New push to buy beach headland

l TRINITY BEACH | ISABELLA GUZMAN GONZALEZ

THE fight to save an 18ha headland on the northern beaches has ramped up with another petition calling once again for the Queensland Government to buy the property.

The Taylor Point Action Group presented Member for Barron River Craig Crawford with the petition this week to get the government to reconsider buying Taylor Point.

The petition with 1945 signatures was handed to Mr Crawford on February 24 in the latest effort to persuade Environment Minister Meaghan Scanlon to buyw the headland owned by Rob Prettejohn.

Mr Crawford has been advocating for a state government buyback of Taylor Point and supporting the endeavours of the Taylor Action Group to no avail.

Regarding the new petition, Mr Crawford said he would continue to search for solutions.

“There are still options available which may include the council ensuring a section remains available for public use,” he said.

The government and Cairns Regional Council announced last year that they would not be buying the property.

In late 2022, Mr Prettejohn lodged a development application for six lots along the Marana St boundary. He has since received a request from the council for more details on the project but Taylor Action Group spokesman Denis Wallis said it made sense for the land to be bought back for community use.

“The developer has a right to develop about 18 dwellings on that property; roughly speaking, one dwelling per hectare,” he said.

“It’s a very hilly property, so it would be impossible to put many houses on it; for that reason, it would make more sense to have it like Earl Hill, the conservation park that was bought by state government a few years back.

“I think we need to see a similar buyback by the state government.”

“The community knows that Taylor Point is in a bad state; they know it’s not appropriate for a large-scale development and they know that it’s got many benefits.”

Mr Wallis said Taylor Point had significant value for Trinity Beach residents.

“We want the state government to buy back the land for public access; the main purpose is as a community asset,” he said.

“Taylor Point is the last unattributed headland in the northern beaches, and it’s very prominent culturally for Indigenous people and worth protecting for its cultural, ecological and social value.

“The ecological value we charted through a study which we carried out a couple of years ago, tracking the number of birds and plants, mammals and reptiles and where they could be found in the headland.

“That information is with the state government, so they know the ecological values of the area and tremendous community assets,” he said.

Mr Wallis said the latest petition was proof of Trinity Beach residents’ longstanding desire to save Taylor Point.

“Nearly 2000 signatures were submitted to Mr Crawford, and it’s a reminder that the community is on board with a buyback,” Mr Wallis said.

“At the moment the state government is saying they don’t have the money for that purchase.

“Every year, a significant amount is allocated for community benefit by the state government, so every year, we’ll keep pushing for some of that money to go into this buyback.

“The buyback of Taylor Point would probably be around $7 million; it’s not a huge amount of money.”

Mr Wallis said the group would continue to fight for Taylor Point for as long as possible.

“Mr Prettejohn is not getting any younger, and I think he would like to see a resolution in the not-so-distant future because I think this is pushing him, the local community and the environment.

“We can’t say when this resolution will be at this stage, but you keep pushing and pushing, and eventually, it might be the nudge that makes all the difference.”

Mr Prettejohn was contacted for comment.

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