By Abbey Cannan
A council land parcel at Cooroy is set to provide new social and affordable housing for Noosa in a project given a green light by council, but a group of surrounding residents have voiced their concerns.
Councillors recently approved a remediation process to prepare the land for housing before a subdivision of the block and the first 3000sqm lot to be sold to not-for-profit Coast2Bay Housing.
“This is an exciting project that delivers on a key action from our Housing Strategy to facilitate the rollout of new social and low-cost housing for our community,” acting Mayor Brian Stockwell said.
Council’s acting chief executive officer Larry Sengstock will oversee remediation of the site at 62 Lake Macdonald Drive, Cooroy, as well as the subdivision process and negotiation of the sale of Lot 1 to Coast2Bay.
“Coast2Bay is an established and respected not-for-profit provider of affordable and social housing with access to state and federal funding to support delivery of new housing stock,” Cr Stockwell said.
“We signed an MoU with Coast2Bay in 2022. They are a key member of our Housing Stakeholder Reference Group, and we enjoy a strong working relationship with their team which has helped pave the way for the delivery of this exciting project.”
A group of Cooroy residents have voiced their concerns with the project to Noosa Council and a submission to council has been drafted.
Cooroy resident since 1972, Pat Spicer said, “As a local resident, my concerns relate primarily with residential amenity, safety, and the aesthetics of the site and proposed construction.
“This development and the way in which it has been handled sets a precedent for future development in Cooroy.
“As a landholder with an adjoining boundary with the development property, I am highly concerned that I have not received any official information on this proposed development.
“I accessed the letter sent to ’property owner or occupier’ on Facebook. One should not need to access Facebook to be informed on council’s intention for one’s neighbourhood.“
Pat said the style of the houses proposed was incompatible with existing residences in the neighbourhood.
“The proposed housing on Lot 1 in no way retains the residential amenity of adjoining houses in Dianella Court, Viola Place and Wilgee Court,“ Pat said.
“While I agree Noosa Shire needs a range of housing including affordable key worker housing, crisis housing, social and community housing, housing for the aged or people with a disability, two storey dwellings are not appropriate for people with a disability, particularly if the disability is of a physical nature. Nor are such dwellings suitable for more elderly residents.
“The only indication of the style of housing is units similar to the two storey development at 9 Kauri Street.“
Kangaroos traverse the property and have come into Pat’s yard quite often daily for at least 30 years.
“I recently fenced the boundary between portion 105 and my property at no expense to the council,“ Pat said.
“I left an opening in the fence for kangaroos to be able to access my property and so I could carry out weed control on council side of the fence line.
“I expect council or the developer to erect a more substantial fence on the eastern boundary between my property and Portion 105 (proposed Lot 3) at no additional cost to me.
“I am concerned particularly with the clandestine manner in which this development is being handled as council proceeds with the subdivision and resolved sale of the land to Coast2Bay prior to any community consultation.“
The former night soil, landfill, and bottle disposal site from the 1950s and ’60s is vacant and free from flooding or bushfire hazard overlays.
Environment and strategy director Kim Rawlings said council would thoroughly remediate the land before any civil works or housing construction could begin.
Final costs of the remediation process won’t be known until tenders are complete and a contractor is engaged through a competitive tender process.
“Soil recycling trials indicate we can successfully decontaminate the site to meet the stringent standards required for housing land,” Kim said.
“This initiative is just one of a range of ways council is working to deliver social and affordable housing for our community, as well as advocate for more state and federal housing investment.”
Independent Noosa MP Sandy Bolton is thrilled with the progress of this site that has taken nearly five years after being identified as a potential during the Housing Action Group in 2020.
“This demonstrates the importance and value of having everyone at the table when developing solutions, including for affordable housing,“ Sandy said.
“Thank you and congratulations to Cr Stockwell, the Noosa Council team, Andrew Elvin and Coast2Bay, the QLD State Government and all who provided input and impetus.
“We all look forward to the turning of the sod on this one!”
Last year council wrote to 900 short-stay property owners to encourage them to transfer their properties to the permanent rental market.
Council’s partnership with Youturn to establish two tiny homes on council land is meeting a crisis accommodation need.
These are among a raft of actions detailed in council’s Housing Strategy, developed with the local community.
“We’re currently consulting our community on proposed planning scheme amendments to pave the way for a greater range of housing and further tighten controls on short-stay letting,” Cr Stockwell said.
