A $450-million project from hotel giant Marriott International has been greenlit by a southern Queensland council.
The Sheraton luxury resort on the Hervey Bay Esplanade was conditionally approved at a meeting of Fraser Coast Regional Council on July 24 on the proviso that the original 21-storey plans be knocked down to 18 storeys.
Developer Sunny Beach Land’s project had initially been put on the backburner after the Queensland local government elections this year.
The hotel will sit on an amalgamated six-lot site at 408-412 The Esplanade and Freshwater Street, Torquay.
The Hervey Bay Esplanade Resort will deliver a five-star hotel and residential development with 223 hotel rooms and more than 400 apartments, although given the height conditions this may be subject to change.
The resort will offer a mix of residential, retail and entertainment uses across two towers linked by a large podium, and include two lap pools, a 400-seat function and conference space, a rooftop bar and food and drink options.
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But there are other conditions placed upon the hotel development by the council, namely that the development permit will lapse if the project is not completed within 10 years, and that it must achieve a five-star or higher hotel rating.
Best-practice lighting design must be integrated into plans to manage impacts on sea turtles and shorebirds, and minimise light pollution.
The planning report had initially noted that the planning scheme does not support the bulk, scale and height of the resort, but the Fraser Coast Council ultimately decided that the “balance is struck in favour of approval”.
A council report noted that it “will be a positive economic and community outcome that will achieve many of the aspirations of the Fraser Coast planning scheme”.
It has been tipped as “the largest and most luxurious new hotel between Brisbane and Cairns” and only the fifth Sheraton location in Australia, joining resorts on the Gold Coast, Port Douglas, Sydney and Melbourne.
The hotel sector has experienced considerable shifts since Covid, with operators and developers adjusting offerings and positionings to keep up with renewed demand.
In Queensland, Kokoda Property’s Teneriffe development will welcome an IHG Hotels and Resorts project, set to open in 2028, whilst up in Cairns a changing of the guard has occurred with hospitality group TPH Hotels acquiring interest in the Pacific Hotel.
