Logan City Council has settled on two secret sites it prefers for a $50 million sewage treatment plant to service residents living in growth areas between Park Ridge and Yarrabilba.
It may mean that Christmas has come early for Margaret Hawkins, the 79-year-old granddaughter of Stockleigh pioneers and owner of Colbrae, a Brahman cattle stud on the site of the first deeded property sold at historic Logan Village.
The sites council selected remain confidential, but Ms Hawkins said she got a phone call, telling her Colbrae was not one of those two preferred sites.
The caller said she was a council officer.
“I told her I needed it in writing and she said she’d prepared a letter and I should see it in a couple of days. I told her ‘you’ve made me very happy. Thank you’.”
Logan council asked residents to help it find a place for the Site B plant.
Ms Hawkins property had been identified in a 2016 state government report as a potential site for a plant.
The public debate saw more than 1000 people sign a petition to Save Margaret’s Farm.
Site B stage one will service about 20,000 people and eventually cater for up to 172 000 residents. It is one of two plants which are being built in Logan. Site works have started at another at Cedar Grove.
At today’s council meeting, Logan water chair Cr Phil Pidgeon said he wished he could reveal the site locations but the report had to be confidential to protect the privacy of residents and property owners.
“The next steps will be for the council officers to start discussions with the property owners to determine if they are willing to sell their land,” he said.
He expected to make the site public in the new year.
“It is important to note that the council is committed to negotiating property acquisitions for this essential infrastructure by private treaty rather than by compulsory acquisition wherever possible,” he said.
Site B will be built on about 80 hectares of land. It is not known how many properties must be amalgamated to make up either of the two preferred sites.
Cr Pidgeon said 24 sites were considered, 19 found to be unsuitable, five considered in detail and two settled on as the preferred location.
The facility will be funded by Logan council and the Queensland government via Economic Development Queensland. The council will manage the project.
The plant is expected to be working by 2021.
