THE 153-year-old Willards Farm will be the subject of a Redland City Council investigation to determine the benefits to ratepayers of buying the Old Cleveland Road property at Birkdale.
Division 5 councillor Mark Edwards called for the council-owned Redlands Investment Corporation to compile the report, telling at Wednesday's meeting it was urgent.
Cr Edwards said he wanted the report to evaluate options for buying the property on commercial and non-commercial terms.
He said the report should also investigate options for developing the site and retaining existing buildings.
“This site is rich with history, in particular the site’s homestead, dairy and huts, and the community has voiced concern that an existing development application over the site could result in this history being lost,” Cr Edwards said.
“It will obviously depend on several factors including whether the current owner is prepared to sell it and if so at what price?”
No deadline was set for the Redlands Investment Corporation, council's property investment arm, to table its findings.
"This motion is not to buy the property," Cr Edwards told the meeting.
"It gives directions to Redlands Investment Corporation, which is a 100 per cent council-owned entity, to merely investigate the options to purchase."
Councillors would have the chance to debate the report when the findings were tabled, he said.
Division 10 councillor Paul Bishop said the investigation was necessary as the council did not have a heritage assessment policy.
He also made a submission to the Queensland Heritage Council asking for the site to be listed on the Heritage register.
"This is a terribly important site - and it also needs to be noted there is a current development application on this site for a 12-lot subdivision," Cr Bishop said.
"It would be very helpful for Redland City Council to purchase this property as it would be the only way the heritage values would be insured for perpetuity."
The land, at 302 Old Cleveland Rd, is known as Willards Farm or “The Pines”, and is next to federal government land, which council has also expressed interest in buying for a university.