THE future of a parcel land deemed critical for the Port Stephens koala population remains unclear after it was sold to an anonymous buyer for $250,000 last week.
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The former Department of Education land, located within the Mambo Wanda Wetlands at Salamander Bay, was sold during an online auction.
Phil Craddock, from Nelson Bay, called the sale a “disgrace” and was not alone in questioning the selling price on social media.
“[It’s] an absolute disgrace that it has been sold at all,” Mr Craddock said. “But to sell it for less than the price of a standard block of land, for nearly 15 acres, is a joke.”
Bidding in Newcastle-based real estate agency Knight Frank’s online auction met the $55,000 reserve on Tuesday and reached $250,000 on Thursday. The seven lots of land were sold to bidder number 57.
A Department of Education spokesman said the sale of the land was handled by Government Property NSW. Government Property NSW did not respond to inquiries by the time of publication. Selling agent Nick Lane was also contacted for comment but did not return the Examiner’s calls.
The seven lots of land were put up for sale after DET determined it could not develop the site for a school and declared it “surplus to educational requirements”.
“The Department is mandated by NSW Treasury guidelines to sell surplus land by competitive process on the open market,” a DET spokesman said.
“The Department is aware of the conservation value of the land, given it lies directly adjacent to the Mambo wetlands. Any development of the site will require approval from Port Stephens Council, which is responsible for considering the conservation value and E2 zoning of the site.”
Port Stephens MP Kate Washington, a vocal opponent of the sale, said she was “devastated” for the community, especially the “Landcare volunteers who have spent decades caring for this land”.
