A LENGTHY legal battle, which has delayed the sale of the former Acacia College for six months, has ended.
Adventist Schools, which runs Gilson College on the Acacia site, had been forced to lease the Mernda land despite agreeing to buy it last year when the Uniting Church school collapsed with a $36.6 million debt.
A company owned by the developer of the Acacia site, the late Bruce Dorgan, has a caveat on the title – a device used when a party believes it has an interest in a property that prevents its sale without consent.
The Supreme Court sent Mr Dorgan’s company Acacia Developments Pty Ltd and the Uniting Church to mediation last week.
Church spokesman Michael Docherty said: “We have reached a settlement of a confidential nature, which will allow the sale (of the former Acacia College) to Adventist Schools to proceed.”
He said all matters including the actual settlement and whether it involved financial compensation, the grounds of the dispute and the length of time of the legal battle, were confidential. The developer died suddenly in May 2012, but Mr Docherty would not say whether the legal battle preceded his death.
The developer’s company could not be contacted. Adventist Schools did not comment on the legal wrangle or when the sale would proceed.
The Uniting Church will have a fire sale of assets in Victoria and Tasmania to raise $53.9 million to cover the $36.6 million Acacia debt and meet loan repayments due in 18 months.
Gilson College opened in February with 50 prep to year 7 students, mostly drawn from the more than 500 former Acacia students hit by the closure.
Despite the poor enrolments, Adventist Schools education director Brian Mercer said Gilson had a “financially responsible growth program” that includes plans for the school to include year 12 in 2018.
Gilson College has an information session on June 5 for year 7 and 8 enrolments.
Visit gilsoncollege.com or call 9717 7300
