Plans for an AU$500m (US$466m, €348.4m, £276.6m) Chinese Cultural Theme Park north of Sydney, Australia, face major hurdles after a number of incidents have put the proposed attraction’s owners and key shareholders under scrutiny.

Most recently, the New South Wales Department of Planning and Environment reprimanded the developers of Chappypie China Time theme park for using the Department's official logo in its promotional material. Australia China Theme Park – the company behind the multi-million dollar development – has been running a promotion which offers an Australian visa in exchange for a AU$1m (US$771,000, €689,000, £489,000) investment. On 26 June, the department demanded the company remove its logo from all promotional material related to this promotion, but is yet to receive a response. In a statement, the department said it had never authorised use of its logo and insisted that the matter is being taken “very seriously.”

Concerns were also recently raised by government members about the financial backers of the development, with an investigation now underway into claims that Wyong Shire mayor Doug Eaton failed to declare his wife's financial interests in the theme park. Eaton has since admitted his wife was listed as a shareholder but insisted there was no financial benefit from the arrangement.

In May, conditional approval was granted for the attraction, but under re-zoning and height restrictions, with the department also challenging predicted job figures and tourist numbers. The key issue – a request to rezone the site – has been deemed unnecessary, while the department said the proposal must include a clause which restricts the site to be developed as a cultural theme park.

In its summary, the department said there was no breakdown of what jobs would be created, no estimate of tourist numbers and no study of parking requirements.

Tentatively set to open in late 2016 in Wyong, 90m (145km) north of Sydney, the development will feature 12 main sections — including the Meridian Gate, thanksgiving Temple, Zheng He’s Treasure Ship, an arts and crafts workshop, Spring Festival Square and Panda Paradise.

It is hoped that Chappypie China Time would attract Chinese visitors in a similar way to American tourists travelling to EuroDisney – a familiar cultural icon in a new exotic location.

Also touted for the park across the 12 zones is a 4D cinema, waxworks museum, a giant ship, a full-size replica of Beijing's Forbidden City and a nine-storey temple housing a giant Buddha.

Australia's AU$500bn Chinese cultural theme park plans move forward