Proposed public car park at Cabarita Beach/Bogangar, Hastings Road

This project is now closed.

We're seeking feedback from the community on the revised ground-level car park design concept plan and proposed landscaping. Please provide your comments by Sunday 4 August 2024. Your feedback will help shape the project proposal for submission to the Engineering Sub-Portfolio Board. This board ensures all the right engineering details and financial impacts are considered.

The new car park at Cabarita Beach will bring many benefits to the community, such as increased parking availability, better access to local businesses and amenities as well as greater convenience for residents and visitors. Additionally, 12 new shade trees and landscaping will enhance the site and reduce heat. Permeable pavements will be used to ensure tree health and support canopy growth.

Council owns the land at Cabarita Beach behind the Cabarita Centre, south of the Woolworths car park and preschool. This has been designated exclusively for car park use since the early 2000s.

In 2005, Council developed initial concept plans for a multi-level car park. This year, updated concept plans and cost estimates for both multi-level and ground-level car park options were prepared and presented at the May Council meeting. Options for the four-level car park were about $11 million, while the ground-level car park is estimated to cost less than $400,000. Following this presentation, Council resolved to move forward with the ground-level car park, which is expected to provide about 52 parking spaces.

Over the past year, we have been actively engaging with nearby property owners, adjoining tenants and key stakeholder groups, including the Cabarita Progressive Business Association, Cabarita Beach Surf Life Saving Club, Lions Club of Cabarita Beach Pottsville Beach Inc and Cabarita Beach/Bogangar Residents Association Inc. We've recently had discussions about the public car parking investigations and outcomes.

How to provide feedback

Please review the design plan and landscaping overview below before providing your feedback. After familiarising yourself with the project details, scroll to the bottom of this page to complete the survey.

Design concept plan overview

View the car park design concept plan to see how the proposal fits over the existing empty lot.

• Safety – The car park will have lighting in the centre bay and no overnight parking will be allowed. There will be a shared pedestrian zone in the northeast corner. Drivers must always give way to pedestrians and there will be signs marking the shared zones. The maximum speed limit will be 10 km/h.
• Affordability – Parking will be free.
• Accessibility – Disabled car parking provided.
• Future demand – The car park will help meet future demand as outlined in the Developer Contribution Plan No. 23 – Offsite Parking (CP 23).

Landscaping proposal overview

A permeable soil cell system will be used to support tree health and give roots enough room to grow. These systems encourage downward root growth, which doesn't affect infrastructure. We have successfully used these in other locations.

Our arborists have recommended the following species to provide shade and reduce maintenance.

Watergums (Tristaniopsis Laurina 'Luscious') for the centre of the car park. These trees have dark green, shiny leaves and copper-colored new growth. They have deep purple bark that peels to reveal a smooth, cream trunk. Yellow, sweet-smelling flowers bloom in summer.		Lilly Pilly (Acmena Hemilampra) for the southern boundary near the sewer. This shrub or small tree has thick emerald leaves with orange to yellow new growth, fluffy cream flowers in spring and white berries. They grow up to 5 meters tall and make excellent hedges or screens.		Red Cottonwood (Hibiscus Tiliaceus Rubra) for the footpath/road reserve area. This fast-growing shrub or tree has maroon and plum-coloured, heart-shaped leaves and showy yellow flowers. It is ideal for hedges, screening, shade and feature planting. It tolerates coastal and windy conditions and prefers full sun and moist soil.