The draft plan aims to remove all 25 permanent caravan sites at Belmont Pines Lakeside Holiday Park by 2020 to make way for new cabins to attract tourists.

As it stands, caravan owners are allowed to stay on-site for up to 180 days a year.

However, the plan said it was time for the Belmont Pines Tourist Park Reserve Trust, which manages the land on the council’s behalf, to ‘‘optimise the supply of sites for tourist use’’.

This ‘‘improvement’’ will be made by gradually removing the caravans.

The plan said short-term tourist sites, such as cabins and camping sites, generated more than double the annual income than the permanent caravan sites.

However, council figures show it will lose $113,661 a year by removing the caravans.

Furthermore, occupancy rates did not exceed 90 per cent from January to April this year, even with 20 per cent of the park occupied by permanent caravans.

Beverly Johnson, who spoke at Monday’s council meeting on behalf of the park’s caravan owners, pleaded with councillors to reconsider the plan.

‘‘There is not one month of the year where there is 100 per cent occupancy - we have kept no one out of the park,’’ Mrs Johnson said.

‘‘The holiday van people are a social and financial asset.

‘‘They keep the park safe and viable.’’

Councillor Rob Denton said the there had been a ‘‘lack of proper process’’ in the plan’s preparation.

‘‘I don’t think this was properly thought out,’’ Cr Denton said.

Councillors voted unanimously to defer the matter and hold a site inspection on Thursday, June 4.