ApartmentsPhil BartschWed 13 May 26
Devcon Dishes Up Highrise Plan for Maroochydore Sizzler Site
The former Sunshine Coast home of one of Australia’s last Sizzler restaurants is poised for redevelopment as a dual-tower mixed-use precinct.
Devcon Property Group is behind the proposal that would comprise 165 residential and short-term accommodation units plus ground-floor retail and hospitality space.
Under the plans, a staged scheme would deliver two 12-storey buildings on the 4178sq m site at 41-43 Aerodrome Road—a local landmark occupied by a Sizzler restaurant for several decades before its conversion for office use.
The proposed development—also fronting Fifth Avenue and Richards Street—has been designed by architecture firm Blackburne Jackson.
A planning report prepared by Project Urban said the design “reinforces a contemporary coastal character … that responds positively to the site’s prominent three-street frontage configuration and gateway location on Aerodrome Road”.
“The development delivers a high standard of architectural design, landscape integration and streetscape activation…appropriate to Maroochydore’s emerging urban context,” it said.
Stage one would deliver a 12-storey tower on the northern half of the site with 75 units sitting above two basement parking levels, podium-level amenities and communal open space.
The existing commercial building on the southern portion of the site is to be retained temporarily and used as a real estate office.
It would be demolished as part of stage two of the development to make way for the second 12-storey tower accommodating an additional 90 apartments as well as 467sq m of ground-floor commercial tenancies, including food and drink outlets.
The proposal includes a combined 532sq m of communal open space spread across podium and rooftop levels, including landscaped recreation areas, terraces, pool and leisure amenities for residents and guests.
Overall, parking spaces would be provided for a total of 443 vehicles across the development.
Both the proposed towers would rise 37.5 m—within the preferred height limit for the Tourist Accommodation Zone of the Maroochydore/Kuluin Local Plan Area—making the application code-assessable.
The Devcon proposal joins a pipeline of residential and tourist accommodation developments reshaping the Sunshine Coast.
In the past couple of weeks, shovels have hit the ground on a $150-million hotel build as the region races to plug an accommodation gap for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.
Backed by Felix Capital, the Crowne Plaza Maroochydore will deliver 180 rooms alongside more than 900sq m of flexible meetings and events space, anchored by a 600sq m ballroom.
Leisure amenities will include a 30m swimming pool, gym and sauna. As well, it will feature a 167-seat all-day dining venue, a 180-seat outdoor pool bar and lounge, a signature ground-floor restaurant and a lobby bar.
The Sizzler restaurant on the site closed in November, 2020, one of the final nine Sizzler locations in Australia to shut down due to the impact of Covid.
The pandemic halted its buffet-style dining model. Combined with years of declining popularity, high operating costs and changing consumer preferences towards healthier, fresher food, it spelt the end of what had been something of a dining icon of the 1990s.
