Margaret River luxury hotel project unloved by locals
Hotel giant Marriott and Perth developer Saracen Properties are confident they can ultimately overcome opposition from a community activist group to their plans for a luxury $118 million Westin resort and residential village at Gnarabup Beach in Western Australia’s Margaret River region.
The ambitious plan for an upmarket beachside retreat has run foul of the local group, which says the resort will damage the local eco-system, deepen a housing affordability crisis in the area, and create inappropriate tourism infrastructure.
“We are not an anti-development group, and we are not opposed to a luxury hotel [at Margaret River] – just not at this location,” said Astrid Serventy, a spokeswoman for the Preserve Gnarabup group, whose supporters include professional surfer Taj Burrow and singer John Butler.
Ninety per cent of the 2057 public submissions made to the state government on the project – a proposed 121-room resort to be built over three levels on the headland overlooking the beach alongside villas, townhouses and apartments – oppose it, as does the local council, the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River.
Originally due to be completed by mid-2023, after Marriott signed on as operator in June 2020, the project is the now the subject of a lengthy environmental assessment review by the state’s Environmental Protection Agency (following an application made by Preserve Gnarabup) that will drag the approval process into next year.
Concerns raised by those objecting to the development included its impact on the environment and on local fauna habitats (the area is home to the endangered ringtail possum), the pressure it will place on public infrastructure, increased bushfire risk, and negative effects on local tourism.
‘Strong level of community support’
Joel Saraceni, project director at Saracen Properties, which is undertaking the project in partnership with the site’s owners, Rodney Shea and Mark Clohessy, directors at Perth property syndicator Security Capital Corporation, and the Giacci family, said opposition to the project was overstated.
“There is actually a strong level of community support for the project from businesses and locals alike, but this support is not often accurately reflected in public advertising periods where the most vocal opponents tend to dominate the discussion with petitions and template submissions sourced out the front of local shops that only serve to inflate numbers.
“There were approximately 200 individual submissions expressly supporting the project, which in our 30-plus years of development experience is an unprecedented level of support for a project.”
He added that resort’s on-site food and beverage facilities would utilise local produce and service,s providing benefits for local Margaret River businesses while creating 161 ongoing jobs in the local community.
“As the land has been zoned for tourism for over 15 years and previous hotel approvals have been granted on the land, we don’t expect too many complications with the DA process and anticipate all approvals will be in place for the project early next year with construction to commence in 2023,” Mr Saraceni said.
Local Marriott boss Sean Hunt told The Australian Financial Review the hotel group was “100 per cent” committed to operating the hotel and had signed a binding 30-year management contract.
He added that both WA Premier Mark McGowan and Tourism Minister Paul Papalia were supportive of the development, which he described as “low level and boutique in nature”.
While stressing that Marriott was not the developer, Mr Hunt said he believed the project would protect the character of the site and surrounding natural environment.
“We operate hotels in UNESCO-listed sites around the world, on reefs and in national parks. We have huge green initiatives, which are part of our DNA,” he said.
