Island sale moves forward

Government approves long-awaited lease transfer

Keswick Island will be under new ownership once the lease transfer is completed. Picture: Cheryl Eagers

IT'S A small piece of paradise at the southern end of the Whitsunday islands, and soon Keswick Island will have a new owner.

After eight months of negotiation the Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Energy has consented to the transfer of the island's lease from current owner Edward Dawson-Damer to Sydney-based Chinese investors Greaton.

DNRME could not give a timeframe for when the change of ownership would be finalised; however, it is understood the formal settlement should be only a month away.

Whitsunday MP Jason Costigan said he was aware of a number of issues on Keswick Island, and he hoped that the lease transfer would be "the start of an exciting new era".

Mr Costigan said it was a shame that many of the southern Whitsunday islands, including Keswick, St Bees and Brampton, had been underdeveloped in terms of their tourism potential. He hopes the new owners will revitalise tourism on the islands.

Mackay MP Julianne Gilbert said the announcement was good news for the sub-lessees and land holders who had been in limbo throughout the lease negotiations.

She said the approval provided the security "for them to move forward and for the island to move forward".

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Originally published as Island sale moves forward