A new Australia Post parcel hub worth more than $25 million has been approved at Hobart Airport, in what is set to become one of southern Tasmania’s biggest mail and freight operations.
The Clarence City Council signed off on the purpose-built facility at a special planning meeting last week.
The centre will be built at 158 Surf Road, Seven Mile Beach, on a 38.76-hectare site owned by Hobart International Airport.
It will sort and distribute parcels across the region and operate around the clock, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Council documents say the facility is designed to handle “large-scale parcel sorting, loading activities and associated vehicle movements”.
The building will stand up to 14.8 metres high, while water tanks will reach more than 10 metres.
It will include 118 staff car spaces and is expected to generate about 900 vehicle trips a day once operational.
The project’s planning consultant told Tuesday’s meeting the hub represented a major investment in the region’s logistics network.
He said it would support growing demand for parcel deliveries while improving service reliability.
Council officers backed the proposal, finding it would create “more local employment opportunities” and make appropriate use of land already zoned for light industry.
A single objection came from a resident who argued that filling the low-lying site could push floodwaters onto neighbouring properties.
A bid to force the developer to prove the facility had not worsened flooding was voted down.
Councillors approved the project with the flood and stormwater conditions recommended by officers.
The facility will be accessed via existing private airport roads on neighbouring Commonwealth land, which is governed separately under the federal Airports Act 1996.
That land is not covered by the council’s planning scheme, meaning the airport must give its own consent before construction can begin.
