Warwick’s Margaret McKinnon has slammed the local and state governments for their lack of vision for Slade Campus and her fears that the former school will be taken out of community hands has now escalated.
An angry Mrs McKinnon spoke to the Southern Free Times after the Southern Downs Regional Council rejected the Slade Lives Again tender at last week’s general meeting.
Mrs McKinnon, often applauded at public meetings for her tireless work to retain Slade Campus for the benefit of the community, now fears the property will be sold to residential developers.
The change of zoning from Residential to Residential Choice in the council’s proposed planning scheme and now the rejection of the community group’s tender heightened her fears.
“There’s a distinct possibility that both tenders will be refused and the property be put up on the open market again,” she said.
Mrs McKinnon has battled hard to keep Slade in the community’s hands; first as a possible second campus to stop the overcrowding at Warwick State High School and now as the vice-president of Slade Lives Again, which spent the majority of this year putting together a proposal to increase the community usage of the facility and the possibility of having a Warwick Civic Centre onsite.
“I’m devastated for our community and the growing number of groups using Slade,” she said.
The resolution from last week’s meeting states that: “The Slade Lives Again submission be rejected as it is not considered to be a proper tender and council enters into further negotiations with the Christian Communities Ministries Ltd with a final decision dependant on the results of the negotiations with that organisation”.
Yet Mrs McKinnon claims that the Slade Lives Again group consulted with the council before lodging their tender and they advised the group that only a good business plan was needed in order to be considered.
This included a proposal to start a partnership with the council in order to continue the community use of the facility.
“It was never intended for an outright purchase so therefore it wasn’t necessary to put a purchase price in nor a guarantor was necessary and that was the reason for the rejection,” Mrs McKinnon said.
With more than 160 financial members, the Slade Lives Again committee will meet soon to discuss the situation and what to do next, in particular with the funds given to the group.
Southern Downs Regional Mayor Ron Bellingham was unavailable for comment at time of print.
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Rebecca Brown
