Sunshine Coast Council has approved a height increase for a major hotel and apartment development on Ocean Street, Maroochydore, and signed off on its final quarterly progress report for the 2025-26 financial year, at its ordinary meeting on 20 August. The meeting was chaired by Mayor Rosanna Natoli.
Council closes out the year on 77 per cent delivery
Chief executive Emad Baker presented the fourth-quarter progress report, marking the end of the first year of council’s 2025-30 corporate plan. Of 77 activities in the operational plan, 59 were completed as planned and 18 missed their timeframe or budget, though ten of those are expected to be finished or restarted within the first two quarters of the new financial year. Baker pointed to the endorsement of the region’s active transport plan, the Sunshine Coast’s designation as Queensland’s first international dark sky reserve, and continued progress on the Mooloolaba Foreshore project as highlights of the quarter.
Councillor Broderick said the year had been dominated by close scrutiny of the budget, including a new online service catalogue that lets residents see where their rates are being spent. “Where is all your money going for every hundred dollars that’s spent from your rates,” she said. “The service catalogue will continue to grow, which is really exciting.”
Councillor Hungerford ran through some of the numbers behind the report, including 261 community grant applications funded, more than 2,600 businesses given advice through council, and close to 70,000 people assisted through customer contact centres over the year. “I don’t think a lot of people realise how large council’s operations are,” he said.
Councillor Law raised concerns that a review of council’s regional collection store for museum and heritage items, paused since the third quarter, hadn’t progressed further, and that work on partnerships with the Kabi Kabi and Jinibara corporations was running behind schedule. She also pressed staff on the Sunshine Coast’s commitment to deliver an indoor sports stadium as part of Brisbane 2032, noting the venues plan for the Games is still being finalised. Mayor Natoli closed the item by pointing to her recent trip to Canberra to advocate for active transport funding, arguing the Sunshine Coast’s growing trails and cycling network would ease pressure on roads as the region grows. The report was endorsed unanimously.
Hotel tower approved a storey taller than planned
Council approved a change to an existing development approval at 15 and 19 Ocean Street, Maroochydore, allowing a 13-storey hotel and apartment building to grow to 14 storeys, lifting its overall height from 46.5 metres to 55.25 metres. The extra height adds six residential units, bringing the total to 30, while the 180-room hotel component stays unchanged.
Local councillor Bunnag moved the item, arguing the site was one of the few places on the coast where taller buildings made sense. “If there was anywhere that you would build a high-rise development on the Sunshine Coast, Ocean Street would probably be the place,” he said, noting nearby towers already stand at 49 and 51 metres. He said the additional height was mostly needed to give the hotel proper floor-to-ceiling clearances rather than to add bulk, and welcomed a condition requiring the developer to install and maintain CCTV cameras along the street frontage at no cost to council.
Councillor Dickson backed the approval, framing it as consistent with council’s earlier support for a similar hotel incentive scheme at Mooloolaba. Councillor Law supported it too, pointing to the mix of short-term hotel rooms and permanent apartments as a partial answer to housing pressure and to the region’s push to reduce short-term letting in residential suburbs. Councillor Hungerford was the sole vote against and the application was approved.
Cash position tracking ahead of budget
Council also received its July financial performance report, the first of the new financial year. Coordinator of financial services Trish Dunbar told councillors the operating result was running about $2.4 million ahead of the year-to-date budget, with expenses lower than forecast and grant reimbursements from the Queensland Reconstruction Authority helping revenue. Capital works had progressed 5.6 per cent, with debt sitting at $465 million and proposed new borrowings for the year at $23.2 million, well below the previous year’s forecast.
Councillor Hungerford welcomed the lower borrowing figure, pointing out that last year’s actual drawdown of $50 million had come in $16.8 million under the original budget. “That was very prudent,” he said, adding that council’s earlier borrowing for projects like the undersea cable and the airport had largely paid for themselves. He cautioned that rising interest rates meant new debt would cost more than the older, cheaper loans it replaces, and said discipline now would help contain future rate rises. The report was received unanimously.
Maleny cafe lease renewed, two petitions tabled
Council agreed to renew a lease with the operator of the Mountain View Cafe at Mary Cairncross Reserve, Maleny, without putting the site out to public tender, on the basis that the current tenant has run the business well since taking it over in 2024. The move was carried unanimously.
Two petitions were also tabled. Councillor Natoli presented one signed by 150 visitors to Cotton Tree Tourist Park, asking that fee increases be capped at CPI until park facilities improve, after operators flagged a further 20 per cent rise for 2027. It was referred to the chief executive for a response. Councillor Law tabled a second petition, signed by 330 residents, asking council to reject planning applications for land at Walli Mountain Road, Kenilworth, which the petition argues have been split across six separate applications to avoid triggering full public notification. That petition was referred to the chief executive, with a report to come back to council given Law’s concerns about the site’s road safety and rural character.
In a closed session, councillors also delegated authority to the chief executive to finalise a strategic land acquisition at Palmview linked to council’s environment levy, and to attempt to settle a planning appeal in Division 5.
Council’s next ordinary meeting was held on 17 September.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for general informational purposes only. While we strive for accuracy and timeliness, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability, or availability with respect to the article or the information contained within for any purpose.