State government vows to continue Indigenous consultation as new Coffs council drops pursuit of Jetty Foreshore land

The fresh Coffs Harbour council has ditched plans to buy land earmarked for the state government’s contentious Jetty Foreshore Precinct Revitalisation plan. Here’s what happened.

The new City of Coffs Harbour council.

Coffs Harbour council will quit pursuing buying two parcels of Coffs Harbour Jetty Foreshore land earmarked for the state government’s contentious Jetty Foreshore Precinct Revitalisation plan.

The City of Coffs Harbour voted to cease the application for land acquisition with new councillors at the helm of its first meeting of the year on October 24.

Recently-elected mayor Nikki Williams said both parcels of land council had sought to buy — Lot 11 DP 843870 and Lot 10 DP 1284099 – were identified for redevelopment as part of the wider precinct master plan.

In another significant move, the council also voted to re-engage with state on the broader issue of the revitalisation of the area.

Coffs Harbour MP Gurmesh Singh.

Coffs Harbour state MP Gurmesh Singh congratulated the fresh council on its vote to re-engage and “secure a seat at the table”.

The council also voted to ask the Lands and Property Minister Steve Kamper to prioritise tourism accommodation in the state’s plan – a move backed by Mr Singh during parliament on October 18.

“I have called for the Minns Labor Government, which is both the landowner and rezoning authority for the revitalisation project, to prioritise tourism accommodation over other types of accommodation in the Jetty Precinct, a sentiment also shared by our new council,” he said.

If the bid for tourism accommodation prioritisation is successful, this could result in a conciliatory pivot from multistorey private residential apartments – the subject of a poll conducted at the 2024 Local Government election.

An artist impression of foreshore plans.

The poll results showed almost 70 per cent of respondents were against multi-level private residential development.

The shift in focus to tourist accommodation as a priority comes as Garlambirla Guuyu-girrwaa Aboriginal Elders have made it clear they will not provide a Welcome to Country if state plans go ahead.

Property and Development NSW (PDNSW) has vowed to meet with the Gumbaynggirr Aboriginal Elders group and spokespeople have described consultation as widespread.

Gumbaynggirr Elder Reg Craig says the Jetty area is particularly special to the community.

“We will continue to engage with the Aboriginal and wider Coffs community, including the Gumbaynggirr Aboriginal Elders,” a PDNSW spokesman said.

“Property and Development NSW has conducted extensive consultation with Aboriginal stakeholders alongside Indigenous consultancy Murawin to ensure we respect and celebrate the unique Gumbaynggirr culture and its profound connection to country.”

PDNSW chief executive officer Leon Walker, Mr Singh, Ms Williams and Mr Kamper met to discuss the revitalisation plan on October 18 and are due to work together as more public consultation is undertaken.

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