George Town Council buys 9000 square metres of land for one dollar

George Town councillors unanimously voted to acquire a pocket of land on Hillwood Jetty Road at their last meeting after years of campaigning from councillor Heather Barwick.

It covers the Hillwood Sharks Football Club and part of its pitch along with some of the surrounding area.

With the council already owning the south side of the oval and the nearby War Memorial Hall, this deal is set to grant it land title to whole area.

"The ownership of the land, our parcel and what was previously owned by Crown Land Services, dissected the football clubrooms in half and took a nice big chunk off the oval," deputy mayor Greg Dawson said.

"So if we only used the land that we were entitled to use, then we'd have to knock half the building down and play only up on the southern wing. It'd make a game of football a bit difficult."

The one dollar asking price came with an additional fee, as George Town is required to spend $8610 on surveying costs.

The council's June agenda claimed this could be accommodated for within its 2023-24 budget.

Councillor Heather Barwick said the acquisition was a long time in the making.

"This goes back quite a few years but persistence wins out in the finish," she said.

"At the end of the day, it's a good outcome."

The handover comes with a stipulation that the council needs to continue to use the land for recreational purposes to maintain the land title.

"But if and as soon as we utilise it for something else, it can straight away be given back to the Crown without notice," Cr Barwick said.

"Notice will come, but they'll have taken it."

During deliberations, councillor Tim Harris inquired on the adjacent land found North of the club.

Commonly recognised as a dog park, the area is currently under lease to the council.

"Maybe we need to at some stage try and acquire that and complete the whole area," Cr Harris said.