Planner laughs off green reasons

Developer Mark Stockwell.

The former Noosa Council town planner who helped mastermind the shire business centre says developer Mark Stockwell's justification for the Noosa Civic stage three expansion made him turn green - with nausea.

Paul Summers was indignant when he read Mr Stockwell's argument that the expanded centre would save about 50,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases a year by keeping traffic away from the Maroochydore CBD.

Mr Summers is now a private town-planning consultant advising a group of shopping centre opponents involved in the Stockwell legal challenge to the development refusal.

“What got to me is that he has given himself the role of council, telling the people of the former Noosa Shire what will be good for them,” Mr Summers said.

The town planner, who is credited with much of the Noosa population cap strategy adopted by the Noosa Council, was not buying any of the green claims.

Mr Summer's main argument against the proposal was that the massive retail expansion being sought by the developer was outside the Noosa Plan.

“Mark Stockwell says he just wants a department store for Noosa,” Mr Summer said.

“If that the case, he should withdraw his development application and submit plans for just a department store, which I'm fairly certain council would approve.”

Mr Summers said the current Noosa Civic set-up should be able to accommodate a Myer store without all the additional “thousands of square metres” Mr Stockwell was seeking in retail space.

The Sunshine Coast council is defending its decision to refuse the stage-three application.