We are the residents of the Lake Weyba local area, and we have been left in the dark. We call on residents and visitors to help us.

On April 23rd 2026, the Sunshine Coast Council passed a decision that directly impacts our daily lives, our community culture, and our rights as ratepayers. Yet, most of us only found out after the fact. In fact, Council voted to modify its own Local Law Making Process and skip the step whereby Council normally publishes draft local laws for community consultation.

The reason given by Council for bypassing its own consultation processes, was the "extensive community consultation" it says it undertook in 2025 on its Dog Exercise Area Regional Plan. Despite the Council conducting 18 "pop-up" consultation sessions across the region, not a single one was held in our community. Our representation was non-existent, and the information regarding the Lake Weyba foreshore was effectively buried—hidden on page 112 of a dense dog exercise plan and tucked away in an appendix.

The "On-Leash" Contradiction

We are a community of responsible dog owners. We value the natural environment of the Lake Weyba foreshore—it is why many of us have lived here for decades. We are not asking for unrestricted off-leash roaming; we are asking for the basic right to walk our dogs on-leash on the connecting trails in our own neighborhood as we have done for more than 30 years.

While other Councillors acknowledged the importance of maintaining on-leash trail access in their divisions, our area was overlooked. It is nonsensical to prohibit residents from walking a dog on a lead through the very environment they contribute to protecting through their rates.

Why this matters:

  - Zero Consultation: Our community was excluded from the formal engagement process.
  - Lack of Transparency: Key changes were hidden in the fine print of 100+ page documents without clear maps for our area and council then voted to modify its on Law Making Process to skip consultation on the draft law, which does include the maps.
  - Infrastructure for Visitors, Restrictions for Locals: We see increasing infrastructure for tourism while basic local access is being stripped away.

We call on the Sunshine Coast Council CEO and Division 9 Councillor Maria Suarez to:

-Suspend the implementation of the new restrictions for the Lake Weyba foreshore immediately.

-Conduct a formal, transparent consultation process specifically for the affected residents of the Lake Weyba area.

-Reinstate and protect on-leash access for dogs on connecting trails to ensure local residents can continue to enjoy their natural environment responsibly.

If Council fails to do so, we call on the Minister for Local Government, Water and Volunteers, the Hon Ann Leahy MP, to exercise her powers under section 38AB of the Local Government Act 2009 (QLD) (LGA) to revoke Sunshine Coast Council's Ammendment Subordinate Local Law No1 (Animal Management) 2026 on the grounds that it is inconsistent with the local government principles as specified in section 4 of the LGA.

Don't let our community be the "buried line" in a council report.

Sign to demand a fair go for Lake Weyba.