Demolishing a building in Noosa — do you need approval?
Noosa Shire Council's planning scheme — the Noosa Plan 2020 — decides whether demolition needs a development application, and the answer depends on the zone your property is in. Below is what its table of assessment says for each zone; or check your own address.
In a low density residential
Needs a development application (code assessment). Noosa makes demolishing or removing a building code assessable in every zone, so a development application is needed (assessed against the Waste Management and Water Quality and Drainage codes) as well as a building approval.
I don't know my zone — choose my council instead
The zone is on your rates notice, or a Landbrief site report will find it for you.
Zone by zone
Building work (demolition). Residential zones first.
| Zone | What the table says | Conditions | What you'll need |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low Density Residential | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Medium Density Residential | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| High Density Residential | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Tourist Accommodation | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Rural Residential | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Community Facilities | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| District Centre | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Environmental Management and Conservation | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Innovation Zone | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Local Centre | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Low Impact Industry | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Major Centre | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Medium Impact Industry | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Neighbourhood Centre | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Recreation and Open Space | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
| Rural | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.7.1 | building work for removal or demolition of a building not associated with a material change of use | Building approvalAssessed against: Waste Management Code, Water Quality and Drainage Code |
Overlays that change the answer
- Heritage Overlay. Demolition, relocation or removal of a building, and reconfiguring a lot, are code assessable against the Heritage Overlay Code. (Table 5.9.7 Heritage Overlay)
Worth knowing in Noosa
Noosa Plan 2020 (Amendment 3, effective 20 March 2026), Part 5. A material change of use is impact assessable unless the table says otherwise or the use isn't listed; reconfiguring a lot is code assessable in every zone (Table 5.6.1); building work and operational work are accepted unless the tables say otherwise. Noosa makes demolition or removal of any building code assessable in all zones (Table 5.7.1), unusually. Building work for a dwelling house or a Class 10 structure (shed, carport, pool, fence) is accepted subject to requirements in the Low, Medium and High Density Residential, Tourist Accommodation, Rural Residential and Rural zones; in all other zones building work is accepted only inside an existing building with no new buildings or expansion, otherwise code assessable. A building approval under the Building Act is still needed in all cases. Accepted development subject to requirements that doesn't meet the listed acceptable outcomes becomes code assessable (section 5.3.3). A dwelling house includes a secondary dwelling (granny flat); in the Medium and High Density Residential zones a dwelling house is only listed for lots under 500 m², so on bigger lots the 'any other use' impact row applies. Schedule 6, Part 2 of the Planning Regulation 2017 can make a dwelling house, community residence, home-based business or rooming accommodation accepted regardless of these tables. Precincts: the Major Centre (Noosa Junction Hospitality; Noosa Business Centre Showroom, Business Park, Retail, Village Mixed Use), District Centre (Mary/Thomas Street Health and Wellbeing, Doonella Street, Noosaville Mainstreet), Low Impact Industry (Lionel Donovan Drive Auto, Hofmann Drive, Factory Street, Kin Kin, Gateway West Makers) and Medium Impact Industry (Venture Drive Enterprise) zones have precinct tables that vary some uses; the 'Where not located in a Precinct' tables are empty on the ePlan, so the parent zone table applies outside precincts. The Major Centre page labels its own table 'Table 5.5.1' (a typo) — it is Table 5.5.5. Many rows are tied to named lots or streets (e.g. 99 Noosa Drive, Gympie Terrace, Hastings Street) — check the conditions. Where premises are in more than one zone or overlay, the highest category applies to the part affected. Operational work for a dwelling driveway is accepted subject to the Low Density Housing Code; excavation or filling over 10 m³ (residential and environmental zones) or 100 m³ (other zones) is code assessable. Vegetation clearing benchmarks sit in the Biodiversity, Waterways and Wetlands Overlay Code; state Vegetation Management Act rules apply separately.
What else you'll need
- Building approval
More about Noosa
- What can you build in Noosa? Council overview and development applications
- Every Queensland zone explained, with what each council allows and the planning overlays that change the answer
- What Noosa Shire Council charges for a development application, compared with other councils
- A Landbrief site report for your Noosa address — every planning layer that applies to the lot
- Development applications in Noosaville
- Development applications in Noosa Heads
- Development applications in Cooroy
- Development applications in Peregian Beach
- Development applications in Sunshine Beach
- Development applications in Exempt Clearing
Other projects in Noosa
Granny flatDual occupancySubdivideShed or carportExtensionPoolFence or wallHome businessTownhousesShop, café or officeClear trees
The statewide position on this project: Demolish in Queensland.
Read from the Noosa Plan 2020 tables of assessment. General information, not advice. The council's planning scheme and the Planning Act 2016 decide — confirm with the council or a town planner before you build.