A popular aqua park has lodged plans to add short-term waterfront accommodation to its offerings.
Oz Ski Resort, which operates a water ski facility on a private man-made freshwater lake at Coolum, has applied to Sunshine Coast Council to add 12 waterfront campground sites on an isthmus that extends into the waterway.
The lot at 60 Junction Drive has an area of 32.6 hectares – most of it taken up by the lake – and is home to the long-established ski resort and the well-known Coolum Aqua Park.
A letter by Project Urban on behalf of Oz Ski Resort says the campsites would be used exclusively by event participants or visitors attending activities on the site.
“The proposal includes 12 designated sites for self-contained campervans, with an anticipated occupancy of 8-12 vans at any one time,” it states.
“All vans will be fully self-contained, providing their own toilet, shower, grey-water storage and power supply. No external power, electrical infrastructure or additional utilities are proposed to service the campsites.”
The site is zoned Sport and Recreation and the application for a caravan park or camping ground is subject to code assessment, but the letter acknowledges the use may instead be characterised as a tourist park, which would trigger impact assessment.
“The proposal has therefore been designed to clearly align with the definition and intent of short-term accommodation under the planning scheme,” it says.
The site is in a mapped flood zone, with a flood evacuation management plan prepared as part of the application.
“The primary emergency management strategy relies on the self-evacuation of occupants to areas outside the flood-affected zone,” the letter says.
“The proposed development, comprising self-contained caravan sites, is well suited to this approach, as patrons are typically equipped with sufficient resources and facilities to enable rapid departure and short-term self-sufficiency with minimal reliance on external assistance.
“Given the nature of the use, a minimum warning period of six hours is considered adequate to allow guests to safely evacuate the site.
“In the event that occupants are unable or elect not to evacuate within the available warning period, refuge can be provided within the existing two-storey caretaker’s residence located on-site, which offers flood-safe accommodation above anticipated flood levels.”
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The Oz Ski Resort website says the facility is recognised by the Australian Water Ski Federation as an official training site.
“We offer coaching in water skiing and wake boarding. Our banana boat rides are also really popular with groups and families looking for some fun on the water,” it states.
The website says the facility has been run by former world champion Emma Sheers and her husband coach Rick Habermann since 2013.
The site is owned by the council.
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.
