What the job involves
A landscape plan should connect how the space will be used with drainage, access, planting conditions, hardscape, services and a realistic maintenance plan.
Decisions that shape the scope
Brief
List privacy, play, entertaining, access, shade and maintenance priorities.
Site plan
Record boundaries, services, easements, levels and existing vegetation.
Materials
Coordinate paving, edging, soil, mulch and structures.
Staging
Identify what must happen first and what can wait without rework.
Local planning point
What to check in this market
Check Bundaberg planning-scheme overlays before major filling, retaining, vegetation or drainage changes. A concept image is not an approval or engineering design.
For the Queensland 1 m retaining wall rule and flood overlay checks, see flood-aware landscaping in Bundaberg.
Useful details for a quote request
- Property plan and photos
- Priority uses
- Budget range and stages
- Existing drainage issues
- Preferred maintenance level
Compare like with like
Ask each responding provider to put the proposed scope, assumptions, exclusions and responsibilities in writing. A lower figure is not a saving if it omits preparation, access, disposal, approvals or completion work that another quote includes.
For a project combining several outdoor improvements, use the landscaping in Bundaberg overview to prepare one set of priorities and compare the work packages.
Retaining walls: test every Queensland approval condition
Rules and national price sources checked 14 October 2026. Height alone does not decide whether a retaining wall fits the accepted-development exception. Building Regulation 2021, Schedule 1 section 3 requires all the following conditions together.
- The wall is not part of the fencing for a regulated pool.
- There is no surcharge loading over its zone of influence.
- The total height of the wall and retained cut/fill is no more than 1 m.
- The wall is no closer than 1.5 m to a building or another retaining wall.
The regulation also defines surcharge loading and how finished ground level is measured. Ask the certifier to apply the complete provision to the drawings; this checklist does not determine structural design or permission. The distance condition refers to a building or another wall, not a substituted boundary setback.
Check Bundaberg overlays and the drainage proposal
Use Bundaberg’s planning scheme and policies for the property’s applicable overlays and development conditions, and council’s building-approval guidance for the building pathway. A small-wall building exception does not establish planning compliance. Record existing levels, the proposed retained cut/fill, nearby structures, drains and the proposed discharge route before comparing construction options. Do not infer a flood level or engineering solution from a concept image.
Compare cost by wall-face area, with the material kept separate
These are separate national source rows, not Bundaberg quotes or a blended rate. Measure wall length and retained height to describe the face area, and ask which footing, drainage, excavation and approval items the quote includes.
Send a wall-specific scope for the site assessment
- Plan and photos showing levels, retained height, boundary and services
- Nearby buildings/walls and relevant load information
- Engineering, footing, drainage and approval responsibilities
- Excavation, access, disposal, finishes and itemised exclusions
BlueScope’s fencing guide says its fencing is not designed as a retaining wall. A fence beside retained soil needs a specified interface rather than an assumption that fence panels hold back the load. See landscape drainage and earthworks scope and Bundaberg landscaping quote planning for the related work packages.