Growth in population boosts demand for more infrastructure
A 40-metre tall mobile phone tower is set to be built near Landsborough.
The proposed facility, currently being considered by the Sunshine Coast Council, will expand 4G and 5G coverage across the hinterland.
The proposed site sits on currently vacant land (Lot 800) owned by Unitywater on the western side of the Bruce Highway. Located near the boundary of the Glass House Mountains National Park, the site is approximately 300 metres from the Bruce Highway.
In documents lodged to the council earlier this month, SAQ Consulting acting on behalf of Waveconn Operations Pty Ltd (Waveconn) submitted the planning application to build a 40m-tall monopole, antennas, equipment shelter and ancillary equipment. Subject to DA approval, the lease with Unitywater is due to commence from July 2025.
Telstra will utilise the proposed facility as part of its 4G and 5G network to provide network services to parts of the Aura development and along the Landsborough section of the Bruce Highway.
The proposal by infrastructure developers Waveconn, who are aligned with TPG/Vodafone, states “the facility will be utilised by Telstra and is available for collocation”.
A Telstra spokesperson confirmed that while a third party would be building the tower and managing the interactions with Council and the community, if the application is successful Telstra would commit to putting mobile equipment on the site.
Regional General Manager for Telstra in Queensland, May Boisen, said about 20 million devices utilised the Telstra mobile network every day, and she acknowledged the increasing importance of mobile connectivity for daily activities, as well as in emergency situations in the area.
“As our towns expand, we need to add new mobile base stations to help meet this demand.
At Landsborough, Telstra is looking to install mobile equipment onto a 40 metre high structure to provide new or improved Telstra 4G and 5G mobile capacity and coverage for existing users and the planned Stockland Aura satellite city. This expanded mobile coverage will also help provide additional Triple Zero connectivity in emergency situations for people that use mobile networks other than Telstra,” Ms. Boisen said.
The cover letter for the application states “no existing telecommunications facilities exist within close vicinity of the location and relatively few Telstra facilities exist in the wider area in relation to the site,” bolstering requirement for an additional structure as demand for telecommunications services continue to increase in this area due to the population growth.
“In an urban context, and especially given the planned growth for Aura, there is a considerable deficit of telecommunications infrastructure generally in the area and this will be particularly apparent for new residents of Aura as there will be inadequate coverage levels and poor data performance. Demand on the services from customers, in this area will continue to increase over time,” the development application cover letter stated.
