REDLAND council will spend an extra $400,000 on an incentive package to attract businesses building tourist accommodation in Cleveland's CBD.
The extra money will be used to give those tourism businesses discounts on development application fees.
Constructions outside the Cleveland CBD will also be eligible for the discount in line with the amount of space in each building allocates to tourism.
The concession is part of a package of benefits endorsed in 2014 and available until 2017.
Other concessions are available on infrastructure charges, exemptions on rates and water fees during construction and fast-tracking applications.
Since the incentives started 18 months ago, council has granted the discount for 11 development applications for tourism accommodation and apartments with one pending.
Division 7 councillor Murray Elliott said only one of the 11 development applications had proceeded to get a building permit and called for a review of the incentive in six months.
"Nobody's doing anything ... I want to see more tangible things happening ... I want an incentive that makes the developer do the project not just to get the approval and then flog it off to someone," he said.
The infrastructure incentive can only be granted to businesses which have already passed the building application process.
Mayor Karen Williams said the incentive package had helped attract a $14 million extension to the Alexandra Hills Hotel due to start this year.
The project includes 40 accommodation units for people attending functions and will put the city on the conference and events map.
Two tourist accommodation projects proposed for Waterloo Street have also accessed the incentives.
“With the original stimulus all but expended 18 months ahead of schedule, this move will capitalise on the momentum we have already generated and ensure that we can not only attract visitors to the Redlands but provide quality places for them to stay," Cr Williams said.
Division 2 councillor Craig Ogilvie said the extra incentive money was necessary to "skew the investment fundamentals back to the CBD".
He said development in areas including South East Thornlands and Redland Bay were depriving the CBD of investment cash.
He said the incentives were not just targeting tourism and also aimed to attract educational, health and aged-care enterprises.
Division 1 councillor Wendy Boglary said the city had benefited from the council extending the package across the city and not confining the discounts to the Cleveland CBD.
The Redlands’ Tourism Accommodation Incentives Package was endorsed by Council in July 2014 to stimulate investment and construction in tourist accommodation, including B&Bs and tourist parks, outside of the Toondah Harbour and Weinam Creek Priority Development Areas.
