Heritage listing of Willard’s Farm – submission by Redlands2030

Willard’s Farm homestead during an open day in April 2021

State heritage listing of Willard’s Farm in Birkdale is being considered by the Queensland Heritage Council – in response to an application submitted by Ms Pam Spence, President of the Birkdale Progress Association.

Redlands2030 supported this heritage listing application with a submission made on 1 October 2021. A copy of this submission is published below.

Copies of all submissions about this application for heritage listing can be accessed on the State Government’s website, until such time as a decision is made by the Heritage Council.

The next meeting of the Queensland Heritage Council is scheduled for 28 January 2022.

Redlands2030 submission about heritage listing for Willard’s Farm

Executive Officer
Heritage Branch
Department of Environment and Science
GPO Box 2454 BRISBANE QLD 4001

Dear Executive Officer

Heritage Register Number (HRN): 650011 Willard’s Farm and Lot 2 SP146445 302 & 362-388 Old Cleveland Road East, Birkdale

Redlands2030 supports Willard’s Farm HRN 650011 and Lot 2 SP146445 being added to the Queensland Heritage Register as per the application submitted by Ms Pam Spence, President of the Birkdale Progress Association.

These two properties, now in public ownership, have considerable heritage value as a pioneering rural property which still includes original buildings and improvements.

Inclusion of these properties in the Queensland Heritage Register would ensure that there is appropriate scrutiny of the actions and inactions of Redland City Council which owns both properties but which appears to have little regard for its important role in local heritage management.

In considering this application, we suggest that the Queensland Heritage Council should have regard to Redland City Council’s record of heritage management generally and its failure to undertake any restoration of Willard’s Farm since the property was purchased in February 2016.

Willard’s Farm

The Birkdale Progress Association (BPA) has for many years sought to have Willard’s Farm’s heritage values protected.

In 2015 the BPA applied for this property to be added to the Queensland Heritage Register. On this occasion the application was unsuccessful even though heritage listing was recommended by the State Government’s Environment and Heritage Department.

In 2015 Redland City Council voted to purchase Willards’s Farm. The property was acquired by the Council in early 2016.

Plans to undertake short term emergency actions to prevent deterioration of the buildings and structures and make the site and buildings safe were approved by the Council at its meeting on 14 December 2016.

In 2016/17 the Council decided to reallocate funds in its First Budget Review from Willard’s Farm to another project.

Since then, the Council has done little with the property other than attend to basic safety and security requirements.

On 4 December 2019 Redland City Council announced that it and the Redland Museum would enter into an MOU for restoration of Willard’s Farm homestead. The Museum decided not to do this.

Lot 2 SP146445

Redland City Council acquired this property from the Federal Government in 2019 together with RP14144 and RP14143 (collectively the former ACMA site).

The World War II Radio Receiving Station and Rhombic antennas have been added to the Queensland Heritage Register. But tellingly, Redland City Council did not support inclusion of the Rhombic Antennas.

The Council has shown that its preference is to use much what it describes as the Birkdale Community Precinct for sports and recreation purposes including a whitewater centre that has been proposed as a venue for the 2032 Olympics.

The Council’s whitewater vision appears to be inconsistent with the feedback received by the Council in response to an extensive (and expensive) community consultation exercise.

Redlands2030 obtained, through Right to Information, the Council’s record of comments made in response to the Council’s community consultation about future use of the Birkdale Community Precinct (including Willard’s farm and Lot 2 SP146445.

This information shows that there is little community support for the Council’s white water vision but considerable support for uses consistent with the site’s environment and heritage values.

• 1,323 responses (78.8% of responses) supported nature trails
• 966 responses supported conservation uses
• 566 responses supported history and heritage uses
• 565 responses supported various education uses
• 149 responses (8.9% of responses) supported a whitewater facility

The Council’s ‘Community Engagement Summary Report’ published in May 2021 did not include this level of detail about the levels of support (or lack of support) for various possible uses of this land.

The information obtained by Redlands2030 through Right to Information is attached to and forms part of this submission.

Local heritage protection in the Redlands

Since the Queensland Heritage Act was promulgated in 1992 Redland City Council has been spectacularly ineffective at protecting private properties which have local heritage value.

Consultants have been engaged to advise which properties should be heritage listed but elected councillors have time and again failed to pass motions which might ensure heritage protection.

Consultants RPS did a major study for Redland City Council in 2012 which identified 140 properties in the Redlands which had local heritage values. This report (paid for by ratepayers) has never been publicly released. Many of these properties with heritage values have since been demolished.

In 2019 the Council embarked on a new process to consider adding privately owned properties to the Local Heritage Register that forms part of the Redland City Plan.

State Government approval was obtained to undertake community consultation about a proposal to add about 50 properties to the Redland City Local Heritage Register.

Community Consultation was deferred for many months but eventually took place from 12 October to 4 December 2020.

At its general meeting in August 2021 an officers’ report proposed that the heritage listing process be completed but the Council voted to defer the matter. It was not dealt with at the Council’s September meeting.

One of the properties proposed for inclusion on the Redland City Council Local Heritage Register (509 Main Road Wellington Point) was demolished, a few days ago.

Redland City Council has demonstrated over nearly three decades a chronic failure to comprehend and observe its obligations to protect places of local heritage significance.

Conclusion

To ensure that the significant heritage values of Willard’s Farm (including its original curtilage now on Lot 2 SP146445) are appropriately managed, these two properties should be included in the Queensland Heritage Register.

Chris Walker

Secretary
Redlands2030

Attachment: Project Report 16 March 2021 – 4 May 2021 – Your Say – Redlands Coast – Imagine – Birkdale Community Precinct, Bang The Table Engagement HQ, obtained via Right to Information

[This document was made publicly available by Redlands2030 on 16 August 2021, in our story:

Birkdale Community Precinct Vision ignores community feedback ]

Redlands2030 – 15 January 2022