The State Government is asking the Sunshine Coast Community to consider its long term (30+ years) planning options. In particular we are being asked to consider which of two identified growth areas (areas that may be suitable for future urban development) we want to retain in the South East Queensland Regional Plan (click here to learn more about the SEQ Regional Plan). The two areas we are being asked to consider are Halls Creek and Beerwah Caloundra South Corridor (or Beerwah East).
The latest news about Halls Creek
An overview of the draft SEQ Regional Plan Halls Creek & the SEQ Regional Plan
Free seminar calls community to action on planning laws Halls Creek Posters
Halls Creek Cruise
Identified Growth Areas
The Halls Creek area is located to the south of Pelican Waters immediately adjacent to the Pumicestone Passage. This land was previously part of the pine forest plantations (last cleared in the early 2000s) and the majority of the area (1400 hectares) is currently owned by Stockland. Beerwah East is located on the western side of the Bruce Highway between Roys Road, Steve Irwin Way and the Bruce Highway. The majority of this area is currently being used for pine forestry under a 99 year lease between the State Government and HQ Plantations. The choice between these alternatives goes to the very heart of who we are as a region and will have major ramifications for our ability to preserve the character, amenity and lifestyle that make this region such a wonderful place to live. Halls Creek represents further urban sprawl on the coastal strip putting more pressure on one of the regions main natural assets in the Pumicestone Passage, a waterway already under severe stress (click here to learn more about threats to the Pumicestone Passage). It provides little opportunity to integrate with existing and future transport infrastructure or continue to build the region as a ‘community of communities’ (click here to learn more about Infrastructure issues). Development of Halls Creek would also extent the reach of urbanised areas further south towards the Moreton Bay area reducing even further the inter urban break between Moreton Bay and the Sunshine Coast (click here to learn more about the inter urban break).
Beerwah East presents the more difficult alternative because of its current land use. However it is ideally located to take advantage of existing road and rail infrastructure and is located adjacent to the CAMCOS rail corridor. It provides significant opportunities to support development of existing railway communities and to continue to develop the regions narrative of a ‘community of communities’. Not surprisingly the Beerwah East area is Sunshine Coast Councils preferred option for future development. Council has investigated the Halls Creek area for almost 15 years and has consistently rejected it for urban development (click here to learn more about the History of Halls Creek). However successive State governments have ignored Council position and insisted that the Halls Creek area continue to be considered for future urban development. Through the current community consultation process the Newman Government is once again seeking the communities views on the Halls Creek area. It is vitally important for our future as a region that we make it very clear that we support the Sunshine Coast Council on this issue.
What you can do
Write to your local member (click here for addresses) in support of Councils position to remove the Halls Creek area from the new SEQ Regional Plan. You can write an effective letter by using the following three paragraphs (following the links on this page for more information about issue to cover in §2):
§1 – Introduce yourself and your relation to the coast (e.g. age, occuptation, how long you have lived on the coast, family etc)
§2 – Explain what you value about the coast and why you are concerned about Halls Creek (e.g. lifestyle, character, beauty, environment, infrastructure, inter urban break etc)
§3 – Call upon the State to remove the Halls Creek IGA from the SEQ Regional Plan Click here to view a sample letter.