MAYOR CALLS EXTRAORDINARY MEETING TO SUPPORT PROMISED SPORTS HUB
Dubbo Regional Council (DRC) Mayor Josh Black has called an extraordinary meeting of Council after it has been revealed there is a potential threat to funding for the long promised PCYC Western NSW Sports Hub in Dubbo because of a necessary proposed variation to the location.
Clr Black has described the project as critical in dealing with regional youth crime and providing equity of access to sporting facilities for athletes in the Western and Far Western Regions of NSW.
The extraordinary meeting will consider a Mayoral Minute regarding the Dubbo Regional Sports Hub / PCYC Update: Variation Proposal – Change of Location.
Clr Black said he called the extraordinary meeting so the community can fully understand exactly what is happing with the project, to allow councillors and community members to formally express their support for such an important project and to decide what further actions the Council will undertake to support the project
First announced in September 2018, total funding for the project stands at more than $48 million.
Clr Black said the proposed change in location will mean the project will still be delivered to the community within the current allocated budget, whereas the current location cannot be delivered within that budget.
Ministerial approval of the variation application would therefore allow the hub to be built and provide its long promised multiple social and economic benefits for the wider region.
Clr Black called for Minister for Regional NSW The Hon Tara Moriarty MLC to approve the variation, which amounts to a change of address for this very important piece of regional infrastructure.
“This project is widely supported across western NSW including support from many other Council areas. We are facing significant youth crime challenges across western NSW, not just in Moree, and this PCYC project is exactly the sort of project we need here in Dubbo.
“Our community has been waiting over six years for this facility, which will mean huge things for our sporting clubs and our kids. It is simply inconceivable to me that funding might now be in jeopardy after the state government has promised it for so long. To rip nearly $50 million from a regional community in those circumstances would be unprecedented and would not be forgotten quickly,” Clr Black said.
“The Dubbo community deserves this facility, the Western and Far Western Regions deserve this facility, and a minor change in location shouldn’t stop it from being built, especially when that means it can be delivered within the current budget, and the same outcomes will be realised for the region.
“The suggestion this is a new project requiring a whole new application process is absurd. On Wednesday Council will determine what steps we take to head off any threat to the project, but I would like to see a full scale campaign, if necessary, calling for the centre to be built, to be supported by all Councillors,” Clr Black said.
Last Edited: 02 Dec 2024