COURT CHALLENGE AFTER MAIN BEACH TOWER KNOCKBACK
PLANS for a 50-storey beachfront tower at Main Beach have been rejected by the Gold Coast City Council, setting up a court challenge.
The 143-unit building on the corner of Main Beach Pde and Woodroffe Ave would have topped out at 160m and become the tallest building in the suburb.
Developer Hapsberg proposed the project on a site currently occupied by two ageing fibro buildings.
It was knocked back by the council’s manager of City Development under delegated authority.
Documents show the tower was refused for nine reasons, most relating to the high density of the development and claims the design was out of character for the area.
“Main Beach has a distinct lower scale and intensity for properties located to the east of Main Beach Parade compared to properties located between Main Beach Parade and Tedder Avenue,” the documents read.
“The City Plan maintains this intent by nature of zoning sites east of Main Beach Parade within the Medium Density zone while properties to the west are located within the High Density Residential zone.”
Hapsberg has already lodged an appeal against the council decision in the Planning and Environment Court.
Court documents state the refusal is “erroneous, unreasonable and unlawful”.
Hapsberg solicitor Rayne Nelms, of Thomson Geer Lawyers, confirmed the appeal but declined to comment further.
A council spokesperson could not respond by deadline.
Main Beach Progress Association spokeswoman Georgie Brown said it was a relief to see the council was following City Plan guidelines.
“It is good to see we are getting some sense about what is being built on the beach,” she said.
Ms Brown said residents in the area were not opposed to development but did not want to see a wall of highrise buildings along the beach.
Earlier this year the council approved a similar-sized development less than a kilometre away on the opposite side of Main Beach Pde.
That tower, to be called Midwater, will be developed by York Holdings and feature an automatic car stacker, 47 storeys and 160 units.