Box Head flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Box Head
(Central Coast, NSW) - 14.98 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is moderately constrained.
Profile updated 3 October 2026.
Suburb-wide figures; the free map shows which overlays touch your lot.
Constraint readout
14.98 km² - this suburb is moderately constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Box Head's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top. Magenta is where aircraft were observed in the sampled period, brightest below 3,000 ft.
Nearby suburbs, nearest first
Aircraft noise and flight paths over Box Head
Two different things, kept apart on purpose. The ANEF contour is the planning instrument - a forecast published per airport that planning schemes use to control noise-sensitive development. Observed overflight is what a sampled aircraft-tracking feed actually recorded over the suburb - where aircraft flew, how low and how often.
Observed overflight - sampled 4 Sep to 2 Oct 2026
typical observed square 1 a day
Night movements: observed, lowest 2,000 ft - night is sampled as often as day, but night traffic is light, so this is a floor and no rate can be put on it.
Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously, so every figure is a floor: aircraft not captured between samples are not represented. Rates are per 500 m square - the busiest square in the suburb, not a count of flights over the suburb - and a square is only rated where enough traffic was seen to measure it. Altitudes are above mean sea level. Flight paths change with runway use, weather, season and airspace design. This is a record of observed traffic; it is not a noise contour and not a planning control.
Box Head at a glance
How Box Head is zoned
Buying in Box Head? The zoning, flood and bushfire lines on the section 10.7 certificate attached to the contract are mapped controls - see our s10.7 certificate guide.
Across its 14.98 km², Box Head is moderately constrained by planning overlays. Flood mapping covers the suburb and none of it falls within a mapped flood overlay, and 17% is flagged bushfire-prone. There is 1 heritage-listed site on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Recreational Waterways. The median lot measures about 66,006 m² across 7 parcels.
Box Head data sources and coverage
“Not mapped” means we hold no source layer for this suburb - never an all-clear.
| Dataset | Coverage | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| Flood mapping | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Bushfire-prone mapping | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Zoning | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Heritage and environment | Mapped where published | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Aircraft noise contours (ANEF) | Not held | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies, Defence |
| Observed flight paths | Observed | adsb.lol, under the Open Database License |
| Demographics | Not available | Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA) |
Profile last materially updated 3 October 2026. See the methodology and full source list. Source data changes over time and critical decisions should be checked with the responsible authority.
Check a specific Box Head address
See exactly which overlays touch a single property - the interactive map is free. Need it on paper? A full planning PDF is just $9.
Aircraft have been seen below 3,000 ft over about 94% of Box Head. The report's Aircraft Overflight page narrows that to the address itself: how many aircraft a day, how low, and at what heights.
Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and an indicative AS 2870 site class for a Box Head lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Box Head planning - frequently asked
Is Box Head flood-prone?
Flood mapping covers Box Head and less than 1% of the suburb falls within a mapped flood overlay (the council-wide suburb average is 30%).
Is Box Head bushfire-prone?
Around 17% of Box Head is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Central Coast average of 69%.
Is Box Head under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 94% of Box Head, and over about 98% at any altitude up to 10,000 ft, in the period sampled (4 Sep 2026 to 2 Oct 2026). The lowest measured aircraft was at 500 ft, with an average of 2,500 ft. At the busiest point in the suburb about 5 aircraft a day were recorded passing over one 500 m square. Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously and flight paths change with runway use, weather and season; the ANEF contour is the planning instrument.
What is the zoning in Box Head?
The dominant planning zone in Box Head is Recreational Waterways, though the suburb also includes National Parks and Nature Reserves and Public Recreation.
Does Box Head have heritage-listed places?
Box Head has 1 heritage-listed place on record.
What is the typical lot size in Box Head?
Across 7 surveyed parcels in Box Head, the median lot size is about 66,006 m².
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pearl Beach | 2.1 km | 17% | 79% |
| Wagstaffe | 3.5 km | 54% | 50% |
| Pretty Beach | 3.6 km | 52% | 54% |
| Umina Beach | 3.7 km | 47% | 39% |
| Hardys Bay | 3.9 km | 4% | 91% |
| Ettalong Beach | 4.0 km | 54% | 5% |
| Patonga | 4.3 km | 15% | 62% |
| Killcare | 4.7 km | 39% | 68% |
| Booker Bay | 4.7 km | 82% | <1% |
| Great Mackerel Beach Northern Beaches |
5.1 km | 25% | 99% |