Tourism Planning Taskforce Report - Western Australian Planning ...

Chapter 2State tourist accommodation industryThese issues are explored in further detailunder term of reference 4. (See Chapter 7).To retain a range of accommodation, thetaskforce acknowledged the need for theintroduction of more specific zonings, such as“caravan and camping grounds”, “chalet andcabin” and “tourist resort” into localgovernment schemes. The taskforce alsonoted the potential of Crown Land sitessuitable for tourism development to beidentified, made available and developed tomeet the demand for affordableaccommodation, and the need to retainexisting Crown sites used for low-key tourismdevelopment. An increased role for CrownLand is one of the potential mechanismsidentified if the loss of coastal caravan parksand low-cost accommodation developments isto be addressed.varying positions on the disposal of Crownsites designated for tourist accommodation,primarily caravan parks and camping grounds,since the 1980s. More recently, the need toprotect the community’s interest throughretaining public ownership, or limiting theoptions for alternative use of such sites whenfreehold title is issued, has been given ahigher priority. While it is recognised thatdifferent approaches still are applicable, giventhe range of Crown sites and their originalrelease/lease conditions, the taskforce hasnoted the need for applications for release ofCrown sites to be assessed under theprinciples of protecting the public interest, byensuring their use in perpetuity as affordabletourist accommodation.The Government, through the Department forPlanning and Infrastructure (DPI), has had18 Tourism Planning Taskforce Report