GH Properties has won approval for its boutique luxury hotel scheme at Noosa Springs Golf and Spa Resort after nearly four years of consultation and design refinements.
The development application, first filed with Noosa Shire Council in late 2021, underwent significant modifications in response to community and council feedback.
The approved design features four lowrise buildings terraced into the hillside and carefully positioned to remain below the tree line.
GH Properties managing director Ellen Guan said the “new component of Noosa Springs … offers luxurious, high-quality accommodation with a strong focus on wellness and rejuvenation”.
The revised plan cut guest rooms from 106 to 69, removed a building to reduce encroachment into the recreation and open-space zone, downsized swimming pools to emphasise the natural landscape, upgraded tennis facilities and expanded landscaped areas.
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The proposed development faced strong opposition from residents and utility Unitywater. Councillors had voted against the development despite staff recommendations for approval.
In July, the council was to vote on formally refusing plans for a four-storey $50-million, 106-room hotel, but GH Properties requested a halt to the process at the 11th hour.
Concerns raised and addressed during the approval process included traffic congestion, parking limitations, noise pollution, building height, odour issues from the nearby sewage treatment plant, and impacts on koala habitat.
Project manager Phil Starkey, whose family originally developed Noosa Springs, said the hotel was always an important element of the Noosa Springs masterplan “that will strengthen Noosa Springs as the premium place to live and visit”.
The hotel, to be managed by an international operator, was expected to create more than 360 jobs during and after construction as well as address the region’s growing demand for premium short-stay accommodation, the developers said.
The company said the hotel would complement rather than compete with existing resort facilities, “creating synergies and enhancing experiences for hotel guests, residents and members”.
