun and friendship which is so important for retirees and the elderly who can very easily become lonely and isolated. I constantly hear the sentiment 'I'd be lost without it'. Although necessary restrictions have been placed on overall house numbers which has impacted on the accessibility to some classes, U3A Noosa continues to offer a wide variety of experiences for our more senior members and provides a much needed service for our local community. When I located to this area 12 years ago the first place that I looked for was a local U3A, and now as a member of U3A Noosa I would to  emphasise that this organisation performs a significant part in the life of its members providing social interaction, friendships and  education. U3A is an essential part of the day for many members who as they age find themselves at a loss to find interests that stimulate their minds and friendships to share this with. Please do not let our elderly down. My wife and I retired and moved to Noosa in 2014 and as both new arrivals and recent retirees we had to “re-invent” ourselves in a new community. I was encouraged to look at what U3A Noosa had to offer. Now nearly 5 years on, U3A has become an integral component of my life. U3A provides me with access to lifetime learning opportunities and regular social interaction and I am happy to report that through U3A I am busier now than when I had a full time job running a business in Melbourne. This organisation is performing an incredibly valuable service to the local community and deserves favourable consideration in this matter.	Noted submitters consider the applicant provides substantial community benefit to the wider locality and request the development is approved in full as proposed.
conclusion & REASONS FOR DECISION
The applicant seeks a retrospective approval for an existing Community Use, defined as ‘Education - Type 3 Adult’. The use is currently operated by the University of the Third Age Noosa Regional U3A Inc (U3A Noosa) within an existing office building located at 64 Poinciana Ave Tewantin.
The application seeks approval for 57 persons to use the facility which based on the applicant’s traffic engineers car parking advice for 1 car space per 1.4 persons equals 39 car spaces. The proposal includes 12 car parking spaces on site and utilising part of the existing car parking located at 5 Moorindil Street Tewantin to be secured via a lease agreement.
The use of the car park at 5 Moorindil Street, Tewantin is not supported due to safety concerns and the nature of tenure proposed to secure the proposed car parking area. This means the proposal is short 27 car parking spaces.
Despite the significant shortfall in on-site car parking it is recommended that the application be approved, as the proposal provides significant community benefit and is a valuable service and facility to the community.
Recognising the potential impact on local on street carparking it is also recommended that a 5 year sunset clause be included to allow Council to further consider car parking impacts at the time the applicant seeks to amend or delete the sunset clause condition.
Departments/Sections Consulted:
	Chief Executive Officer		Community Services		Corporate Services
	Executive Officer		Community Development		Financial Services
	Executive Support		Community Facilities		ICT
			Libraries & Galleries		Procurement & Fleet
			Local Laws		Property
			Waste & Environmental Health		Revenue Services
					
	Executive Services		Environment & Sustainable Development		Infrastructure Services
	Community Engagement		Building & Plumbing Services		Asset Management
	Customer Service	x	Development Assessment		Buildings and Facilities
	Governance		Economic Development		Civil Operations
	People and Culture		Environmental Services		Disaster Management
			Strategic Land Use Planning	x	Infrastructure Planning, Design and Delivery
					

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PLANNING & ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE MEETING REPORT	10 DECEMBER 2019

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bes

 


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oO
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&
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64 Poinciana

Avenue

 


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1100
EAST
13 Car Parks
el
ig
1
at
=
SOUTH 100