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Sunshine Coast: What happens next and the key decisions ahead
Council meetings and funding deadlines will shape hospital works, rental rules and airport growth through the second half of 2026.
How we reported this
Sunshine Coast Regional Council will decide on 20 July whether to tighten short-term rental rules across coastal suburbs after receiving more than 1,200 submissions on the draft policy.
The vote comes as the region records its fastest population growth in a decade, with new residents moving into Maroochydore and Kawana Waters at a rate that has pushed local infrastructure planning forward by two years.
Hospital and CBD projects face funding checkpoints
Construction crews at Sunshine Coast University Hospital on Hospital Road in Birtinya are waiting on a state government funding release expected by September for the next stage of the 200-bed expansion. At the same time, the Maroochydore CBD project along First Avenue must secure final environmental approvals before piling work begins on three new office towers.
Both timelines hinge on separate decisions due in the next eight weeks, with council staff preparing cost estimates that will be tabled at the 27 July ordinary meeting.
Airport routes and vegetation rules move to next stage
Sunshine Coast Airport at Marcoola has lodged its application for two new international services to begin in 2027, and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority will issue its preliminary report by 15 August. Meanwhile, the vegetation protection overlay review covering 4,800 hectares of coastal land will go to public consultation starting 1 August, with submissions closing 12 September.
These steps follow a 14 per cent rise in overseas visitor nights recorded at the airport in the year to March 2026.
Residents can lodge feedback on the rental policy and vegetation overlay through the council website before the July and September deadlines, or attend the 20 July meeting at the Caloundra Civic Centre.