By JOLENE OGLE
Noosa Council is a council that mostly says “yes”, according to planning committee chairman and Councillor Frank Wilkie.
Recent statistics show that more than 97 per cent of the 372 development applications submitted to the council this year have been approved, and 59 of the 63 Material Change of Use applications were also approved.
Just 10 development applications were rejected, and among them the controversial Noosa on Weyba development that is now before the Planning and Environment Court, and the Coles development for Noosa Junction.
Cr Wilkie said most people were aware the council was a staunch defender of Noosa’s environment and lifestyle, but this didn’t mean “we say no to all development”.
“The vast majority of applications we say yes to tend to fly under the radar because they fit comfortably within the Noosa Plan and within what the community supports as being acceptable,” he said.
While the council was unable to release further details on the approved developments before going to print, Cr Wilkie assured Noosa Today the developments that complied with the Noosa Plan also created jobs.
Cr Wilkie said the approved developments were less likely to destroy the shire’s “point of difference” in the long term.
“It’s Noosa’s low-scale built environment and its relatively well-preserved beaches, parks, forests, lakes and hinterland that set it apart from larger, more populated coastal centres,” he said.
“I’d suggest this is largely why Noosa’s visitor numbers remain healthy and economic returns from tourism are growing towards $1 billion annually.”
Noosa Today asked Cr Wilkie if Noosa Council may need to approve large-scale development in the future to stimulate economic and job growth.
“I’d say hopefully not,” he said.
“Fortunately, the current preference for quality over quantity has worked extremely well. But, we’re always only one election away from having a council that may use hollow slogans to push for the type of over-development that could change Noosa forever.”
Cr Wilkie said big developments don’t always equal big jobs and economic growth.
“If continuous big construction is needed to create jobs, why do the high-rise centres of the Gold and Sunshine Coasts have similar unemployment rates to Noosa?”
