Terella Brewing fined $150,000 over unlawful use of premises

Maroochydore Magistrates Court has fined Terella Brewing Pty Ltd $150,000 and ordered the company to pay $4,712.24 in professional costs after it pleaded guilty to unlawfully using its North Arm premises.

The court did not record a conviction.

The sentence was handed down on June 16, 2026, and marks the latest stage in a long-running planning dispute between the Sunshine Coast brewery and Sunshine Coast Council over what activity was allowed at the rural property.

Council brought the prosecution after arguing the business had expanded well beyond the use approved for the site at 196 Bunya Rd, North Arm.

The sentencing outcome

The fine is a six-figure penalty for the business and comes after months of enforcement action, court proceedings and a closure announcement by Terella.

The guilty plea related to unlawful use of premises. The result leaves the company with a substantial financial penalty, but no recorded conviction.

The matter has now reached sentencing after a dispute that played out across notices, a development application, and public statements from both sides.

How the dispute developed

According to the reporting, Sunshine Coast Council first issued a show cause notice in October 2024.

An enforcement notice followed in May 2025.

Courier-Mail reported that Terella later lodged a development application in October 2025 in an attempt to regularise the site, before withdrawing it in February 2026.

The business then announced in late February 2026 that it would close after losing the council fight.

What the council said

Council said the property had only one formal development approval, for intensive horticulture tied to a vertical farm system.

Its case was that Terella had expanded beyond that approval to operate a broader food and drink venue and to host larger public events.

Reporting described the venue as including a bar, live music, food trucks, children's activities, a petting zoo and other events.

Council also raised local concerns about traffic, safety, noise and parking.

In March, council chief executive John Baker publicly rebutted Terella's claims of non-compliance and maintained the business had operated beyond its lawful permissions.

The brewery's position

The company's owners, Brandt Bamford and Ash Thompson, were not individually charged.

Earlier reporting said they had wanted mediation and described the dispute as financially and emotionally draining.

Their position, as reported, was that they had tried to regularise the site.

That left the dispute centered on a basic disagreement over planning use: Terella framed it as a compliance issue, while council treated it as an unlawful expansion of the approved operation.

What happens next

The immediate court matter appears to be resolved at sentencing.

The reporting does not confirm whether Terella or the council will pursue any appeal or further enforcement action.

The business has already announced closure, so the main open question is whether there will be any additional legal or regulatory consequences from the breach finding.

For now, the practical result is clear: Terella Brewing has been fined $150,000, ordered to pay costs and left without a recorded conviction after the court dealt with its unlawful use of premises at North Arm.