Blackwood Hub could be reduced to smaller $10 million project under new push
Plans for a $20 million library and community centre in Blackwood could be quashed this week, with a proposal to halve the project’s budget.
East, Inner Suburbs & Hills
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The controversial Blackwood Hub plan would be scaled back and redesigned under a new push at Mitcham Council.
The library and community centre project – currently budgeted for up to $20 million – would be capped at $10 million and new designs ordered to fit the new budget.
Councillors Dave Munro and Adriana Christopoulos have both lodged their intention to make the proposal at a council meeting on Tuesday night.
It is likely to spark a showdown between representatives of the hills and plains of the Mitcham district, which have generally voted for the project along geographic lines.
It follows the project’s contentious inclusion in Mitcham Council’s 2020/21 budget.
In a memo to colleagues, Cr Munro said the community “deserve the opportunity to be provided an alternative option … due to the size of the investment and 50 year commitment this will be”.He said councillors needed to consider a different design with a “reduced footprint, reduced operating costs whilst still providing a modern purpose built facility in Blackwood during a time when economic stimulus is required”.
The council would need to spend $35,000 for new designs.
Cr Christopoulos said she was opposed to the cost of building and maintaining a $20 million building.
“I just can’t fathom why a $10 million library isn’t adequate for hills councillors,” Cr Christopoulos said.
“Five million of that will come from the Federal Government, three million from the sale of the (current) library site and any other sites and then we invest $2 million of ratepayer money.
“All of that will just halve the costs. I just don’t think we need to spend that much money.”
Cr Jane Bange, who supports the fully-funded project, warned supporters in an email on Friday that the project would be “obstructed” if its funding was reduced.
“Unless we receive a flood of emails against these motions and supporting, instead, the existing hub concept and design, I believe the entire project could be easily fall over,” Cr Bange wrote.
“Or, if the hub does get built, be an inadequate facility that still costs Council the same amount of money (through having lost the federal and state funding).”
The $20 million proposal – which is dependant on $5 million in funding from the State Government, which has so far been refused – made it into this year’s budget on the casting vote of Mayor Heather Holmes-Ross.
It came after the vote was delayed for a week, when a new plains councillor was installed following a by-election.
Another plains councillor has since filled a second vacancy on the council.
