NO DEAL: 24-hour beachside service station rejected

PLANNED 24-hour servo for beachside Coast village shot down as council says no to developer.

CONFIDENCE of a service station proposed for a beachside village being given a smooth passage to construction has been shot down with the Sunshine Coast Council rejecting plans.

Investment Lab Pty Ltd had submitted plans to demolish part of the Coolum Markets shopping complex at 150-156 Yandina-Coolum Rd, near the Coolum State School.

Project Urban had submitted the documents on behalf of the developers, who had secured 7-Eleven as tenants with fuel to be supplied by Mobil.

One of the region's last video shops was to be one of the shops demolished as part of the code-assessable development.

SITE: The site of the proposed service station in Coolum. Picture: Google

In March the developers and planners were confident the proposal would be given the green light, and tipped works to start late this year.

There was no requirement to upgrade the surrounding streets to accommodate the development, under the existing town plan.

The proposal was for a six-bowser service station with console and a 200sq m shop.

But earlier this week the Sunshine Coast Council rejected the application, advising the proposal did not comply with the Coolum local plan code, service station code and transport and parking code among others.

Concerns acknowledged in the planning report included impacts on car parking for the existing shopping centre, access to the site from Yandina-Coolum Rd, and the site's flood resilience, as well as impacts on adjoining land uses, as the service station was proposed to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Development Watch president Lyn Saxton wrote to the council outlining the group's concerns about the proposal, notably, how close it was to a pedestrian crossing heavily used by school students, and the regular traffic jams created at the roundabout during school hours.

SITE: The site of the proposed service station which has been rejected. Picture: Google

The pedestrian crossing was located about 20m from the eastern boundary of the site.

"At school commencement and leaving times, there are children everywhere walking and/or riding in every direction - a lot will pass across the ingress and the egress of this proposed service station... on their way home and to school," Ms Saxton wrote.

"If you had said to me 'where would be the worst place in Coolum for a service station?' I would say 'right where this one is proposed'."

The site was bought by Development Lab for $3 million in December 2014.

The Daily understands the developers and their consultants are now weighing up their options with regards to whether or not they will appeal the refusal.

Originally published as NO DEAL: 24-hour beachside service station rejected