AGENDA - Sunshine Coast Council

Strategy and Planning Committee Agenda 16 February 2011
iv avoid significant impacts to native habitat including fragmentation, attrition,
or removal of vegetation or significant habitat features;
5.8.2 v) For the Rural Settlement Zone—detached housing on large lots—
i is the dominant building form, to the general exclusion of other uses;
ii incorporates designs that respond to, and are integrated with site
characteristics including steep slopes and native vegetation;
iii offers a relaxed rural lifestyle for residents;
iv contributes to the rural or semi-rural character and amenity of the area;
v may be located in close proximity to working farms or other rural industries;
vi offer convenient access to Tewantin via sealed roads;
vii include associated home-based businesses on large lots such that
neighbours are not impacted upon; and
viii are dominated by native vegetation and landscaping;
The application raises some significant concerns in relation to Overall Outcome 5.8.2 a),
primarily due to the relatively small size of the site (2.01ha) and the limited buffers available
to surrounding premises. The tower will exceed the height of existing vegetation, between it
and nearby lots, by approximately 15 metres and will be highly visible from Lot 30 SP136462,
Lot 22 SP213298 and Lot 11 SP148 to the west and southeast of the site (see lot layout plan
included in Attachment 2). Further afield, and in all other directions, it is acknowledged that
only filtered views or the top of the tower will be available due to vegetation in the area. The
visual or amenity impacts on premises further afield are not considered significant.
Although conditions could be applied to relocate the tower to provide increased buffers to the
nearby allotments, the limited height and density of existing vegetation within these buffer
areas is such that the impacts would not be significantly reduced.
Overall Outcome 5.8.2 v) generally excludes most uses, other than detached housing, within
the zone. As such it is reasonable for residents within the zone to expect new development
to create limited impacts on the rural residential and visual amenity they enjoy. It is also
noted that the tower use is inconsistent within the entire Cooroibah Locality. The application
material generally submits the following grounds to support the proposal:
“… to improve mobile phone coverage and broadband access in the Cooroibah
locality a telecommunications facility is required in the area. Unfortunately within this
locality there were no compatible zones to locate the proposed use which would still
achieve adequate mobile phone coverage for the area. This site represented the
most appropriate location to minimise any adverse effects while providing coverage to
the surrounding area.”
It is recognised that if new telecommunications facilities are to be sited within the locality, a
conflict with the planning scheme will be unavoidable. However, in this case, the issues of
inappropriate site selection and visual and residential amenity impacts on nearby premises
are too significant to support the development.
Additional Applicable Codes
Infrastructure Uses Code
Health & Safety
The applicant has provided a summary of the maximum cumulative radiofrequency and
electromagnetic energy levels at ground level emitted from the proposed telecommunications
tower, assuming full power usage.
Page 142