Mayor Julia Leu Douglas Shire Council

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1 Mayor Julia Leu 2018

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3 Where the rainforest meets the reef Douglas Shire is known for its spectacular rainforest covered ranges, beautiful beaches, agriculture, Indigenous culture and a diversity of vibrant communities. 2018

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14 Where is Douglas? 14 Douglas Shire is located in Far North Queensland, approximately 1,800 kilometres north of Brisbane. Douglas Shire is bounded by Cook Shire and the Wujal Wujal Aboriginal Shire in the north, the Coral Sea in the east, the Cairns Regional Council area in the south, and Mareeba Shire in the west. Population now over Covers over 2445 km2 70% live in Port Douglas & Mossman 2018

15 Local Economy Population 11,997 1,391 local businesses 7,461 jobs 5,669 employed residents Largest Industry Accommodation and Food Services

16 Online Short Term Holiday Rentals the Douglas Experience 16 Generally there are 2 over-arching perceived issues:- 1. Online short term holiday rentals impact on the amenity of the surrounding residents where party house uses establish; and 2. Online short term holiday rentals impact on affordable housing supply as residences get listed and supply decreases. 2018

17 Douglas Development Assessment Perspective 17 Generally the Douglas Shire does not experience significant disturbances to amenity from short term letting of dwelling houses; Council s Planning and Compliance Unit has received 3 complaints per year on average for the past 3 years; The Douglas Shire has a significant number of high-end holiday let houses (executive retreats) which would not ordinarily contribute to affordable housing supply. Douglas has a diverse range of property values and socio-economic areas. It does not appear that listings for holiday let houses are currently impacting the supply of affordable housing given the diversity of housing options currently available. 2018

18 Douglas Environmental Health Perspective 18 Bed and Breakfast (B&Bs) and associated swimming pools still require an approval under the Local Law but currently no Council fees apply and no inspections are undertaken. This is in anticipation of the proposed changes to the Local Law in 2018/2019 that will: remove the requirement for B&Bs to have a Local Law approval; and clarify the definition of a public swimming pool that will likely exclude pools attached to most B&Bs. Note - any B&B operator providing food is still subject to the Food Act 2006 and may require a Food Business Licence Douglas Environmental Health Officers have observed that the majority of Air BnB postings do not meet the Local Law criteria for requiring a Local Law approval. However Officers can still respond to complaints about an accommodation premises where there may be a local public health issue (under the Public Health Act) or if necessary Council approvals are not in place. 2018

19 Douglas Environmental Health Perspective 19 A secondary Local Law issue associated with online short-term accommodation holiday houses in Douglas is that many are located in positions that would have expansive ocean views if the foreshore vegetation is removed. Views of holiday houses are promoted through online booking sites. Consequently there are areas of hillside and foreshore properties where illegal clearing of vegetation is occurring on Council controlled areas and foreshores. The issue of insufficient penalties and deterrents is a consideration in the current review of the Local Laws 2018

20 Douglas Tourism Industry Perspective 20 Positives Extra capacity; Visitors looking for a genuine local experience have needs better met; For areas such as the Daintree - with limited hotel accommodation through traditional channels - the online short-term holiday rental accommodation provides much better visibility through the websites and options for visitors. Negatives Online short-term holiday rental accommodation providers generally don t contribute financially to supporting the tourism industry or marketing the destination. 2018