Five-level hotel, pods, planned in Stirling’s $40m Mount Lofty Golf Estate project

A five-level hotel and 20 accommodation pods are planned in a $40m golf estate expected to change the tourism landscape in the Adelaide Hills.

A $40m golf course accommodation development planned for Stirling will help the Hills draw more tourists to stay in the area for longer, business leaders say.

If approved, Mount Lofty Golf Estate would feature a hotel with more than 100 suites at the Stirling Golf Club, spread over up to five levels on the sloping site.

There would also be 20 private pod-style retreats and a new clubhouse.

A State Planning Commission document shows the 18-hole golf course would be retained and improved, and a “local heritage place”, which it does not identify, turned into a multipurpose cafe, retail and function area.

There would be parking space for 200 cars, and according to a website spruiking the project, a “state-of-the-art virtual reality putting range” allowing players to simulate tee-off “at the international course of their choice”.

Mount Lofty Golf Estate is expected to cost $40m to develop, including a series of accommodation pods.

It says the hotel will occupy the same footprint as the existing clubhouse, its elevated spot offering “magnificent views” over the golf course and towards Mount George.

The “architectural pods” would be placed within native vegetation and “designed to touch the ground lightly”.

The State Planning Commission says the proposal could significantly boost the economy through local, regional, interstate and international tourism.

The proponent is listed as Mount Lofty Golf Estate Pty Ltd, but when contacted via Stirling Golf Club, nobody was available for comment this week.

The development is planned for Stirling Golf Course. Picture: Williams Real Estate.

The organisation has lodged a development application with the commission, which has publicly released guidelines for a development report to be completed before the project is assessed.

James Sexton, chairman of Business Mount Barker and Regional Development Australia’s Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island branch, said there was a “huge demand” for more accommodation in the Hills.

“In that area I think it would be extremely successful,” he said, adding the region also needed improved sports facilities.

Sequoia Lodge at Mount Lofty House. Picture: Joseph Cebo/Tourism SA

“Hahndorf rooms are at something like 90 per cent occupancy and that’s the only place we have any hotels, and Mount Lofty House is always extremely busy.”

His comments were backed by Adelaide Hills Tourism board chairman Martin Radcliffe, who said extra accommodation would help businesses entice visitors to spend more time exploring the region.

“Sporting infrastructure is really important and if you can combine sporting infrastructure with tourist infrastructure you’re bringing extra impetus for people to come to the Hills, which is great,” he said.

“I’d have every confidence in the planning process that the developer has done their homework and the local people … know their ambitions for the region, and I’m sure that the right balance can be found.”

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