Community & Business
27 July, 2024
Green light for new school
A NEW school that could cater to up to 300 students when its six stages are completed has been given the green light by Mareeba Shire Council.
The Two Rivers Community School will be established at a 28-hectare site on Chewko Road and will be constructed over six stages, the first of which will comprise two classrooms for a maximum of 50 students and nine staff.
The project generated only two objections, mainly concerned over the proximity of the school to agricultural activities and the increase of traffic on Chewko Road.
In approving the school, council will require the applicants to undertake upgrades to the Chewko Road access intersection, the rail level crossing and the access road.
Cr Mary Graham expressed her fear that council would end up paying to upgrade the road and was also concerned about the school being built in a rural area. She was the only councillor to vote against the approval of the school.
“I have concerns with the road and my fear is that ratepayers will eventually have to come up with the money to upgrade these sections,” she said.
“I know we have conditions in place but there will be a fair bit of traffic on that road and another issue I have is that even though the school will be agriculturally based, it will be built in the rural area…. There’s crop dusting and all those sorts of things, it doesn’t sit well with me.”
But senior planner Brian Millard dismissed concerns around the facility being in conflict with any agricultural activities on adjoining properties, telling councillors there were other residential properties in the vicinity and with farming operations around the school bring relatively small and not requiring crop dusting, he did not believe there was any reason for concern.
A vegetation buffer along the southern boundary of the school site had also been included in the conditions.
To ensure that council is comfortable with how the road will be upgraded, council moved that the operational works application be brought back to council for a decision.
Stage 1 of the school will include the construction of shared amenities, a reception and resource centre including a tuckshop and kitchen as well as a parking area and bus and car drop-off areas.
State 2 will increase the student numbers by 20, an additional two staff, an administration building and two new classrooms, with one being a purpose-built music classroom. As the stages progress, more facilities are proposed including a multipurpose hall and library.
By the time Stage 6 has been completed, which the applicants advise would be 2041, the school should be able to cater to a total of 300 students, and feature a Primary Precinct, a Secondary Precinct, a kindergarten, and specific art and manual arts classrooms.
The school's proposed facilities would also include modern eco-friendly classrooms, a science lab, a sports oval, outdoor learning areas and dedicated agricultural spaces.
The project also allows for a total of 68 parking spaces when completed.
According to the council application, the school’s teachings will be based on the Australian Curriculum and would incorporate place-based learning principles that connect students to their local environment and culture.
“The proposed school site is situated on land that can be used for agricultural purposes – at Two Rivers Community School, we aim to utilise the most arable land spaces to create educational and learning opportunities for our students based on the rich farming cultural heritage of the Tablelands region,” the application stated.
“We will focus on innovative and sustainable farming methods. We seek to encourage our students to engage with the natural world to gain a deeper appreciation for the environment and the legacy of our farming communities.
“The school will endeavour to provide hands-on agricultural learning experiences, such as planting for food, plant life cycles, biodiversity in natural food systems, soil care, and regenerative land management.
“We will seek to collaborate and partner with local farmers, permaculturists and various field experts to expose our students to a wide range of knowledge and skills.”
