MCU22/0209 Application For Material Change Of Use For Short Term Accommodation At 515 Cooroy Noosa Road, Tinbeerwah · Attachment 2 - MCU22 0209 - Planner'S Report

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.
The proposal is mapped by the State as being a Koala Priority Area with vegetation along the site’s
western and eastern boundary mapped as Core Koala Habitat. No works or tree removal are
proposed on site to accommodate the use and therefore the proposal is consistent with the state
development assessment provisions.
3.3. Statutory Instruments – Planning Scheme
The subject site is located in Tinbeerwah and is zoned Rural. The proposed use is identified as a
consistent use with the zone and is required to follow an impact assessable application process.
The application is made impact assessable by the Noosa Plan’s assessment tables due to the site
being under 4ha, with an area of 2.93ha. The application would otherwise be code assessable.
Being impact assessable, the application must be assessed against the whole of Noosa Plan 2020
to the extent the provisions are relevant to the development. The Strategic Framework and the
following codes are most applicable to the application:
•     Biodiversity, Waterways and Wetlands Overlay Code;
•     Bushfire Hazard Overlay Code;
•     Regional Infrastructure Overlay Code;
•     Rural Zone Code;
•     Visitor Accommodation Code; and
•     Works Codes.
3.4. Strategic Framework
The Strategic Framework recognises that tourism is a key sector of the Noosa economy and will
continue to be so into the future, with key visitor areas identified including Hastings Street, Gympie
Terrace, Noosa River, Tewantin Marina, Noosa National Park, Sunshine Beach, Peregian Beach,
Noosa North Shore and the hinterland.
However, the Strategic Framework also identifies that visitor numbers and associated pressures
are increasing in and around Noosa’s natural attractions and impacting residential amenity and the
lifestyle of locals, the local environment, and accommodation for residents and guests.
Consequently, the Noosa Plan identifies and protects visitor accommodation areas at Noosa
Heads, Noosaville and Noosa North Shore for visitors to the exclusion of permanent occupants. It
also conversely protects neighbourhoods of permanent residents from influxes of short-term
visitors recognising visitors interests and priorities are not always compatible with residential
amenity. These strategies are also reflected in the planning scheme’s assessment tables and
codes by identifying short term accommodation as an inconsistent use in the Low Density
Residential zone and requiring that medium and high density residential zoned areas remain home
to predominantly permanent residents.
Within the hinterland, the Strategic Intent states that the focus is directed towards high
quality nature-based and rural tourism experiences and events to diversify and balance the visitor
experience across Noosa Shire and promote the hinterland. The Tourism Strategy Noosa 2017-
2022 prepared by Tourism Noosa supports this focus by encouraging and promoting hinterland,
nature-based experiences to help disperse visitors throughout the region with a focus on ‘quality’
experiences that attract high spending interstate and international visitors to the region.
Accordingly, in the hinterland for rural zoned land, nature based tourism is identified as accepted
development subject to requirements or code assessable, with short term accommodation as code
assessable or consistent impact assessable. Visitor accommodation in the hinterland is supported
by the planning scheme but is required to be low density and small scale and not impact on rural
activities, or the amenity, character or environmental values of the area.
The proposed short term accommodation does not offend the Strategic Intent and Outcomes of
the Noosa Plan 2020, but it also does not necessarily offer or advance the ‘nature based and rural

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