Council Endorses Flood-Resilience Guide, Approves $43.5 Million Capital Works Boost
Sunshine Coast Council has unanimously endorsed a new flooding and coastal resilience design guide for homeowners and builders, and adopted a first budget review for 2026-27 that lifts its capital works program by $43.5 million and adds roughly $20 million in planned borrowing. The decisions came at council’s ordinary meeting on 17 September, chaired by Mayor Rosanna Natoli.
Flood-resilience guide targets homes and renovations
The design guide, developed with James Davidson Architects, is aimed at owners and designers of new houses, renovations, additions and dual occupancies. It isn’t mandatory, but principal engineer Nardia Gutierrez told councillors it gives homeowners “the information and direction they need to improve their resilience.” Built around two decision flowcharts, one for new builds and one for renovations, it’s understood to be the first guide of its kind in Australia to use flowcharts this way, though other councils and the Queensland Government already publish general flood-resilience material of their own.
Councillor David Law described how Nambour Community Kindergarten had removed its temporary flood defenses while preparing to reopen after Tropical Cyclone Alfred, “only to turn up the next day to find, as per their CCTV cameras, there had been a huge flood go through as a result of the rain event.” The kindergarten was hit by three major flood events within 46 days. Council has since worked with the centre on a flood-resilient redesign, and Councillor Law said it hopes to welcome children back in early 2027, with any future recovery expected to take a couple of weeks “at worst, not a couple of years.” “This report is absolute gold,” he said. “It provides certainty and clarity, and it shows the way to build back better.”
Deputy Mayor Suarez, who moved the motion, recalled the 2011 Brisbane floods, when about 600 millimetres of water entered the lower level of his family home. “Different materials, different placement of services, and different design decisions could have saved us time, money, and a great deal of heartache,” he said. Councillor J Natoli argued governments, banks and insurers needed to work together on the issue, saying insurers “should be supporting that with lower premiums” for resilient properties. Councillor Landsberg questioned whether the roughly $5,000 annual budget to promote the guide was enough, while Councillor Law pointed to its $105,000 development cost and linked the discussion to the Australian Local Government Association’s “Make Polluters Pay” campaign. The guide was endorsed unanimously.
Regulated-dog inspections to run into 2027
Council also endorsed its annual inspection program for regulated dogs. Response services coordinator Elise Sunold said council fielded about 640 requests last financial year to investigate dog attacks or menacing behaviour, resulting in 38 regulated-dog notices covering 28 dangerous dogs and 10 menacing dogs. Of the 137 regulated dogs currently due for annual inspection, 87 audits had already been completed, with 84 per cent of owners found compliant. Where owners fall short, council can issue a rectification notice, an on-the-spot fine of more than $2,500, seize the dog, prosecute, or in serious cases issue a destruction notice. The program is expected to cost approximately $67,815, recovered through registration fees.
Budget Review adds borrowing, Dickson and Law opposed
Council adopted Budget Review 1 for 2026-27, lifting the capital works program by $43.5 million to a revised $340 million, and adding about $20 million in planned borrowing. Finance staff said the increase largely reflects $55.6 million in projects carried over from 2025-26, alongside roughly $86 million in project deferrals, which they described as timing changes rather than cancellations.
Councillor Hungerford, who moved the motion, said the borrowing needed to be read alongside the repayment schedule. “We’re borrowing 41 million. We’re proposing to pay back 32,” he said. “That’s only an increase, net increase, of $9 million for the year.” Four-year projections show about $173.6 million in proposed borrowing against $144.6 million in repayments, an approach he called “very sound financial management.” “You can’t be popular and responsible at the same time,” he added.
Councillor Dickson voted against the review, arguing council should “cut the cloth to fit” available resources, and noting that projects in Division 6, including facilities at Palmview and road upgrades at Dixon Road and Sippy Downs Drive, hadn’t received the priority he’d hoped for.
Councillor Johnston pushed back on the idea that deferrals reflected a lack of commitment, pointing to a $72 million motorway overpass that had been pushed back by majority decision, and to state-imposed caps on the infrastructure charges councils can levy on developers. “There are good reasons why we perhaps are not, or appear not to be, completing some of the projects or deferring projects,” he said. “Unfortunately, as Councillor Dickson pointed out, there are projects within his division which have been deferred or cancelled, and that’s happened pretty well to every other division as well.”
Councillor Law voted against the review regardless, arguing that despite the extra borrowing, council was “actually delivering fewer capital projects” once cancellations and deferrals across the ten-year program were factored in. “We’re borrowing to do less,” he said. “Not a popular perspective, but that’s the perspective I have.”
Councillors Broderick, Landsberg, Suarez, Johnston, J Natoli and the Mayor backed the review, which passed 7 votes to 2, with Dickson and Law opposed. Council also received and noted its August financial performance report earlier in the meeting, which showed an operating surplus of about $18.2 million, $4.8 million ahead of the year-to-date budget.
LA28 delegation to include Sunshine Coast businesses
Council unanimously agreed to send Deputy Mayor Suarez to Los Angeles from 21 to 28 February 2027 as part of a Council of Mayors South East Queensland delegation, with travel costs covered by the CoMSEQ operational budget rather than council. Acting chief economic development officer Angela Lyall said 16 Sunshine Coast businesses had put their hands up to join the trade mission, each contributing $6,000 of their own money to take part. “If we don’t go, Sunshine Coast businesses don’t get to go,” Suarez said. “I believe they should have a seat at the table and a voice in these conversations.”
Council also delegated authority to the chief executive officer to attempt to settle a planning appeal in Division 7, a matter resolved 8 votes to 1 in a confidential session, with Councillor Hungerford opposed.
The next ordinary meeting is scheduled for 15 October 2026.
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