North Stradbroke Island traditional owners given two-year deal to develop 250 hectares of state land

Traditional owners on North Stradbroke Island have been granted a two-year deal to develop 25 parcels of land, following a landmark native title determination.

The Queensland government has granted an Aboriginal group a two-year extension to develop 249 hectares of state-owned land, including exclusive waterfront property, on North Stradbroke Island in Moreton Bay.

An existing temporary local planning instrument (TLPI) over 25 parcels of land on the island, also known as Minjerribah, expired on Wednesday, forcing Deputy Premier Steven Miles to step in.

The Quandamooka people’s land use rights have been extended until September 2025, giving the traditional owners an opportunity “to realise their aspirations” over the state-owned properties at Dunwich, Amity and Point Lookout.

A TLPI is effectively a set of rules that urgently address a planning issue not currently captured by a local government’s planning scheme. The rules include zoning and assessment benchmarks and, where there is any inconsistency, override rules in local government planning schemes.

Under the TLPI, the Quandamooka people can use the land for purposes including residential, community facilities, tourist accommodation, conservation and waterfront and marine industry.

North Stradbroke Island, also known as Minjerribah. Picture: iStock

“It ensures there are opportunities for the Quandamooka people to live on land and respects their rights and connection to the land,” Mr Miles said in a statement announcing the extension.

“This includes the right to propose development, which would still need to comply with assessment benchmarks set out under the Redland City Plan 2018 and the TLPI. I know Redland City Council is progressing a planning scheme amendment to incorporate the current TLPI, but that amendment won’t be ready before the expiration of the existing TLPI.”

The new TLPI will be in effect for two years, or a shorter period, depending on the timing of Redland City Council’s finalisation and adoption of a planning scheme amendment to the Redland City Plan 2018.

Mr Miles said the new agreement was “critical to ensure we continue providing important residential, cultural and business opportunities for the Quandamooka people will benefit the broader Minjerribah community”.

“It encourages more business, boosts the local economy and provides housing and jobs for people on the island,” he said.

“No existing freehold land is affected by the TLPI. My department will continue to work with Redland City Council to ensure that the planning scheme amendment, which has already been subject to public consultation, is progressed in a timely manner.”

Queensland Deputy Premier Steven Miles. Picture: Dan Peled/NCA NewsWire

The TLPI was first introduced in 2020 after consultation between state officials and council officers to select the parcels of land, which were chosen to be “drawn down” on as compensation after the landmark 2011 native title determination on the island, The Courier-Mail reports.

Details of the land use deal between the state and the native title owners remain confidential, and locals have previously called for full transparency to gain certainty about future projects and land subdivisions.

“Let’s remove the secrecy so all development is transparent,” Straddie Chamber of Commerce president Colin Battersby told The Courier-Mail in 2021.

“We are not asking for commercial-in-confidence information — all we want to know are the rules that all landowners have to abide by and who receives money from the sale of any state land. That way, all landowners have certainty.”

Some of the land parcels in the agreement. Picture: Supplied

It comes amid a separate native title claim by the Quandamooka people over a large section of Redland coast in southeast Queensland, covering around 530 square kilometres including parts of Brisbane City.

Earlier this week, the Redland City Council raised concerns that it could lose control over its sporting club grounds, cemeteries and outdoor recreational areas if the landmark claim was successful.

“The Quandamooka Coast claim is one of the first to be made over a densely populated area with a European settlement history dating back to the 1800s,” a council spokesman told The Courier-Mail.

A finding in favour of the applicants could see Indigenous Australians handed exclusive native title rights, the council spokesman said.

“This means they will have the right to possess, occupy and use an area to the exclusion of all others,” he said.

The spokesman said council was “forensically analysing each of the sites, in some cases using records dating back to the 1800s, to determine whether they could be defended against the claim”.

Yura Tours leads a group on North Stradbroke Island. Picture: Supplied

The Courier-Mail reports that the native title claim could cost council $210 million if successful.

“Council has continued to bear the substantial burden of identifying and documenting the historical title, ownership history and past works that may affect the native title status of the 3500 council owned or controlled lots … notwithstanding that the applicants receive financial assistance from the Commonwealth, who are not actively participating in the resolution of the claim,” the spokesman said.

Queensland One Nation Senator Pauline Hanson said the native title claim was the “tip of the iceberg”.

“If we get the Voice to Parliament this will expand tremendously,” she told The Daily Mail.

She also claimed Queensland Native Title Services was being funded to the tune of $71 million by the Commonwealth to make the claims on the Redlands region, while a federal fund to aid councils in responding to native title claims had been abolished by the Albanese government.

“There is no federal government funding for the respondents to fight these claims,” she said. “Local councils can’t afford it. I think it is unfair, I think it is unjust.”

— with Carla Mascarenhas