A packed public car park at sunset has sparked angst from residents of a famous tourist town.
Photos of rows of campervans at the end of Noosa Spit emerged on social media last week, prompting outcries from many locals.
Several commentators expressed concerns that people were staying overnight or longer, while others voiced some support for the visitors.
Meanwhile, Noosa Council stated that it was focused on clamping down on illegal camping, with scores of fines issued this year.
Suzanne King, who took the photos, said the car park at the end of Claude Batten Drive had essentially been over-run by campervans.
“There are so many campers now that residents can’t access the area,” she said.
“We’re talking about them monopolising the area and leaving it inaccessible to others.
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“It’s a problem but residents get labelled as being unfriendly or unsociable if they complain.
“Something needs to be done.”
It comes after residents to the south, on the central Sunshine Coast, reported vans staying for months in public car parks.
Ms King could not say how many people were camping overnight at Noosa Spit but she was there at dusk, when campervans seemed to be well established.
“We’ve got people there for quite a long time, it appears, with chairs and beds, who are stopping others from going there to have a one-hour cup of coffee,” she said.
Ms King was unsure what percentage of the campervans were being used by holidaymakers flouting the ‘no camping or overnight stays’ signs, and how many were occupied by homeless people.
“But there are obviously people camping and they have been for some time,” she said.
“Some people will say they don’t belong there at all and a lot of other people will say that things should be free and easy.
“But at the end of the day the residents and ratepayers are paying to maintain this site.
“We need to do something where it’s not just a free parking lot.”
A Noosa Council statement to Sunshine Coast News said Noosa Spit is a no-parking zone between 10pm and 4am “to help curb illegal camping”.
Director of development and regulation Richard MacGillivray said council continued to enforce the rules with regular early morning and late-night patrols focused on illegal campers.
“Our patrols target illegal camping across the shire, including hotspots at Tewantin, Noosaville and Noosa Heads,” he said.
“Officers issue on-the-spot fines to those breaching these rules.”
Council stated that it also conducted joint enforcement operations with Queensland Police Service, when possible.
The fine for illegal camping is $322, and council has issued 142 fines and 150 cautions this year.
Ms King, who said there were hygiene concerns surrounding the site due to a lack of amenities, urged the council to consider creating a designated camping space within the nearby Noosa Woods.
“We need to cater for visitors to our area,” she said.
“Council has had plenty of time to come up with a solution. There is so much vacant area in the woods that could be a temporary campground.”
She said there used to be a camping area there and one could be established again.
“There’s got to be some kind of spot that could be set aside,” she said.
“There are a couple of big parking lots there. Why not block some off and install some portaloos and washing facilities?”
Ms King also acknowledged that homelessness “is a really complex situation right now”.
“But this has been going on for years and I don’t think it’s a good enough solution to just let people park where they want and do what they want,” she said.
Mr McGillivray said council was doing what it could to help homeless people.
“Our officers are trained to identify those who are sleeping in cars due to hardship and provide assistance with referrals to support services,” he said.
Council stated that it had no plans to open any camping grounds at Noosa Woods and that it operates three holiday parks in the Noosa area, including the Noosa River Holiday Park.
The aerial imagery in this story is from Australian location intelligence company Nearmap. The company provides government organisations, architectural, construction and engineering firms, and other companies, with easy, instant access to high-resolution aerial imagery, city-scale 3D content, artificial intelligence data sets, and geospatial tools to assist with urban planning, monitoring and development projects in Australia, New Zealand and North America.
