Queensland Government protects colonial farm while heritage status is assessed

The Palaszczuk Government has stepped in to ensure a rare surviving example of a colonial farm in the Redlands is considered for heritage protection status.

Willards Farm, also known as ‘The Pines’, is located on Old Cleveland Road East, Birkdale and dates back to the 1860s.  

James Willard, a timber-getter and farmer, was one of the first settlers of the Capalaba-Cleveland area, and he and his family ran the farm from about 1863 to 1938. The property was established as a result of the very earliest decisions of the Queensland Government to allow the lease and sale of land for pastoral and agricultural purposes.

At Parliament this week, Environment and Heritage Protection Minister Dr Steven Miles met with local MP Don Brown, the Member for Capalaba, to discuss the significance of the site, which has attracted strong community interest.

Mr Brown asked for the Minister’s support to secure some breathing space while the heritage issues are considered and the Minister was also asked to intervene by Redland City Councillor Paul Bishop.

“I have now taken action, using the powers provided by the Heritage Act 1992, to allow time for the independent umpire to make a measured and informed decision about the site’s heritage status,” Dr Miles said. The Minister has issued a Stop Order upon the site.

The Queensland Heritage Council is currently assessing the site’s importance in demonstrating the state’s rich history of rural settlement after the Birkdale Progress Association made an application.

Dr Miles said the farm deserved further research and inspection to determine if it is of State level heritage significance.

“This process will give the community, the owner and the local government the opportunity to have their say about the heritage value of Willards Farm,” Dr Miles said.

Member for Capalaba Don Brown said he was pleased that the site was protected to allow the heritage evaluation to occur.

“The Willards Farm site is a well-known local landmark with a lot of history attached to it, being over 150 years old.”

Councillor Paul Bishop said that he feels the pastoral homestead has immense historic value and that a formal assessment is essential.

“I hope we can all enable an exemplary outcome in the best interest of civic, commercial and community values as we honour the work and living conditions of our pioneering European ancestors to whom we owe so much.

“Thanks to the Minister’s intervention, community volunteers and officer support, we can now be assured the assessment process will help to reveal any secrets from our past that might otherwise have been lost,” Cr Bishop said.

The Minister has also asked Queensland Heritage Council to consider this matter as expeditiously as possible and it is anticipated that this will occur by mid-September.

The Queensland Heritage Council, which is the independent peak advisor on heritage matters in the state, will make the ultimate decision about whether Willards Farm is entered in the State Heritage register.

Pictured: Environment Minister Dr Steven Miles and Don Brown, Member for Capalaba, with the Stop Order signed by the Minister