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Redlands2030 is now publishing letters from people who have something to say to the Redlands community.

Letters should be short (less than 300 words) and will be published over the writer’s name and suburb.

Email them to: thereporter@redlands2030.net

This week’s letters are published below.

Footpaths for sale?

I was very interested to receive Issue #1 of the Property News in the latest issue of the Redland City Bulletin. To my amazement, I discovered on the first page that a home and a large chunk of footpath, which I thought was public land, had been sold at auction.

I thought it must be a one-off, but, no, for when I turned to the third page, I discovered that the footpath at 61 Channel Street is also for sale. So I thought that the Council must have agreed to start selling footpaths as a new revenue measure. After all, we have street side cafes that use our footpaths so why not sell the land outright.

But then methinks that perhaps there has been a mistake in the actual photographs on the first and third pages and that the footpaths haven’t been sold but that this is simply a marketing strategy. by the real estate company. So I thought I should follow up with them and point out their error.

But, lo and behold! In the small print at the bottom left hand side of the second page, it says: “we do not accept any responsibility to any person for its accuracy and do no more than pass it on.” So there you go! The end of the matter?

So someone else will have to help me. Do real estate agents sell footpaths now on behalf of the Redland City Council, or has there been a “deliberate error” in the way the properties are represented in the publication? So can someone help me?

Subsequently, I have noticed other advertising by the same company which shows an aerial photo of the property for sale with the actual property on the market shaded in green. And guess what? The shaded green goes right up to the gutter implying that the footpath is for sale as part of the parcel of land.

Is this fair and honest advertising?

Douglas Jones – Cleveland

 

Willards Farm

The community has recently learned of an impending development of the Willards farm at Capalaba.

This place is adjacent to the intact remains of the World War two radio communication site used by General Douglas MacArthur and it is believed to have been used in conjunction with the radio site. . The Commonwealth land was used by MacArthur to communicate operations during world war two. The Willard’s site has a number of buildings on land originally owned by the Willard family which they farmed from around 1863. The original Willard farmhouse and out buildings such as the dairy and sheds built with slabs of timber felled from the property still remain on the parcel of land.

Members of the Birkdale Progress Association are working hard to have this site preserved as a World War II historic site as well for its local historic value.

We are seeking assistance from interested parties who may be involved in war history. Are there people who would be willing to assist by writing to the minister quoting reference number HR 650011 to support the heritage listing of this rare time capsule of pioneering and war time history or do you have memories which will support the application?

This development application would mean the total loss of any historic evidence associated with these sites if plans for urban development were to proceed.

Robert Weismantel
Secretary, Birkdale Progress Association Incorporated

 

End the plight of island residents

The front page article in the Redland City Bulletin about the ISLANDS of PAIN July 29th 2015 refers to the plight of the residents living on the Southern Moreton Bay Islands (SMBI) of Macleay, Karragarra, Lamb and Russell Islands, with residents presently living in third world conditions on a ranking of 79 being equal to Palm Island in North Queensland. The contents of this article will not come as a surprise to the island residents or more importantly the Redland City Council or Queensland Governments both past and present whom have all know for many years about their deliberate political manipulation of these islands through land values, rates and inadequate infrastructure expenditure.

At this point in time the blame for this sorry state of affairs lies squarely with the current Redland City Council Mayor and her supportive voting block of councillors as it is these people who voted on budget income and expenditure for these islands. The underlying facts are these islands total around 14,000 rateable properties with an average value of $44,000.00 each and an average annual rates charge per year of $2,100 which equals a total of around $28,000,000.00 income to Redland City Council each year.

So how do these people live with so much neglect when so much income for SMBI infrastructure and services is generated through annual rates to these islands one might ask? Well the answer is simple. This Council spends on average less than 25% of this revenue each year on these islands on projects that result in limited short term Island benefits and the remainder propping up its annual budget surplus leading the community to believe they are somehow fine managers of our funds.

The truth of the matter is this Council, through Mayor Williams and Councillor Mark Edwards, is well aware of the difficulties the island residents are putting up with and has for many years degraded the islands by limiting private investment interest and controlling growth through manipulation of infrastructure spending and transport options. This story will only end when a decent Council is elected that truly represent the residents.

Peter Hanson – Birkdale

 

Letters published by Redlands2030 – 2 August 2015

 

 

Please note: Offensive or off-topic comments will be deleted. If offended by any published comment please email thereporter@redlands2030.net

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