STRAIGHT TALK: A Councillor’s perspective on Douglas Shire issues and matters

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The Nautilus Aviation DA sparked a lot of discussion earlier in the year. Picture: Submitted

Development application clarifications and reflections

Nautilus aviation

A little while ago I voted in favour of the Nautilus Aviation DA going ahead (in Port Douglas).

During (Council) meetings, some decisions may appear to be decided quickly but the reality is that much deliberation and thought - sometimes hours of time - has already been dedicated to what is the best way to vote.

The reasons that I had no concerns when the Nautilus recommendation finally came before Council are for the following.

*Two acoustic assessments provided by the applicant combined with Council officers undertaking independent noise testing determined the noise impact was not great enough to create significant nuisance.

*The number of flights permitted are a maximum of 11 return flights/day and only between 8am and 6pm.

North Break wave park

As with the Nautilus aviation decision, many hours of deliberation and thought went into the vote before this specific Council meeting.

I voted to approve a 164-room hotel and resort featuring a wave pool, freshwater swimming lagoon, aqua park, 90 self-contained villas and surf cabins on the Captain Cook Highway, south of the Mowbray River.

I believed that the many conditions imposed would have ensured a staged development with a range of sustainability initiatives such as solar panels, rainwater harvesting and landscaping. North Break was required to meet obligations to offset their demands on Council’s water supply and sewer network, as well as contributing towards planned trunk infrastructure to service the Shire.

Additionally, the developer had to counter any environmental and visual changes that the development would be affecting.

On balance, the proposed development was considered an acceptable development outcome when assessed against the planning scheme and any initial concerns I had about the proposal were dispersed over time through a range of reports and information provided.

I will support sustainable, sensible development that adheres to the current planning scheme and that ultimately does not disturb the lifestyle that residents of Douglas have chosen and deserve.

NorthBreak, I believed, to be that type of development, a long-term benefit that complements what Douglas has to offer to both locals and tourists alike.

There was a timely objection properly submitted for this DA, after quite some time in the legal system the developer eventually chose not to continue to defend the appeal against surf park.

This is important to note as it does not mean the appellant had ‘won’ – rather, NorthBreak had decided to no longer defend the DA.

Over the years, developers have come with big projects amounting to billions of dollars, but very few come to fruition.

Some developments in hindsight may appear to have been a figment of exaggeration and were never likely to get out of the ground, Aquis, Nova City, and the waterpark in Smithfield are some examples.

The last decade, Douglas Councillors have refused very few Development Applications. What has been accepted to name a few has included: Marina in 2016, Murphy Street (Gurner) 2022, Nautilus Aviation Helicopter site 2023, Northbreak Wavepark 2021, Mudlo St. Apartments 2016, Kubbirri 2019, and numerous residential subdivisions in Wonga, Cooya, Mossman and Craiglie.

In the end it is in the hands for the applicant to go ahead with the approvals and lack of development does not equal lack of approvals, sometimes the developer or applicant is just waiting for the right time to start.

Quick bites

* Welcome to our 16 new citizens. The Shire’s new citizens are from Belgium, Romania, the Russian Federation, Thailand, the Philippines, the United States of America, Taiwan, Italy and the United Kingdom.

* Australia Day award nominations opened on Monday. There are eight categories - citizen of the year, senior and young citizen of the year, volunteer of the year, arts and cultural award, environmental achievement award and the senior and junior sports award.

* Were you one of the 1250 riders who recently took part in the Grand Fondo? Hope you enjoyed the spectacular weekend.

* Local laws officers have increased illegal camping patrols. This is due to the amount of toilet paper and excrement left in the illegal camping areas.

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*Abigail Noli is a current Douglas Shire Councillor.


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