The Sandy Point Caravan Park will be redeveloped into 11 permanent dwellings after South Gippsland Shire Council narrowly approved the contentious planning application at its 15 April meeting. Mayor Nathan Hersey cast the deciding vote twice in a 4-4 deadlock.
The decision brings to a close a years-long battle over the fate of the park, which sits across the road from one of the Prom Coast’s most beloved beaches and has provided cheap family summer holidays for generations.
The Sandy Point Community Group (SPCG) expressed immediate disappointment, saying the closure "will be a significant loss to the community." The loss was echoed tenfold on social media, where locals and long-time visitors alike expressed their sadness and disappointment at losing accessible and affordable holiday accommodation that has hosted many families through generations and provided custom for many local businesses.
The application, which proposes 13 lots, 11 dwellings, associated works and the removal of native vegetation, is the second attempt to redevelop the site. An earlier proposal was refused by council and upheld on appeal at VCAT in 2024. The revised plans, which reduced dwellings from 13 to 11 and cut vehicle crossovers on busy Beach Parade from eight to six, were assessed by council officers as having adequately addressed the issues raised in that earlier decision. Approval came with 29 conditions.
The community had rallied strongly against the proposal. Of 30 public submissions received, 29 were objections. The West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority raised seven formal grounds of objection across two separate applications.
Inside the council chamber, the debate was fierce. Councillor Sarah Gilligan moved a notice of refusal, citing nine grounds including coastal hazard, bushfire risk, effluent management and the loss of tourist accommodation. She argued that state-funded coastal hazard mapping, which is currently underway for this stretch of coastline, made approval premature.
"To approve a major subdivision in a high risk area with this important work underway but not complete would take a special kind of madness," she told the chamber. "This will be the single biggest decision impacting Sandy Point in 60 years."
Councillor Clare Williams backed the refusal, drawing on the memory of the 2021 Venus Bay bushfire to highlight the dangers of increasing permanent residents in a town with one road in and out and no evacuation plan. "Human life before assets. It's not about saying no — it's about saying not right now."
Councillor Brad Snell reflected on what the community stood to lose. "Are we talking about the loss of a simple offering that is open to all, an invite for every other person into our world to enjoy that nature-based experience? Or are we talking about opulence?"
On the other side, Councillor Scott Rae was blunt. "If it complies, it flies. There'd be a hell of a lot more people in those caravans than in 11 houses." He dismissed concerns about wastewater management as outside council's jurisdiction entirely. "That's an EPA septic. Nothing to do with us whatsoever."
Mayor Hersey, whose casting vote proved decisive on both counts, acknowledged the difficulty of the planning authority's role. "Our job as the planning authority is to look at a planning application as it's presented right now, in relation to what the planning scheme says. I know it's difficult, but that's where we're at."
Councillor Gilligan was unsparing in her final assessment. "This has been affordable accommodation for 60 years and we are removing that… I think this is a very, very bad decision on behalf of this council." She requested it be formally minuted that she considered the subdivision approval premature without the results of the coastal hazard mapping and an unresolved wastewater management dispute.
The Sandy Point Community Group released a statement on Facebook. In it, they expressed their disappointment with the decision, saying, “The closure of the Caravan Park will be a significant loss to the community of Sandy Point. A holiday at the Caravan Park, across the road from one of the state’s best beaches, has been an affordable option for generations of holiday markers.”
It is believed that various parties in Sandy Point may be considering an additional VCAT challenge. Cara Schultz
