The re-zoning comes under the new Cloncurry Shire Council Planning Scheme which will be brought into effect from Monday, February 15. 

Cloncurry Shire Council’s chief executive David Neeves identified a “substantial chunk of land” of about 460 hectares which could be used for a “rural lifestyle precinct,” but it will be up to the landholders to develop it.  

The precinct would be near the Burke Development and Corella Park Roads west of the Cloncurry River which will allow lots of up to 30 hectares. 

Mr Neeves said Cloncurry’s land was divided between residential housing blocks of about 800 to 1000 square metres, or large pastoral holdings.

But there was a “genuine need” for properties sized between 10 to 30 hectares, he said. 

“The rural lifestyle precinct is designed for people to build a nice home, ample room for a horse paddock, pet calves, on the edge of town away from the residential...and it reduces land use conflicts,” Mr Neeves said. 

He said the council would have no control over how and when the properties were developed. 

“It would come down to commercial reality,” Mr Neeves said. 

“If enough people were interested in owning a hobby farm, a rural lifestyle allotment, then that would be the persuasion the land owners would need to develop it.” 

The pastoral property that the council was referring to could be Flat Top Station, which is in the area that Mr Neeves described. 

When Flat Top Station owner Chris Phillips was contacted for comment he said he did not want to speak over the phone about being able to sub-divide the land.

“(We’ve) been trying for 20 years and haven’t done very well.” 

The council has worked on the planning scheme for five years.

Another focus of the plan has been to make sure certain commercial activities remain in the central business district to make it more vibrant. 

Without encouraging centralisation it risked fragmenting the business community, Mr Neeves said.