Tourism Planning Taskforce Report - Western Australian Planning ...

Chapter 8Taskforce recommendationsstrategy and allocate sufficient resources forthis to be undertaken expeditiously.Criteria for the identification ofstrategic tourism sites andlocationsThe taskforce has identified that strategictourism sites should be a focus for tourismdevelopment with the zoning of such siteslimited to tourism-only purposes. Onnon-strategic tourism sites that are locatedappropriately to accommodate residentialdevelopment and where determinedappropriate in the planning context, flexibilitycan be provided for residential-no occupancyrestriction components in developments up toa maximum of 25 per cent. (SeeRecommendation 10). This distinction makesit critical for the designation of tourist zonedland as strategic or non-strategic to beundertaken against specified criteria thatprovide for the process to be documented andsubject to review.Strategic tourism sites generally will exhibit anumber of characteristics that set them apartfrom other tourism sites in terms of the highpotential they exhibit for tourism developmentthat will benefit the wider tourism industry.Criteria for the identification of such sites andfor application in the process of developinglocal/regional tourism planning strategies areidentified below. It is the sites thatdemonstrate one or more of these criteria thatare, or will become, iconic in the tourismindustry and which provide one of theplatforms on which to increase the widerindustry.The taskforce has not established minimum ormaximum recommended sizes in respect tostrategic tourism sites or locations as this canvary considerably within the context of thelocation, site constraints, servicingrequirements and other factors. A strategictourism site designation essentially will reflectthat planning has identified that the site isrequired in entirety for tourism purposes as itshighest use. A strategic tourism locationdesignation indicates that additional planningis required to establish the appropriate landuse pattern in achieving the best planningoutcome for the area, which may include fulltourism development or a mix of uses.The identification of an area of land, or aspecific land parcel, as strategic will not meaninherently that the area is available orappropriate for immediate development orre-development. Such a designation may bean outcome of the role of the site in the overalltourism market, as opposed to any particularphysical or locational characteristic. Anexample of this is a development providing atype of accommodation that increases thevariety available in an area, with the intentionthat this function be retained.As the local tourism planning strategyapproach develops, there also will be theidentification of strategic sites and strategiclocations where the economic conditionsappropriate for development will not bereached for a number of years. It isrecognised that an appropriate planning andland tax framework is required to assist theretention of the tourism potential of such sites,and to facilitate their development when therequired level of demand exists. Following thedesignation of strategic tourism sites, thesealso should become the focus for tourisminfrastructure development, marketing and inthe provision of a supportive developmentframework at State and local governmentlevels.The designation of strategic tourism sitesshould include existing tourist accommodationdevelopments where appropriate. This willoccur where it is considered necessary torecognise the importance of the site ordevelopment in retaining accessibility to arange of tourist accommodation options inprime tourism areas across the State.Recommendation 4:That for the purpose of guiding theidentification of strategic tourism sites andstrategic tourism locations and in thepreparation of a local planning strategy thefollowing criteria be included in therecommended SPP, Land Use Planning forTourism.These criteria are to guide the assessment ofthe strategic value of tourism sites or locationsand compliance with one or more of thecriteria will not necessarily determine that asite is strategic or otherwise. This68 Tourism Planning Taskforce Report