Butter Factory Supermarket Proposal

The Eumundi township has seen another development proposal lodged with council for a supermarket in the area in the past week. The owners of the Old Highway Motors and Eumundi Butter Factory site located at the northern end of Eumundi at 124 Memorial Dr have released their latest plans for the Butter Factory precinct component of the development ‘Our Village Eumundi’.

The new proposal identified at Precinct 3 on the site context plan is for a 1,500sqm supermarket with four speciality shops ranging from 100-280sqm. The plans for the proposed development have been lodged with council.

The site is owned by JLJL Pty Ltd as trustee and there is already preliminary approval to develop it as a shopping centre up to 1,000sqm. “The proposal for a 1,500sqm supermarket is the best option for the site in terms of catchment size, position and proximity to the town centre while also protecting the town’s rural character,” said company director and secretary Louise Formosa.

The Eumundi Butter Factory was partially destroyed by fire on two occasions prior to its purchase in 2014 and the current historical buildings are not structurally sound. The developer intends to incorporate any salvageable materials from the site into the proposed build.

Louise said the new roundabout at the Caplick Way/Napier Rd entrance will significantly improve traffic flow within this area and the township with vehicle, bicycle and pedestrian access from the roundabout and exit points at Caplick Way, Napier Rd and through Precinct 1. A traffic report lodged as part of the application process demonstrated a substantial improvement in future traffic movements.

The site plans include more than 230 new carparks, bicycle bays and pathways. Underground rainwater harvesting and bio basins will be incorporated into the design together with a community space at the entry and a covered outdoor area. The developer’s feasibility assessment demonstrates the proposal will also generate 100 new jobs for the town.

A major factor considered by the developers in the site design was the importance of providing acoustic and landscaping buffering to respect local character and amenity. Noise monitoring has reportedly been undertaken with modelling of noise impacts to determine the best acoustic treatments to reduce impact on residential neighbours.

In late 2019 JLJL Pty Ltd received council approval for a small eco/organic shopping centre located in Precinct 1 which included re-purposing the

Old Highway Motors building and residential houses to the rear of the facade. An operational works application is currently being prepared with plans to lodge in December 2023 to allow work to begin on this stage of the development.

“The biggest issue holding us back with the Precinct 1 approval is the cost of public works we are conditioned by council to build prior to any uses commencing,” said Louise.

“The proposed roundabout at the Napier Rd and Caplick Way intersection and the public footpath upgrades external to the site were recently costed at more than $3M. Without the larger balance of the site being approved for a supermarket these capital costs cannot be justified with the construction of Precinct 1 alone.

“We are ready to go and want to move on with this site and get it built.”

For a brochure summarising the development proposal for ‘Our Village Eumundi’ visit: t.ly/ yN0eT.