Sunshine Coast hinterland farmstay and adventure park plans revealed

Plans have been revealed for a brand new Sunshine Coast tourist park which combines farmstay and resort experiences and includes a guests-only adventure park.

Farmstay-styled accommodation and attractions partly inspired by Byron Bay’s The Farm with a guests-only adventure park is being planned for the Sunshine Coast.

The $10m project proposed for a Woombye rural block would feature 132 sites including cabins, glamping tents and camping and caravan sites to accommodate up to 284 people.

It would also include a working animal farm, a cafe, vineyard, sports oval, zip line, mountain bike tracks, bush walks and a lake for stand up paddle boarding and kayaking.

Highgate Developments managing director Andrew Pitcher said the estimated $10m project named Sixty6 Acres was years in the making.

Development applications were lodged for Sunshine Coast Council approval in March, with the project to undergo community consultation.

The company has already gained approval for eight cabins on the 66 acre Diddillibah Rd site, backing onto Paynters Creek, which are under construction as part of the first stage of the project.

Mr Pitcher said if approved the remaining development would be delivered in stages over several years.

Inspiration was drawn from their own family holidays when Mr Pitcher and wife Jo began to plan their long-term vision for the site.

“We go to a lot of farm stays but we haven’t really found a farmstay with things to do as well,” Mr Pitcher said.

“What we had in mind was something with a leisure centre, sports, some mountain biking.

“We wanted a combination of good quality accommodation, something to do for the kids, and some adventure activities like mountain biking that the adults can do too.”

He said unlike other farmstays Sixty6 Acres would not be open to day trippers.

Mr Pitcher said having a guest only experience would reduce the impact on traffic.

Banana and pineapple plantations are also included on site as a nod to the Pitcher family’s farming background with Andrew’s parents pineapple farmers in Woombye and Nambour from the late 1950s to the 1970s.

He said after owning the property for more than 10 years they were ready to build something that would support the growing need for more accommodation options throughout the region.

“With Covid and the move towards domestic tourism there’s a need for quality short term accommodation on the Sunshine Coast,” he said.

“ There’s a gap between what’s offered at caravan parks and beachfront accommodation.”

A tourist park needs assessment report completed as part of Highgate Developments’ application to council said it would provide an alternative to a “typical costal holiday” and attract visitors to the hinterland.

The project will be subject to community consultation because it was proposed to be built on rural-zoned land.

The report said the back end of the block was prone to flooding, however it was proposed that land would not be built on and instead be used for campsites.

Construction would take 18 months and create 65 full time jobs and once operational the facility would have 25 staff, according to the development application.

The environmental assessment report said the project’s overall impact was minimal but involved the removal of 20 subcanopy trees.

It also noted the overall site would benefit from “significant landscaping, revegetation and rehabilitation”.