Whitsunday Regional Council hands down decision on Cannonvale short term accommodation, Airbnb

Debates over short term accommodation in Whitsunday’s residential areas have raised the possibility of a dedicated ‘party zone’ where holiday-makers can be as loud as they like. VOTE IN OUR POLL

“Overwhelming” community backlash has convinced Whitsunday Regional Council to reject a controversial holiday rental proposal, despite the likelihood of a legal challenge.

Plans to convert a Woodwark Crescent residential property into short term accommodation for up to eight people failed to win the council’s support after an extended deliberation period, with five out of seven councillors this week voting to go against the recommendations of their planning department and refuse the application.

Division 1 Cr Jan Clifford led the charge against the proposal, reiterating concerns of neighbouring residents including issues with noise, parking, privacy and “general behaviour”.

Neighbours objecting to the proposal reported witnessing ‘incessant’ parties and guests ‘urinating off balconies’ at the house. Picture: Realestate.com.au

Development Services Director Neil McGaffin argued council staff had “upgraded” conditions attached to the application to address such concerns and maintained the position he has held since the application first came before council in August that it complies with the planning scheme and other relevant standards.

Mayor Andrew Willcox and Division 3 Cr John Collins sided with Mr McGaffin’s explanation, and warned the applicants could lodge a court appeal against the refusal, for which ratepayers would foot the council’s bill.

The vote to refuse succeeded however with support from Deputy Mayor Mike Brunker who appeared to have changed his stance in response to further discussions with “all sides” of the debate, concluding there was room for short term accommodation in the Airlie Beach area, but the Woodwark Crescent proposal was “just not viable when you look at that street”.

The consensus around the table at the Collinsville meeting was that the council had “a lot of work to do” to improve policies around short term accommodation to achieve a balance between neighbourhood amenity, the rights of property owners to recoup some of their costs through rentals, and the rights of visitors who have paid good money to enjoy themselves.

Division 2 Cr Al Grundy raised the possibility of creating a dedicated ‘Party Zone’ where holiday-makers could be as loud as they liked without affecting residents’ peaceful enjoyment of their properties.

Cr Clifford suggested the development of a local law including a demerit point system for properties that “get out of hand”.

Division 5 Cr Gary Simpson said with an increasing number of short term accommodation proposals coming in, the council “really needs to address this now”.

“We have to change our policy. I can’t understand how this [proposal] ticks all the boxes when it’s zoned low-density,” Cr Simpson said.

The majority of Whitsunday councillors agreed a proposal to rent out a Cannonvale property for short stays to groups of up to eight people was inappropriate for the area. Picture: Realestate.com.au

Mr McGaffin later told the meeting short term accommodation contributed about $70 million a year to the local economy and was not a major factor contributing to the housing shortage in the Whitsundays, as Cr Gundy has previously claimed.

“It’s not STAs placing pressure on rentals, it’s people coming back from interstate or purchasing rental houses and becoming owner-occupiers,” Mr McGaffin said.

Macrossan & Amiet, the legal firm representing proponents Graham and Fiona Turner, was contacted for comment.