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Ltr-250903-Minor Change Request-AVC Royal Mail Hotel
3 September 2025 The Assessment Manager Noosa Council PO Box 141 Tewantin QLD 4565 Via: [email protected] Dear Nadine, REQUEST FOR MINOR CHANGE TO EXISTING DEVELOPMENT APPROVAL – MATERIAL CHANGE OF USE AND BUILDING WORKS ASSOCIATED WITH THE ROYAL MAIL HOTEL AT 118 POINCIANA AVENUE & 26 DIYAN STREET, TEWANTIN QLD 4565 (COUNCIL REF: MCU23/0090 & DBW23/0073) 1. INTRODUCTION In accordance with Section 78 and 81 of the Planning Act 2016 (‘Planning Act’) and on behalf of the Applicant, Queensland Venue Co. Pty Ltd (‘QVC’), we wish to make a Minor Change to an existing Development Permit for a Material Change of Use – Hotel extension and Building Works – Partial demolition at the ‘The Royal Mail Hotel’ located at 118 Poinciana Avenue & 26 Diyan Street, Tewantin (Council Approval Ref: MCU23/0090 & DBW23/0073). The existing development approval relates The Royal Mail Hotel and is for a significant Hotel extension. The purpose of this minor change is to seek approval for amendments to the floor layout, including a children’s playground within the beer garden, acoustic reporting and requirements, as well as amendments to existing development conditions, all as a result of further refinement of the development for construction and delivery. This minor change application is accompanied by the following supporting documentation: Appendix A – Planning Act DA Form 5; Appendix B – Signed Owner’s Consent; Appendix C – Amended Architectural Plans, prepared by Red Design; Appendix D – Revised Acoustic Report, prepared by Acoustic Works; Appendix E – Existing Approval (MCU23/0090 & DBW23/0073). Ltr-250903-Minor Change Request-AVC Royal Mail Hotel
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2. SITE DETAILS
This minor change request relates to 118 Poinciana Avenue & 26 Diyan Street, Tewantin, formally
described as Lot 1 on RP845244 and Lot 3 on RP40197. An aerial image of the site is shown in
Figure 1 below.
Figure 1 – Aerial of Site
SITE
Source: Nearmap (2025)
3. BACKGROUND AND APPROVAL HISTORY
On 20 March 2025, Noosa Council granted the subject development approval, being a Development
Permit for a Material Change of Use – Hotel (Extension to Hotel) and Development Permit for Building
Works for Demolition (‘the Development Approval’).
The Development Approval includes extensions to the existing historical hotel by increasing the size of
the open-air outdoor beer garden area, internal and external building works, new operational
parameters, and car park upgrades.
The original application was Impact Assessable and did not require referral to any referral entities.
An extract of the approved plan is provided in Figure 2 below.
Site works have commenced, and the applicant is now further refining aspects of the approval in
readiness for construction and operation.
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Figure 2 – Extract of Approved Plan Source: Red Design with Council mark ups 4. NATURE OF REQUESTED CHANGES This minor change request seeks approval for minor changes which have been made as a result of the detailed design process and desire to improve site functionality and on-site amenities. The changes to the existing approval are summarised as follows: 1. Incorporate an outdoor play area within the northern beer garden extension; 2. Adjustments to GFA calculations to resolve minor discrepancies on the approved plans; 3. Updated Acoustic report, reflective of the amended plans and play area, including changes to operational parameters and noise conditions: 4. Amendments to end of trip facility requirements; and, 5. Removal of the condition limiting the number of on-site gaming machines. Please note, the proposal also incorporates minor changes which are incidental to the abovementioned changes (such as internal changes to the floor plan). The proposed change is shown in the Amended Architectural Plans included in Appendix C. An extract of the proposed plan is provided below in Figure 3. Ltr-250903-Minor Change Request-AVC Royal Mail Hotel 3
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Figure 3 – Extract of Proposal Plan Source: Red Design 4.1. PROPOSED OUTDOOR PLAY AREA – CONDITION 3 APPROVED PLANS The applicant seeks amendments to the approved floor plans to include an outdoor kids play area to the northern portion of the approved beer garden extension. The hotel seeks to accommodate various demographics in the area including families, and the play area is a key part of this offering. The proposed play area will transform a portion of the existing beer garden into a safe, engaging play area for children. This will not only cater to families but also foster a sense of community by providing a space where parents can relax while their children play. The applicant notes this type of internal amenity is normally provided ancillary to the hotel development, and is not required to be specified on plans. However, due to previous amendments in red by Council, the applicant is clarifying the matter. The Acoustic Report prepared by Acoustic Works been prepared to reflect the play area. The applicant does note that nine submissions were received in relation to potential noise impacts from the beer garden. However, Council must consider the following: Ltr-250903-Minor Change Request-AVC Royal Mail Hotel 4
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The development received 33 submissions of support from the community. These submissions
should be given equal weight to any objecting to the development, and are considered
representative of the broader community’s view on the development.
Acoustic reporting demonstrates compliance with the relevant noise criteria, inclusive of the play
area and children placed on various levels of the equipment.
A hotel has been in operation on the site since 1880, with the current hotel constructed in 1940.
The local community and adjoining residents would be aware of the hotel’s existence and potential
for increased activity.
The site is located within the Centre zone, which intends to provide for higher order development
and activity, and a community centre.
The hotel extension and outdoor play area are well within reasonable community expectations for
the development of the site and centre zoning.
Further detail of the proposed kids play area design and location is provided in Figure 5 below.
Figure 5 – Comparison between approved and revised design
Picture 1 – Approved scheme (beer garden seating area)
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Picture 2 – Revised scheme (incorporating play area)
Source: Red Design
4.2. TOTAL USE AREA ADJUSTMENTS AND CLARIFICATION – CONDITION 3
APPROVED PLANS
As part of the detailed design stage, project architects, Red Design have identified some minor
discrepancies to the total use area calculations. This includes:
Reduction to total use area with Level 1 common area. This is consistent with other calculations
made across the site and reduces TUA by 46m².
Approved plan Revised plan
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Minor increase to the size of the southern beer garden of 46m². This results in a slight decrease to
the size of the adjoining walkway at the south-east corner.
Approved plan Revised plan
Figure 6 – Revised development statistics table – the table demonstrates a marginal 0.08m² increase
to the total use area.
Source: Red Design
4.3. UPDATED ACOUSTIC REPORT – CONDITIONS 22-28
Please see attached acoustic report prepared by Acoustic Works. In summary, the updated report
seeks to simplify the acoustic conditions, and bring them more into line with the existing hotel and
reasonable operating conditions for an established hotel within a centre zone.
Since the original report the height of the perimeter walls of the North Beer Garden have been
clarified, a children’s playground has been added to the North Beer Garden, and consideration
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provided for a live music performer with their own stand-alone PA for the northern end of the North Beer Garden facing south. The applicant also notes the acoustic conditions provided in the Development Approval reference both amplified and acoustic sound. This is a confusing outcome and results in unclear conditions and requirements for the venue. The updated report demonstrates compliance with the residential noise limits established in the original report, and it is not necessary to include separate conditions for amplified and acoustic noise. It is acknowledged that acceptable outcome provisions of the planning scheme reference these items separately, however this is an acceptable outcome only and doesn’t need to be conditioned where the performance outcome is met. The applicant also draws Council’s attention to matters discussed earlier in this report, being the long- standing nature of the existing hotel and its Centre zoning. This should be considered wholistically in the assessment, rather than a narrow view of each acceptable outcome. It is the applicant’s position that compliance with the relevant EPP noise criteria demonstrates compliance with the performance outcome, which combined with the weight of site-specific factors does not warrant further specific conditions by Council, simply because they are an acceptable outcome. 4.4. CONDITION 42: END OF TRIP FACILITIES Condition 42(f) states the following: Pedestrian and bicycle facilities must be provided for the development. The works must be undertaken in accordance with an Operational Works approval, be generally in accordance with Red’s Proposed Site Plan (TP06, Rev. 17) dated 17 February 2025 and must include in particular: …f. End of trip facilities involving 7 lockers, two showers and change rooms in the development. It is unclear why Council has conditioned End of trip (EOT) facilities for the development when this was never proposed by the applicant. The facilities would result in impacts to the floor plan and intended development outcome and are not an efficient use of space. Council officers have referenced QDC MP 4.1 when referring to EOT facility requirements. However, QDC MP4.1 is not applicable to Class 6 buildings. This is shown in Table 1 of MP4.1 below and has been confirmed by the project certifier. It is clear that this is the case because EOT facilities are not going to be used in certain building types. EOT facilities should be provided for office buildings or large-scale medical or educational facilities that generate significant staff numbers in a commuter environment. Ltr-250903-Minor Change Request-AVC Royal Mail Hotel 8
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In consideration of PO15 of the Transport Code, we provide the following response
PO15:
Site facilities encourage users and employees to access the site by means of foot or bicycle through
provision of appropriate end-oftrip facilities including bicycle parking and shower/change rooms.
Applicant response
EOT facilities could only be used by employees, as no hotel guests would reasonably use these
facilities.
The current hotel does not provide EOT facilities. This is reflective of the nature of the use being a
hospitality venue, not an office building or large-scale medical or educational facility that would
generate significant staff numbers in an environment that warrants use of an EOT facility.
To condition these facilities based on an extension of the hotel is considered onerous. As noted
above, the current floor plan does not provide space for these facilities.
The applicant is an experienced hotel operator, and it would be in the operator’s best interest to
provide these facilities should staff request and use them. However, this is not the case. The
primary operating hours of the hotel are within the evening when it would not be safe to ride on the
surrounding roads.
The applicant’s building certifier has confirmed the EOT facilities are not required under building
regulations and they would not otherwise require these to be provided at the building application
stage.
The applicant is not aware of any other licenced venues or hotels in the State that provide stand
alone EOT facilities.
Accordingly, we request deletion of Condition 42(f).
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Pedestrian and bicycle facilities must be provided for the development. The works must be
undertaken in accordance with an Operational Works approval, be generally in accordance with
Red’s Proposed Site Plan (TP06, Rev. 17) dated 17 February 2025 and must include in
particular:
f. End of trip facilities involving 13 showers 7 lockers, two showers and change rooms in the
development.
4.5. CONDITION 52: LIMITATION ON GAMING MACHINES
Condition 52 states the following:
The proposed development provides for a maximum 35 gaming machines across the entire site
and limited to the gaming area of 260m2.
The current condition requirement restricts the operational room size and quantity of gaming machines
within the Royal Mail Hotel. We request Council to remove this condition from the Approval Conditions
based on the following justifications:
The condition is not reasonable or relevant to Planning Scheme benchmarks.
Gaming regulation is not governed by Council’s Planning Scheme provisions, but rather by state
legislation with the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation (‘OSLR’), being the authority to which
the applicant will apply and report regarding all ongoing use and amendments to the liquor and
gaming offerings. This includes machine quantity, venue layouts, and operations at the Royal Mail
Hotel.
OLGR approvals and legislative conditions take precedence over Council in matters related to
venue licensing, gaming machine quantity, location, and operations of gaming rooms, including
community impact policies.
In light of the above, we request for Condition 52 to be deleted.
5. APPROVAL PACKAGE AMENDMENTS
5.1. APPROVED DRAWINGS AND DOCUMENTS
The following amendments to the list of approved drawings and documents are requested to ensure
that any resultant approval correctly acknowledges the update drawings and documents as shown in
the Table 1 below.
The following table outlines the proposed changes to the approved drawings and documents, with
changes to the underlined in blue, and with removed text struck through in red.
Table 1 – Proposed changes to approved plans
Plan No. Rev. Plan / Document Name Date
TP02 11 Existing Site Plan prepared by Red 13.02.2025
TP03 10 Existing conditions & Demolition Plan Ground 04.02.2025
level prepared by Red
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Plan No. Rev. Plan / Document Name Date
TP04 10 Exist conditions & Demolition Plan – Level 1 04.02.2025
prepared by Red
TP05 9 Exist conditions & Demolition Plan Elevations 04.02.2025
prepared by Red
TP06 17 Proposed Site Plan prepared by Red 17.02.2025
22 22.08.2025
TP07 11 Proposed Ground Floor Plan prepared by Red as 17.02.2025
amended by Council
TP08 10 Proposed Level 1 Plan prepared by Red 04.02.2025
TP09 11 Proposed Beer Garden prepared by Red as 17.02.2025
amended by Council
TP10 15 Proposed External Elevations prepared by Red 17.02.2025
19 22.08.2025
TP11 10 Proposed External Elevations prepared by Red 04.02.2025
14 22.08.2025
TP20 1 Roof Plan 22.08.2025
5.2. AMENDMENTS TO CONDITIONS OF APPROVAL
The applicant seeks to clarify or amend the following conditions of approval as per below. These
conditions of approval reflect the existing minor change approval (Council Ref: A006199998) as the
minor change reflects the most recent conditions.
The following table outlines the proposed changes to the approval conditions, with changes to the
underlined in blue, and with removed text struck through in red.
Condition Proposed Change Rationale
22 Hours of Operation – Beer Garden Areas Refer to the Revised Acoustic
Report in Appendix D.
Acoustic Amplified live music must not operate in
the Northern and the Southern Beer Garden: It is proposed to amend the
wording of Condition 22 as the
dominant noise source, and the
source used for noise monitoring,
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Condition Proposed Change Rationale
i. After 9:00pm and before 10:00am Sunday to is amplified live music rather than
Thursday. acoustic music.
ii. After 10 pm and before 10:00am Friday and
Saturday.
23 Acoustic Barriers To address the proposed
changes to the beer garden
Before the use commences, acoustic barriers of
arrangement, including the
height 1.2 metres to 2.8 metres must be
addition of the kids play area, the
designed, constructed and maintained around the
height range of the acoustic
perimeter of the northern beer garden area as
barriers are to be designed as per
detailed in Figure 4 of the approved noise report.
the amendments in Condition 23
The barriers are to be constructed to have a
and the revised Acoustic Report
minimum surface mass density of 12.5 kg/m2, be
in Appendix D.
free from holes and gap.
26 Amplified Sound The Applicant requests that the
wording of condition 26 is
Provision of amplified sound to the northern beer
amended to align with the design
garden is to be provided by a distributed speaker
requirements of the Revised
system via deck level speakers and operated
Acoustic Report in Appendix D.
through an electronic noise limiting system such
that the maximum operated through an electronic
noise limiting system such that the maximum
operating noise level is 70 dB(A) LAeq,adj,T at 3
metres. The noise limiting system is to be locked
and only able to be accessed by hotel manager
or audio-visual contractors for adjustment.
27 Amplified Sound The Applicant requests that the
wording of condition 27 is
Amplified live music must cease to operate in the
amended to align with the design
northern or southern beer gardens by 7pm seven
requirements and hours of
days per week. Amplified live music is to be
operation in the Revised Acoustic
provided through the noise limiting system.
Report in Appendix D.
28 Amplified Sound In relation to the proposed
amendments to Conditions 22-27
Provision of acoustic live music to the northern
of the approval package, any
beer garden shall be operated such that it does
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Condition Proposed Change Rationale
not exceed an operating noise level of 70 dB(A) reference to ‘acoustic’ live music
LAeq,adj,T at 3 metres. is no longer necessary.
Refer to the Revised Acoustic
Report in Appendix D.
42 Pedestrian and Bicycle Facilities Refer to Section 4.4 of this report
for a detailed justification for the
Pedestrian and bicycle facilities must be provided
amendment to Condition 42.
for the development. The works must be
undertaken in accordance with an Operational
Works approval, be generally in accordance with
Red’s Proposed Site Plan (TP06, Rev. 17) dated
17 February 2025. and must include in particular:
f. End of trip facilities involving 13 showers. 7
lockers, two showers and change rooms in
the development.
52 Waste Refer to Section 4.5 of this report
for a detailed justification for the
The proposed development provides for a
removal of Condition 52.
maximum 35 gaming machines across the entire
site and limited to the gaming area of 260m2.
6. ASSESSMENT OF MINOR CHANGE
6.1. SCHEDULE 2 ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
Consideration has been given to the relevant matters for assessing a Minor Change set out in the
Planning Act 2016 (‘the Act’), having regard to the definition of a Minor Change in Schedule 2 and the
assessment criteria set out in Section 81, as follows:
Schedule 2 - Minor change means a change that—
a. for a development application—
i.does not result in substantially different development; and
ii.if the application, including the change, were made when the change is made—would not
cause—
A. the inclusion of prohibited development in the application; or
B. referral to a referral agency if there were no referral agencies for the
development application; or
C. referral to extra referral agencies; or
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D. a referral agency to assess the application against, or have regard to,
matters prescribed by regulation under section 55(2), other than matters the
referral agency must have assessed the application against, or have had regard
to, when the application was made; or
E. public notification if public notification was not required for the
development application; or
b. for a development approval—
i. would not result in substantially different development; and
ii. if a development application for the development, including the change, were
made when the change application is made would not cause—
A. the inclusion of prohibited development in the application; or
B. referral to a referral agency, other than to the chief executive, if there were
no referral agencies for the development application; or
C. referral to extra referral agencies, other than to the chief executive; or
D. a referral agency to assess the application against, or have regard to,
matters prescribed by regulation under section 55(2), other than matters
the referral agency must have assessed the application against, or have
had regard to, when the application was made; or
E. public notification if public notification was not required for the
development application.
(Our emphasis in bold)
6.1.1. Substantially Different Development
In respect to part (b)(i) of the definition of Minor Change and what constitutes a substantially different
development, it is appropriate to have regard to the Development Assessment Rules, Schedule 1,
which sets out the substantially different development ‘test’. An assessment of the proposed changes
against the substantially different development criteria in the Development Assessment Rules is
included in the table below.
Table 1 – Response to Substantially Different Development Guideline Criteria
Guideline Criteria Response
Involves a new use. The proposed minor change does not involve a
new use.
Results in the application applying to a new The proposed change does not involve a new
parcel of land. parcel of land.
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Guideline Criteria Response
Dramatically changes the built form in terms of The proposed change involves minor
scale, bulk and appearance. amendments to tidy up the condition
requirements and to incorporate a kids play area
within the approved beer garden. On balance,
the proposed changes do not dramatically alter
the built form or appearance of bulk that is
already approved for the development.
Changes the ability of the proposed The proposal will not change the ability for the
development to operate as intended. For development to operate as intended.
example, reducing the size of a retail complex to
service the intended catchment.
Removes a component that is integral to the The proposal does not remove any components
operation of the development. of the approved development. The change
proposal continues to operate as a Hotel /
tavern (primary use).
Significantly impacts on traffic flow and the The proposed change will have negligible if any
transport network, such as increasing traffic to impacts on the traffic flow or the surrounding
the site. transport network.
Introduces new impacts or increases the The proposed changes do not introduce nor
severity of known impacts. worsen the severity of known impacts
associated with the approved development.
Removes an incentive or offset component that No incentives or offsets are removed.
would have balanced a negative impact of the
development.
Impact on infrastructure provision. The proposal will not impact the provision of
infrastructure required by the development
The above assessment demonstrates that the proposed changes will not result in substantially
different development.
6.1.2. Prohibited Development
In respect to part (b)(ii)(A) of the definition of Minor Change, the proposed Minor Change will not
introduce or involve any prohibited development as identified in Schedule 10 of the Planning
Regulation 2017.
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6.1.3. Referral Matters
The original application did not require referral to any referral agencies. The proposed changes would
not introduce any new referral requirements.
7. NOTIFYING AFFECTED ENTITIES
In accordance with Section 80 of the Planning Act 2016, the Applicant is required to notify affected
entities of the minor change application.
Section 80(1)(a) of the Planning Act 2016 confirms that the following are affected entities for a change
application that the assessment manager is responsible for—
“…a referral agency for the development approval other than the chief executive.”
The original application was not required to be referred to any referral agencies. Given Council is the
Assessment Manager of this change, and referral was not applicable to the original application, no
further affected entities have been identified requiring notification.
8. COUNCIL ASSESSMENT FEE
In accordance with Council’s Schedule of Fees and Charges 2025/2026, the applicable Change
Application related to this request is ‘Minor change to a Development Approval – More substantial
matters (as determined by Manager, Development Assessment)’ and the applicable fee is $4,433.
This fee will be paid upon receipt of Council’s fee quote.
9. CONCLUSION
As outlined in this letter, the proposed changes constitute a Minor Change and do not comprise
‘substantially different’ development as described by the Planning Act 2016.
Th proposed changes are considered to be appropriate in consideration of the approved development
and planning controls relevant to the site. Accordingly, we respectfully request that Council approve
the proposed changes.
We trust the supplied documentation is sufficient in order for Council to undertake an assessment of
this proposal. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the undersigned or Andrew
Aldridge (Senior Consultant) on 0450 697 767.
Yours sincerely,
David Janson
Associate Director
+61 7 3007 3590
[email protected]
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uRBIS | APPENDIX A PLANNING DA FORM 5 Ltr-250903-Minor Change Request-AVC Royal Mail Hotel 17
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uRBIS | APPENDIX B SIGNED OWNER’S CONSENT Ltr-250903-Minor Change Request-AVC Royal Mail Hotel 18
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APPENDIX C AMENDED ARCHITECTURAL
PLANS
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uRBIS | APPENDIX D ACOUSTIC REPORT Ltr-250903-Minor Change Request-AVC Royal Mail Hotel 20
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uRBIS | APPENDIX E EXISTING APPROVAL Ltr-250903-Minor Change Request-AVC Royal Mail Hotel 21