Joggers, power walkers, dog strollers and parents with kids and prams pass me by as I venture down Mooloolaba Esplanade mid-week on a late-summer afternoon.
Happy hour drinkers and early diners are frequenting bars and restaurants, and hugging the beach fringe are the gelato-lickers, the wave watchers and the sunset chasers.
Mooloolaba might resemble a quasi-war zone with its semi-barricaded foreshore, but it looks to be business as usual on the oceanfront tourist strip.
As I walk further along the esplanade towards the world-renowned beach, I notice some hospitality venues are jumping while others are deserted.
Brett Thompson, president of the Mooloolaba Chamber of Commerce, has been keeping a close eye on the pulse of the business community since construction began on the Mooloolaba Foreshore Revitalisation Project in mid-2025. From his vantage point, the response has been a mixed bag.
“Well, it’s been a bit of a mixed response,” Brett admits. “From the chamber’s perspective, the Christmas and New Year period was fantastic, but the local traders have been feeling the pinch since the foreshore works commenced.”
Brett is the general manager at the Landmark Resort & Spa, which is directly opposite the beach. He asserts the resort had its “biggest-ever” December and January. Occupancy was at 92 per cent in January. While occupancy “has held” compared with previous years, the resort’s revenue was higher this summer because strong demand meant it could increase the room rates.
But retail and hospitality on the esplanade have been more variable, depending on who you talk to, he admits.
Brett also points to what he sees as a disconnect with local residents: “From a trader’s perspective, we’ve been very disheartened with social media platforms, public forums, where locals have been very negative towards Mooloolaba and access to the beach.”
He cites The Beach Matters forum, which is a community organisation dedicated to preserving the Coast’s beaches and coastal lifestyle, as one such platform which has been trolled.
“They’re keyboard warriors, I suppose we call them. They don’t understand how much harm they do to businesses when they get on these public forums.”
Brett says the fact is, Mooloolaba has more than 2000 car parks across four precincts, free parking for four hours at ParkNGo Mooloolaba Central and more than 1.3km of beach, which is accessible throughout construction.
He says Sunshine Coast Council is on board, helping to support local traders.
The ‘Meet Me In Mooloolaba’ marketing campaign to the tune of a “three-figure sum” has just started and will run for the next 12-14 months, with about 40 per cent of the focus on local audiences and 60 per cent on the drive market.
Overall, Brett is optimistic about the foreshore’s long-term impact.
“Mooloolaba has been under-marketed as a premium tourist destination,” he says.
“Obviously the revitalisation will only enhance that. The end result is going to be nothing short of fantastic.”
For Sue Gaylard, owner of Avenue J Jewellery, three fashion boutiques and a gelato store on the esplanade, the construction has been largely manageable: “When we heard about the revitalisation, like everyone we were a little bit ‘Let’s see how this goes’. But I do think the bigger picture for the whole Mooloolaba community and the Sunshine Coast will be, when it’s completed, fantastic.”
Her clientele spans locals, day-trippers from Brisbane, and interstate and international visitors. She says they’ve been very understanding and supportive of progress, but she’d love to see more locals frequent the esplanade.
Sue and her developer husband Graham Juniper have worked hard to create “a full experience”, along the esplanade.
She suggests many would be surprised by the “growth and quality we now offer here in Mooloolaba”.
Operationally, she describes the impact as minor: some daytime noise and temporary traffic adjustments. But the early stages of construction delivered an unexpected benefit. When the barricades first went up on the beach side, foot traffic along the shopfront increased because pedestrians were funnelled past the stores.
Looking ahead, Sue believes the revitalisation aligns with a broader evolution of the precinct: “We want it to be not just a special memorable experience, but a quality experience.”
Billy Moore, co-owner of Augello’s restaurant, has also been watching the numbers closely.
“Trade’s fine. It’s a little down, but that’s partly because we were coming off a very high base,” the former Australian Kangaroo rugby league representative and proud Queenslander explains.
“The growth in the Mooloolaba market over the past decade has been great. We’ve had a little bit of a plateau over the last six months, obviously due to the timing of the beach foreshore project.”
He says lunchtime trade has felt the most noticeable impact, largely due to temporary changes in beach access affecting walk-by customers, but night trade “hasn’t really been affected at all”.
Billy says tourists are mostly intrigued by what’s happening and curious about the finished product.
He acknowledges, though, that some locals are more critical, particularly as their usual beach access has shifted.
“Change is an interesting thing for people: some like it, some don’t,” he says.
Augello’s has been trading on the esplanade for 31 years and Billy maintains “in a sense, we’re a barometer – a litmus test of what’s transpiring”.
The restaurant’s clientele is 70 per cent locals and 30 per cent tourists. His message is simple: “Locals are our bread and butter. The only way the impact of the build will be minimised is if they keep coming.”
He is confident the final result will elevate the entire precinct.
“From an aesthetic, environmental and access perspective, this project will make Mooloolaba one of Australia’s best beachfronts,” he says.
“The end result will be world class.”
Councillor Tim Burns, Sunshine Coast Council’s Environment and Liveability representative, says maintaining access has been central to the project.
“Following a bumper holiday season with beautiful weather, the project is tracking well for overall completion,” he says.
“The terraced seawall is now taking shape and the beach has remained open throughout. Clear wayfinding signage and communications have ensured locals and visitors can access more than a kilometre of beach south of the surf club.”
Beach attendance from October to December last year increased by about 35,000, compared with the previous year, totalling more than 235,000 visitors.
Tim says that figure demonstrates continued confidence in the destination.
He highlights council initiatives designed to support trade, including revised construction staging to accommodate major events, four hours of free parking, decorative lighting and improved wayfinding.
Stage 2 of the revitalisation, including the Central Meeting Place and Southern Seawall, began in July last year and is expected to continue through early 2027.
Works have included demolition, vegetation management, reshaping embankments and constructing the seawall. Once complete, the new terraced structure in front of the surf club will improve beach access and public space.
For Mooloolaba resident Elisa Murphy, the changes are practical and personal.
“I know it feels like a big impact at the moment, but the finished product is going to be great,” she says.
Elisa lives in the thick of the action and admits the temporary shift in beach access has required small adjustments.
“There are lots of areas to access the beach, although there’s not one straight at the end of Burnet Street. But eventually there will be, and it’s not too much hassle to walk down to the new access,” she says.
Elisa believes most residents recognise the long-term benefits: “Most people would be happy that it’s going to change the way things look and improve it.”
She also sees the environmental logic: “After the storms we’ve had here, this is obviously providing future protection by creating the seawall. Hopefully, revegetation means the beach can survive in the state that it is.”
And she is already imagining the everyday result: “We’ll be able to walk down the end of our street and access the beach. It will be a really lovely place to sit and hopefully create that real community environment. I think it’s going to be great.”
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