SUBMISSION re Peregian Beach DA 300813 · MCU13/0092

The Chief Executive Officer
Sunshine Coast Council
Locked Bag 72
Sunshine Coast Mail Centre
QLD 4560

RE: Development application

FILE No: MCU13/0092
Name of Applicant: Multispan Australia
Postal Address of Land: 5-7 Rufous Street, Peregian Beach
Proposal: Integrated shopping complex development

I wish to make a submission on the referenced development application, as follows:

I object to the above-named development proposal on a number of grounds – cultural, amenity, economic and safety.

I holidayed regularly at Peregian Beach from the late 1980s and purchased a holiday property here in 1992. In 2009 I moved permanently to Peregian Beach, buying a house and relocating from Highgate Hill/West End in Brisbane. West End is a unique Brisbane suburb, enjoying a thriving community culture focused on an historic shopping strip unspoiled by ‘development’. What has always attracted me to Peregian Beach is the similar, albeit more modern, sense of a community with a human-scale focal point - the ‘village square’. Though the square has changed materially over the years, its character as a social and service centre has remained strong and valued.

I believe that the proposed development will damage that sense of a village community focus in a cultural sense, and will also damage the economy centered on the square. The opening of a supermarket will almost certainly sound the death knell of a number of businesses currently located around the square. The ‘emptying’ of a once-thriving retail centre, under the impact of a new supermarket-style development, is a too-common occurrence on the Sunshine Coast and elsewhere in Australia. Further, Peregian Beach is a tourist destination, and its popularity rests on its relative tranquility and on the special atmosphere of the ‘village square’, which attracts tourists grateful for a special and different experience. In this, the square is reminiscent of the piazzas, squares and plazas that create such character and that attract tourists to cities, towns and villages throughout Europe.

In the ‘cultural’ sense described above, I believe that the proposed development will spoil, if not ruin, Peregian Beach. But there are other pressing reasons for objecting, as follows:

The land in question is currently zoned Open Space/Recreation. Peregian Beach has already been identified by Council as an area lacking adequate provision for recreational activities – a deficit that is certain to increase with future population growth. It defied belies that approval would be given to a proposal that excises such a large and vital piece of recreational open space from the Peregian community.

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The proposed development would create traffic hazards in a section of David Low Way and adjoining narrow streets that currently has to cope with traffic from the Community House, nearby professional suites, kindergarten, tennis courts, Veggie Village, sporting oval and residences. The greatly increased traffic – not just from patrons but also from out-of-hours deliveries, cleaning, maintenance etc – would adversely affect the amenity of residents living in the vicinity of the development.

This area is already well served by supermarkets, particularly those located in Peregian Springs, Coolum Beach and Noosa Junction. Were a supermarket built on the proposed site, most patrons would inevitably drive cars to shop there – not advantaging those patrons much at all in terms of distance, but creating a substantial additional traffic hazard for the community.

Given all the above, I urge the council to reject the development application and to thus ensure that Peregian Beach continues to thrive as a very special location whose distinctive character is appreciated so much by residents and visitors alike.

Dr Brian Hoepper
12 Calliandra Grove
PEREGIAN BEACH Q 4573

DATE OF SUBMISSION: Friday 30th August 2013

submitted by email attachment to [email protected]