Large-scale festival & events site in the Sunshine Coast approved for development

A new outdoor music festival and exhibition event site has been approved by the Crisafulli Government for development at Coochin Creek on the Sunshine Coast, near Caloundra.

The Coochin Fields site is set to host events all year round, catering for about 35,000 festival goers. Approximately 61 hectares of the 155-hectare site will remain untouched.

Set to become Queensland’s largest dedicated festival site, Coochin Fields is expected to fill a long-standing gap in the State’s live music and major events infrastructure. This is also the Sunshine Coast’s first permanent, purpose-built site that’s capable of attracting major national and global touring artists on a true festival scale.

The project site, which was acquired by the Comiskey Group in 2021, is ideally located about 35 minutes from Maroochydore and 1 hour and 20 minutes north of Brisbane, with direct access to the Bruce Highway. Not only does this place it as the centre of South East Queensland’s growing population, but it also makes world-class live music more accessible than ever.

“We have been calling for more large-scale dedicated music venues for a long time and Coochin Fields will be a tremendous new asset to the music industry.

“Having this kind of investment in a festival and music venue will be a boon for Queensland audiences and artists,” QMusic Chief Executive Officer Kris Stewart said.

“Coochin Fields is a game-changer for Queensland. As the largest dedicated festival site in the State, it gives promoters, artists and sudiences the scale and certainty they’ve been calling for. Most importantly, it means the world’s biggest acts can now perform right here on the Sunshine Coast.

“We’ve already had strong interest from promoters when news of the site emerged, and we’re excitied to confirm we are now taking expressions of interest. This is about bringing world-class experiences closer to home while creating long-term opportunities for artists, industry and the local community,” Comiskey Group Director David Comiskey said.

Project site (source: Comiskey Group)

The development of Coochin Fields includes extensive environmental safeguards such as wildlife-friendly fencing, stormwater management measures, and operational plans to prevent impacts on the adjoining national park and state forest areas.

The Coochin Fields project is anticipated to create over 680 jobs as well as generate more than $70 million in annual economic activity for the Sunshine Coast.

Once up and running, Coochin Fields is estimated to have $95.1 million in annual visitor expenditure, with about 69,500 visitors per year, and around 243,100 visitor nights a year.

Its approval supports the delivery of the Crisafulli Government’s Destination 2045 tourism strategy that sets out to foster a pathway for homegrown events across Queensland, and partner with the private sector on large-scale projects like event venues.

This announcement also builds on the State Government’s approval of a 150-site tourist park at Coochin Creek, which will help boost accommodation supply as well as inject confidence back into a region that has been held back by underinvestment in tourism infrastructure under Labor.

“Coochin Fields is exactly the type of opportunity the Crisafulli Government is determined to support as we rebuild and grow the state’s tourism industry.

“A major play and stay venue like this that can host big acts in the region is something the cultural, musical and tourism industry had been crying out for during Labor’s decade of decline.

“The conditions we’ve imposed will ensure the project respects the unique environmental values of the area while delivering huge economic benefits for the Sunshine Coast region.

“This decision aligns with Queensland’s Destination 2045 tourism strategy, which aims to diversify the state’s tourism offering and position Queensland as a leading destination for world-class events.

“We are backing projects like Coochin Fields because they help reposition Queensland as a destination where the tourism industry has confidence to grow,” Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure and Planning Jarrod Bleijie said.

“For more than a decade, tourism on the Sunshine Coast was left to languish under Labor, with missed opportunities and stalled progress holding back local jobs and investment.

“This project will breathe new life into the region, attracting visitors, supporting small businesses, and delivering the vibrant tourism hub our community deserves,” Member for Caloundra Kendall Morton said.

Source: Queensland Government – Media Statements; Comiskey Group; Zinc 96.1; Sunshine Coast News