The group behind a previously withdrawn development application for 40 apartments above a shopping centre have re-submitted it with a view to going to court should the Sunshine Coast Council balk at it a second time.
Marina Village Holdings 2 Pty Ltd lodged an application in April to put twin five-storey towers above an already approved retail and commercial development at 2 The Basin, Pelican Waters.
The proposal would have taken the complex to six storeys high but the council maintained the site should only accommodate a three-storey development.
However, a map and diagram combination in the Pelican Waters Southern Lakes management plan shows a maximum height of six storeys.
The council still deemed the project above the height limit and therefore impact assessable, which requires a more complicated assessment process, including a public notification period, than a code-assessable development.
The application was subsequently withdrawn but town planning firm Murray and Associates (Qld) re-submitted it late last week on behalf of Marina Village Holdings 2 Pty Ltd.
Marina Village Holdings 2 Pty Ltd director Grant Kennedy said the proposal was withdrawn to allow time to seek legal advice.
He said specialist legal opinion said the application should be treated as code assessable, not impact assessable.
“Council continues to say that it is impact assessable, including the retail component, which is already approved,” he said.
“Therefore, we have re-lodged the application with the intention of taking the issue to the Planning and Environment Court.”
Mr Kennedy expects the council to again be resistant to the proposal and that his company will immediately lodge an application in the Planning and Environment Court.
He said the council was hindering a project that would add to housing options and provide much-needed facilities in the area without adversely affecting amenity or infrastructure such as roads.
The single-level Marina Village shopping and commercial component of the waterfront complex, which was initially approved in 2021, is yet to be built.
The proposed units, Quay Residences, would be about 220sqm each and have three bedrooms, with four apartments per floor in each of the towers.
“It is unfortunate that a proposal on a site unaffected by amenity issues such as overlooking or blocking views, and one that provides all shopping facilities within walking distance to residents, thus reducing car travel and congestion, has to go through his process,” Mr Kennedy said.
“The Sunshine Coast continues to struggle to provide a diversity of accommodation options to the average 10,000 people who move here each year and this is just another example of why this occurs.”
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