A BOTANICAL garden is set to be established on three hectares at Russell Island, after Redlands councillors voted on Wednesday to enter into a three-year lease with the state government.
But some residents have opposed the plan, saying a better use of the land would be a high school for island students.
The land was bought by the Education Department in 1993 for the purposes of a school.
A letter to council from the department in January said there were no plans for a school on the site.
It planned for secondary schools to have enrolment numbers between 1500 and 1800, and there were too few students on the islands.
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Mayor Karen Williams said following this advice, council would lease the land and sign a three year licence to occupy with Bay Islands Conservation Inc, which would manage the gardens.
"BICI first raised the idea of a botanical garden on the site in 2018 and has since worked hard to progress the plan," she said.
"The BICI vision is to create a central community hub alongside the Bay Island Sport and Resilience Hub."
The gardens would be free to access for the community.
Despite the decision, some residents say the fight for a Southern Moreton Bay Islands high school is not over.
Russell Island resident Rosemary Binks-Carvalho told the Redland City Bulletin last year a high school would significantly benefit island residents.
"(Travelling to the mainland for school) will work for some ... but for those kids who might be having a harder time at home or whose parents don't know how to fully engage with the education system, it's clearly not working," she said.
"Our students face huge social disadvantages. They're being dislocated from their community, being away five days a week and going to the mainland where they don't feel part of that community."
Community consultation about the botanical gardens returned mixed feedback, with about one third of submissions opposing the project.
Nearly 60 per cent of submissions were supportive of a botanical garden, and the rest were neutral.
Cr Tracey Huges acknowledged that there had been some community angst around the proposal but stressed that the lease would be for three years.
"There was some community angst (but) we have been assured ... at this stage there is no requirement for a high school at this point in time," she said.
"We don't know what 20 years in the future will bring."
Councillors voted unanimously to enter into the lease, with Division 5's Mark Edwards absent from the meeting after declaring a conflict of interest.