A MACLEAY Island resident says Redland City Council has failed to finish work on a problem nature strip despite finally removing overgrown vegetation last month.
Kevin Smith, who previously raised safety concerns about shrubs and trees obstructing pedestrians and motorists on Scotts Rd, said Council contractors attended the site on March 3 to remove the vegetation.
However, he said the job remains incomplete weeks later.
Mr Smith said stump grinding was not carried out until March 10, and promised follow-up works to restore the area have still not been done.
“The job still hasn’t been completed,” he said.
“Council contractors advised the nature strip would be levelled and top dressed.
“To date, neither has been carried out.”
He said the current state of the nature strip had created new hazards.
“The nature strip remains a complete mess, with hollows and tree roots making it impassable,” Mr Smith said.
“This is Council being slack again.”
The original complaint centred on overgrown vegetation that Mr Smith said blocked footpath access and reduced visibility for drivers exiting nearby properties.
“I am desperate to encourage Council to expedite the removal of hazardous nature strip shrubs and improperly placed trees that totally obstruct free pedestrian access and visually obstruct motorists and residents from exiting their driveways safely,” he said.
“And we can’t even prune them back for our own safety. What a crazy world.”
Mr Smith said he first contacted Council about the issue in September 2025 and had been told the vegetation would be removed before Christmas.
“Almost six months later I’m informed Council is solely responsible for the ownership management and maintenance of the plants,” he said.
“Further to this, I was advised residents cannot cut or trim the overgrown plants as they may be protected under local and state laws.
“In that letter, Council admitted liability should the unthinkable occur and someone gets serious injured or killed.
“The roads here on Macleay Island are poorly policed and as a result speeding occurs daily.”
He said that while the vegetation had now been removed, the unfinished works had left the area in a worse condition.
“I cannot believe how useless Council is,” he said.
A Redland City Council spokesperson previously said contractors had been scheduled to undertake vegetation removal at the location, with delays attributed to a high volume of priority work.
“Works were unable to be completed prior to Christmas due to a high volume of other priority tasks during this period,” the spokesperson said.
“Under Council’s Local Laws, members of the public are not permitted to remove or trim trees or shrubs on Council land.
“Council assesses all third-party liability claims in accordance with the Civil Liability Act 2003 (QLD).
“An incident that occurs on Council land does not automatically make Council liable, and each claim is assessed on its own merits under prescribed processes.”
