The state education department has acquired land from a resident in Park Ridge for a new combined state primary and secondary school.
Once completed, the project will fill a hole in the offering of public high schools servicing east Park Ridge and Logan Reserve.
However, it means local George Breedon will be forced from the land he has lived and farmed on for the last 72 years.
The Queensland government has decided to acquire his property of 440-454 Park Ridge Road.
“I felt that’s how it would end up,” he said. “While it’s not going to be easy to walk out, there’s nothing I can do now.”
Mr Breedon has been given until June 30 to vacate. He hoped to reach an agreement that would allow him to sell 17 hectares and retain the patch he lives on.
“No one will ever convince me it’s a fair process, so much for a piece of paper certifying you own the land,” he said.
“It’s not as if I was refusing to sell them any land.”
Queensland government planners started making their intent known before Christmas, offering Mr Breedon full market value for his land.
Mr Breedon said he politely declined at first. He said they eventually returned and stated they would compulsorily acquire the land regardless of his position.
“The extra money for this block doesn’t interest me,” he said.
“They had the most unfair advantage of being able to compulsorily acquire it.”
The Logan Reserve proposal will add to the $1.3 billion investment the Queensland government said it has made since 2015, which led to 21 new schools being built in that timeframe.
The latest of those was announced last week, with a new primary school set to open at Yarrabilba in 2023.
The state education department lists January 2024 as the new school’s scheduled opening date. The project will not be officially announced until later this year.
It will open to all primary school year levels and grades seven and eight. Grades 9, 10, 11, and 12 will follow after opening.
The school’s design and building contract have not been decided.
It will give parents more options to send their children to once it opens.
Only two public high schools service east of Park Ridge around Everleigh and New Beith – Park Ridge State High and Flagstone Community College.
New Beith mother Christine Grinsinger told this newspaper in the February 15 edition that this was “one very big concern”, and that having more options is vital as the region grows.
Although her eldest daughter is six years away from starting high school, she is looking into options now to better prepare.
“We have been told to start looking at putting our girls on waiting lists so they can potentially get into a private school around us,” she said.
