Inside plans to revamp Finch Hatton, Eungella bike trail boom

A mountain bike ride in the Pioneer Valley could soon be coupled with a visit to a boutique brewery and a night in a new hotel up the range. Plans to further develop Finch Hatton and Eungella for an impending tourism boom have jumped the first hurdle.

Breweries, bars and hotels are all on the table for Finch Hatton and Eungella after planning scheme changes were approved as a way to capitalise on opportunities the Pioneer Valley Mountain Bike Trail will offer the two towns.

The amendments would create two new precincts in Finch Hatton and one in Eungella, where development assessment requirements would be reduced from impact to code.

The changes are expected to provide peace of mind for would-be investors in the region.

The Pioneer Valley Mountain Bike Trail is getting closer to fruition. Picture: Kevin Farmer

Mackay Regional Council Mayor Greg Williamson said the proposed change came after a considerable period of consultation with the Finch Hatton and Eungella communities – consultation he vowed would continue beyond the amendments.

“It enables us to have some degree of confidence for anybody that wants to develop land within a commercial zone, that didn’t exist previously,” he said.

“It also gives an opportunity for the people of the region to know exactly what their future is going to be.”

Mackay MP Julieanne Gilbert with Mad Mountain Bike Club members Ethan, Cody, Dylan and Connor, announcing $500,000 funding for the Pioneer Valley Mountain Bike Trail in early 2021. Picture: Facebook

Mr Williamson detailed “significant interest” from businesses in the area, and revealed the council had already fielded 17 official Expressions of Interest and run a program with interested parties to “walk through the quagmire of application processes”.

He stressed the council would not have input in what businesses ended up in the two townships.

“We’re suggesting that the township zone can have things like accommodation and boutique breweries and other boutique industries that would lend itself to this particular mountain bike track as well but also the development of the fantastic area we have stretching from the Broken River through Finch Hatton up to Eungella,” Mayor Williamson said.

“It’s one of the prettiest areas on the Queensland coast and what we are doing now is trying to make sure that development that happens up there is not willy nilly, it’s done in consultation with the community and is done in accordance with a proper plan that’s been approved.”

The proposed change now awaits approval from the State Government, and if approved would be advertised for public consultation.