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Community

18 February, 2021

Cairns Community Launches Buy Back of Iconic Headland

TWO Far North Queensland based organisations have joined with Traditional Owners in a bold move to raise funds to purchase the iconic 18.5 hectare headland Taylor Point at Trinity Beach.


Cairns Community Launches Buy Back of Iconic Headland - feature photo

 Community Heritage Action, Register and Monitoring (CHARM) and Cairns and Far North Environment Centre (CAFNEC) have set in motion a buy back crowdfunding campaign which has raised $10,000 in the first three days.

 After decades of failed development attempts, the iconic headland is on the market for between $6.1 million and $8 million despite stringent building restrictions.

 Over the past 30 years local residents have joined with Cairns Regional Council as respondents to fight against three inappropriate developments in the Planning and Environment Court. 

Developers lost all three cases, but the current Cairns Regional Council under Mayor Bob Manning approved a slightly altered development plan for 16 residential allotments.

 The land was deeded in 1969 to the Anglican Diocese of North Queensland by Mrs Josephine Blessas requesting it be used for youth purposes.  However, the Anglican Church then sold it off to private developers for approximately $3.2 million.

 “Taylor Point is the last undeveloped headland along the Cairns coast and has high scenic value and provides unique recreational opportunities including spectacular coastal walking tracks which would link Kewarra Beach with Trinity Beach. 

“It also has a powerful Indigenous history, outstanding geological formations and significant vegetation and ecosystems which include stands of 35m tall ancient eucalypts” said CAFNEC President Denis Walls, one of the Cairns residents involved in organising the buy back.

taylor-point-2a.jpg

 “The three parties involved in the buyback are inviting local businesses, organisations and community groups to come on board to demonstrate to all three tiers of government that they too should contribute to the buy back and secure the future of this amazing place, not for an elite few, but for the whole community and for future generations” said CHARM Coordinator
Geoff Holland.




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