Shops, cafés and offices in Cairns — do you need approval?
Cairns Regional Council's planning scheme — the CairnsPlan 2016 — decides whether a shop, café or office 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 zone
Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions). A shop, office or food and drink outlet is not listed in the Low density residential zone table, so it falls under the 'all other uses not otherwise identified' row and needs an impact assessable development application, which the public can comment on.
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
Shop / Food and drink outlet / Office. Residential zones first.
| Zone | What the table says | Conditions | What you'll need |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low density residential zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.h | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Low-medium density residential zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.j | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Medium density residential zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.l | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Tourist accommodation zone | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.5.x.1 / 5.5.x.2 | a shop or food and drink outlet outside precinct 1 – Islands (office not listed, so impact assessable); on the islands only inside an existing buildingIf not met: a development application with impact assessment (neighbours can make submissions). | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: Tourist accommodation zone code, Applicable local plan codes (where a local plan applies), Centre design code, Environmental performance code, Excavation and filling code, Infrastructure works code, Landscaping code, Parking and access code, Vegetation management code, Applicable overlay codes (where the overlay is mapped on the lot) |
| Rural residential zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.r | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Township zone | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.5.y | a food and drink outlet with a drive-through is impact assessable | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: Township zone code, Applicable local plan codes (where a local plan applies), Centre design code, Environmental performance code, Excavation and filling code, Infrastructure works code, Landscaping code, Parking and access code, Vegetation management code, Applicable overlay codes (where the overlay is mapped on the lot) |
| Emerging community zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.d | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Community facilities zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.a | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Conservation zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.b | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| District centre zone | Accepted if you meet the requirements Table 5.5.c | if inside an existing building used for a lawfully established centre activity, and if it meets the acceptable outcomes listed as requirements for accepted development in the ticked codesIf not met: a development application with code assessment. | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: District centre zone code, Centre design code, Excavation and filling code, Infrastructure works code, Landscaping code, Parking and access code, Vegetation management code, Applicable overlay codes (where the overlay is mapped on the lot) |
| Environmental management zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.e.1 / 5.5.e.2 / 5.5.e.3 | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| High impact industry zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.f | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Local centre zone | Accepted if you meet the requirements Table 5.5.g | if inside an existing building used for a lawfully established centre activity, and if it meets the acceptable outcomes listed as requirements for accepted development in the ticked codesIf not met: a development application with code assessment. | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: Local centre zone code, Centre design code, Excavation and filling code, Infrastructure works code, Landscaping code, Parking and access code, Vegetation management code, Applicable overlay codes (where the overlay is mapped on the lot) |
| Low impact industry zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.i | shop and office not listed in this zone, so impact assessable; a food and drink outlet is code assessable | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Major centre zone | Accepted if you meet the requirements Table 5.5.k | if inside an existing building used for a lawfully established centre activity, and if it meets the acceptable outcomes listed as requirements for accepted development in the ticked codesIf not met: a development application with code assessment. | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: Major centre zone code, Centre design code, Excavation and filling code, Infrastructure works code, Landscaping code, Parking and access code, Vegetation management code, Applicable overlay codes (where the overlay is mapped on the lot) |
| Medium impact industry zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.m | shop and office not listed in this zone, so impact assessable; a food and drink outlet is code assessable | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Mixed use zone | Accepted if you meet the requirements Table 5.5.n.1 / 5.5.n.2 / 5.5.n.3 | a shop (under 500 m² gross floor area) or food and drink outlet inside an existing building used for a lawfully established centre activity, and if it meets the acceptable outcomes listed as requirements for accepted development in the ticked codes; an office is code assessable in every precinct; a department store or supermarket is impact assessable; no food and drink outlet row in precinct 3 – ResidentialIf not met: a development application with code assessment. | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: Mixed use zone code, Centre design code, Excavation and filling code, Infrastructure works code, Landscaping code, Parking and access code, Vegetation management code, Applicable overlay codes (where the overlay is mapped on the lot) |
| Neighbourhood centre zone | Accepted if you meet the requirements Table 5.5.o | if inside an existing building used for a lawfully established centre activity, and if it meets the acceptable outcomes listed as requirements for accepted development in the ticked codesIf not met: a development application with code assessment. | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: Neighbourhood centre zone code, Centre design code, Excavation and filling code, Infrastructure works code, Landscaping code, Parking and access code, Vegetation management code, Applicable overlay codes (where the overlay is mapped on the lot) |
| Open space zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.p | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Principal centre zone | Accepted if you meet the requirements Table 5.5.q | if inside an existing building used for a lawfully established centre activity, and if it meets the acceptable outcomes listed as requirements for accepted development in the ticked codesIf not met: a development application with code assessment. | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: Principal centre zone code, Centre design code, Excavation and filling code, Infrastructure works code, Landscaping code, Parking and access code, Vegetation management code, Applicable overlay codes (where the overlay is mapped on the lot) |
| Rural zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.s | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Special purpose zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.t.1 | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Specialised centre zone | Needs a development application (code assessment) Table 5.5.u.1 / 5.5.u.2 / 5.5.u.3 | shop and food and drink outlet code assessable in all three precincts; office code assessable in precincts 1 and 3 but not listed (impact) in precinct 2 – Showgrounds and major sport | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: Specialised centre zone code, Applicable local plan codes (where a local plan applies), Centre design code, Environmental performance code, Excavation and filling code, Infrastructure works code, Landscaping code, Parking and access code, Vegetation management code, Applicable overlay codes (where the overlay is mapped on the lot) |
| Sport and recreation zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.v | shop and office not listed in this zone, so impact assessable; a food and drink outlet is code assessable | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Tourism zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.w | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
| Waterfront and marine industry zone | Needs a development application (impact assessment — neighbours can make submissions) Table 5.5.z | a shop, office or food and drink outlet is not a listed use in this zone | Building approval; Food licence (for a café)Assessed against: CairnsPlan 2016 (the whole planning scheme) |
Overlays that change the answer
- Neighbourhood character overlay. In the residential zones a dwelling house (including a granny flat), dual occupancy or home based business becomes code assessable (shops and cafés too in Mixed use precinct 1); removing, repositioning or demolishing a building becomes code assessable. (Tables 5.5.h, j, l (material change of use); 5.5.a, b, c, e.1, e.2, g, h, j, l, n.1, n.3, o, p, t.1, v (building work))
- Places of significance overlay. Building work (other than internal work that doesn't materially affect the place's cultural significance), and a use involving such building work, becomes code assessable; removal or demolition becomes impact assessable; vegetation damage becomes code assessable. (Building work, operational work and use rows in most zone tables (Tables 5.5.a–5.5.z))
Worth knowing in Cairns
CairnsPlan 2016 (Version 3.1), Part 5. Each zone (or zone precinct) has one table covering material change of use, reconfiguring a lot, operational work and building work; overlays change the category through 'IF within the … overlay' rows inside those tables, and where several IF rows apply the highest category wins (section 5.2(10)). Defaults (section 5.3): 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; building work and operational work are accepted unless the tables say otherwise. Unusually, CairnsPlan makes ordinary building work (and minor building work) 'accepted subject to requirements' in almost every zone — it must meet the acceptable outcomes of the zone code and the Excavation and filling and Infrastructure works codes (or the Dwelling house / Dual occupancy / Multiple dwelling code on a residential site with one of those uses); accepted development that can't meet them becomes code assessable (section 5.4(2)). In the Conservation zone building work is code assessable (demolition is accepted subject to requirements). In the Principal centre zone a new awning or street canopy is code assessable. A building approval under the Building Act is still needed in all cases. Vegetation damage (operational work) is accepted subject to the Vegetation management code in every zone; state vegetation management rules apply separately. A dwelling house includes a secondary dwelling (granny flat); several tables tick a 'Dwelling house (Secondary dwelling) code'. Schedule 6 of the Planning Regulation 2017 can make a dwelling house or home-based business accepted regardless of these tables. Precincts: the Environmental management zone has precinct 1 – Residential and precinct 2 – Russell Heads (Tables 5.5.e.2, 5.5.e.3), with the same categories for these projects as the zone table. The Mixed use zone has only precinct tables (5.5.n.1 Commercial, 5.5.n.2 Trades and services, 5.5.n.3 Residential): a dwelling house and dual occupancy are listed only in precinct 3, a multiple dwelling only in precincts 1 and 3; a shop in an existing centre building is accepted only if under 500 m² gross floor area, and a department store or supermarket is impact assessable. The Specialised centre zone has only precinct tables (5.5.u.1 Hospitals and allied medical, 5.5.u.2 Showgrounds and major sport, 5.5.u.3 James Cook University): an office isn't listed in precinct 2 and a home based business only in precinct 1. The Tourist accommodation zone's precinct 1 – Islands (Table 5.5.x.2) lists no dwelling house or home based business (impact), makes a shop or café impact assessable unless inside an existing building (code), and subdivision impact assessable. The Special purpose zone's precinct 1 – Cairns South State Development Area (Table 5.5.t.2) is regulated by the State Development Area development scheme for uses and subdivision; rules here follow the Special purpose zone table (5.5.t.1). Local plans can vary the category through 'Applicable local plan codes'. Development by or for the council that is impact assessable is code assessable instead (section 5.3(4)). Benchmarks listed here leave out the individual overlay codes ticked in each row, summarised as 'Applicable overlay codes'.
What else you'll need
- Building approval
- Food licence (for a café)
More about Cairns
- What can you build in Cairns? Council overview and development applications
- Every Queensland zone explained, with what each council allows and the planning overlays that change the answer
- What Cairns Regional Council charges for a development application, compared with other councils
- A Landbrief site report for your Cairns address — every planning layer that applies to the lot
- Development applications in Edmonton
- Development applications in Clifton Beach
- Development applications in Gordonvale
- Development applications in Edge Hill
- Development applications in Kewarra Beach
- Development applications in Cairns North
- Development applications in Caravonica
- Development applications in Parramatta Park
Other projects in Cairns
Granny flatDual occupancySubdivideShed or carportExtensionPoolFence or wallHome businessTownhousesClear treesDemolish
The statewide position on this project: Shop, café or office in Queensland.
Read from the CairnsPlan 2016 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.