Sunshine Beach Masterplan: Strategic Placemaking for Village Identity

The Context

Sunshine Beach is one of Queensland’s most distinctive coastal villages, defined by a tight-knit community and a protective “surfers’ enclave” identity. When the Sunshine Coast Regional Council (now Noosa Council) identified the village’s central park for a major revitalisation, the risk of community pushback was high. The challenge was to deliver necessary amenity upgrades seating, landscape, and shade without imposing a generic “urban” aesthetic that would clash with the existing village character. The project required a strategy that went beyond standard consultation to create cultural connection.

The Collaboration

POMO operated as the “Creative Lead” within a multi-disciplinary consortium. We partnered with Plan C (Social Planning & Engagement) and Conlon Birrell Landscape Architects to deliver a unified master plan. Our role was to bridge the gap between the community’s vocal desires and the landscape architects’ technical documentation. By translating sentiment into design logic, we ensured the final built outcome was pre-validated by the people who would use it most.

While many agencies stop at “listening,” POMO’s role focused on the technical translation of community values into a buildable brief. We operationalised the engagement data into a “Creative Opportunities Report,” which served as a control document for the landscape architects.

• The Creative Response Working Group: We established and chaired a specialist working group comprising local artists, curators, and craftspeople. This wasn’t a general town hall; it was a targeted design workshop to extract specific aesthetic directions from the region’s creative sector.
• Technical Brief Formulation: We analysed the engagement data to define specific “Intervention Nodes” within the park. Instead of vague requests for “art,” we specified locations, material palettes (timber, stone, marine-grade steel), and scale requirements for future commissions.
• De-Risking Delivery: By explicitly defining the “Village Character” through approved mood boards and material studies during the pre-design phase, we removed subjective debate from the later construction documentation phase. This streamlined the Council’s approval process, as the design logic was already “community certified.”

The Impact

The project successfully established a blueprint for sensitive coastal renewal.

• Protected Identity: The Master Plan codified the “Sunshine Beach vibe,” ensuring that all physical upgrades reinforced rather than diluted the local character.
• Commercial Opportunities for Creatives: The strategy explicitly carved out budget lines for local artists to deliver bespoke elements, directly injecting funds into the regional creative economy.
• Validated Investment: The robust engagement process provided Council with the social licence to proceed with capital works, eliminating the “not in my backyard” (NIMBY) delays often associated with coastal upgrades.