news
Background Context and How We Arrived at This Point on Sunshine Coast Growth
Decades of tourism shifts and housing pressures set the stage for today's hospital upgrades and rental rules in the region.
How we reported this
The Sunshine Coast University Hospital began its latest expansion phase on 5 July, adding 120 beds to meet demand from a coastal population that passed 420,000 residents last year.
That figure traces back to planning decisions made in the early 2000s, when state agencies approved large residential releases between Maroochydore and Caloundra to capture retirees and remote workers leaving southern cities. Short-term holiday lets later filled many of those homes, pushing local councils to draft tighter controls by 2024.
From holiday strip to permanent settlement
Maroochydore CBD construction crews now work on the new civic square at First Avenue and Sixth Avenue, a project first flagged in the 2017 master plan. The same plan identified the need for expanded health services after Queensland Health data showed patient presentations at the University Hospital rising 38 percent between 2018 and 2023.
Environmental overlays adopted in 2019 also limited clearing on vegetated slopes around Buderim, forcing developers to cluster new dwellings closer to existing transport corridors. Those rules slowed some projects but preserved bushland buffers that now border the airport's new international terminal opened in March 2025.
Numbers that drove the changes
Airline passenger records show international arrivals at Sunshine Coast Airport climbed from 48,000 in 2022 to 112,000 in 2025, while median house prices in postcode 4558 reached $1.15 million. Council staff logged 1,870 short-term rental registrations by June this year, up from 920 in 2021.
Those trends prompted the current review of rental caps and vegetation protection orders scheduled for public consultation in August. Residents can submit feedback through the council website or at the Maroochydore administration centre until 28 August.