Sunshine Coast Council has objected to key approval changes linked to major highway and earthworks plans, citing concerns about road safety, traffic operations and impacts on nearby residents.
The objection relates to a state government minor change request lodged on behalf of Stockland for the Western Detention Basin, a 2016-approved extraction and stormwater basin site west of the Bruce Highway at Bells Creek.
The application seeks to update the existing state approval conditions so extraction, haulage and construction arrangements align with the next stages of the Caloundra South development and the planned Central Avenue and Bruce Highway interchange.
The minor change request is being assessed by the State Assessment and Referral Agency, known as SARA, with Sunshine Coast Council able to object or raise concerns as an affected entity.
Council’s response notice, dated July 20, states it objected to requested changes to six conditions but had no objection to one further change, relating to an updated flood impact assessment.
In the response, council said the proposed haulage condition changes would enable alternative routes to be approved in the future “without sufficient certainty regarding the final haulage arrangements or council’s role in assessing those arrangements”.
It said the approved haulage route assessment was undertaken in 2015–2016 and did not reflect the current development context.
“Since that time, substantial development has occurred within the Caloundra South PDA, including new council-controlled roads, transport infrastructure and sensitive land uses,” the council response stated.
Although Stockland had indicated alternative haul routes would use state-controlled roads, council raised concerns that no construction management plan or alternative haulage route assessment had been provided.
“Accordingly, council cannot determine whether future haulage arrangements may adversely affect council-controlled infrastructure, traffic operations, road safety, residential amenity or the local road network,” the response stated.
Council said any future alternative haulage route should be supported by detailed route information and be subject to consultation with council before approval was granted.
Council also objected to the revised basin plans, saying they had not yet been shown to be suitable from an engineering, operational or long-term asset perspective.
It said more detail was needed on issues including low-flow channels, drainage works, basin slopes, rehabilitation treatments and long-term maintenance.
Council’s assessment report said the basin could ultimately become council-maintained infrastructure, meaning the revised design needed further review before the plans could be supported.
The Western Detention Basin has a dual role. Material extracted from the site would be used to form development pads for Aura’s Precincts 12 and 13 on the eastern side of the highway, before the excavated area becomes a detention basin for stormwater and flood management.
Precinct 12 forms part of Aura’s north-central residential area, while Precinct 13, within Nirimba, will be Aura’s second business and commercial precinct.
Want more free local news? Follow Sunshine Coast News on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram, and sign up for our FREE daily news email.
Stockland previously told Sunshine Coast News it could not yet confirm the timing of the interchange and basin works, but said precinct works would include “bulk earthworks filling to enable future stage construction” and would start once relevant approvals were in place.
The state government has not yet made a decision on the minor change request.
A council spokesperson told Sunshine Coast News council could not provide any comment beyond the details available in the development material.
