Maroochydore-based company Hanseath is behind the Sunshine Coast First Nations Tourism Precinct development, the plans for which were first revealed in 2018-19 and have undergone a rigorous planning process it described as “one of the region’s most thoroughly tested tourism approvals”.
“A destination pairing paddock-to-plate food experiences and nature-based tourism with accommodation, wellness and function facilities is exactly what the region is missing, and the strong interest we are seeing from local operators confirms it,” Director Nelson Riddle said.
Hanseath is working with The First Traders Limited to deliver the main tourism component of the project. The First Traders is a First Nations-led not-for-profit company limited by guarantee that works to increase Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander participation in business and the economy through shared cultural and business spaces.
The Sunshine Coast First Nations Tourism Precinct is intended to provide space for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture, art and enterprise, with a focus on tourism, food, health and wellbeing and cultural experiences.
Central to the development is a cultural partnership developed in consultation with the Kabi Kabi people, the traditional custodians of the land, that has provided an authentic First Nations-led model in a bid to shift the paradigm in tourism development, aligning cultural preservation with commercial viability to generate long-term opportunities.
“This precinct is an opportunity to demonstrate what strong cultural entrepreneurship can look like, where culture, Country, tourism and business come together in a way that is authentic, respectful and commercially sustainable,” Aunty Dale Chapman, a member of the Queensland Indigenous Chamber of Commerce, said. “It is about creating opportunities for First Nations people to lead, build businesses, develop new skills and share culture on their own terms.”
Forecast to funnel $50 million annually into the local economy and draw 520,000 visitors a year, the project will be developed in four stages.
The precinct will deliver approximately 14,931 square metres of gross lettable area across four stages with a focus on food tourism, wellbeing, functions and short-stay accommodation.
The precinct will feature a Regional Produce, Artisans & Activities Hub, a two-storey building that includes a bushfood restaurant, outdoor dining, bushfood product demonstrations and micro-manufacturing, including cooking workshops using native ingredients and Indigenous-led food education. It will also contain manufacturing and storage areas and a brewery/distillery.
The Art Studio and Health and Wellbeing Building plans include areas for digital storytelling and film, Indigenous cultural performances, an arts centre, Indigenous artefacts and artworks, bush medicine and cultural healing consultations, as well as traditional wellness activities including massage, meditation and immersive retreats.
Beyond the built precinct, the site offers 45 hectares of quality bushland earmarked for walking trails, mountain biking and education-based nature experiences and a lake approved for nature-based tourism, anchoring its eco-tourism credentials.
Sustainability is embedded into the design, with the precinct’s buildings planned for mass timber construction, targeting a low-carbon build that matches its nature-based positioning, while the forested precinct offers carbon credit potential alongside its recreation and eco tourism uses.
Together, the green light for the First Nations-led project along with Aussie World’s approval in March are touted to cement Palmview as the Sunshine Coast’s premier tourism hub.