City pushes green light to offer land for Pimpama PCYC after 20-year wait
New designs for the planned Pimpama PCYC show how a 20-year project to stop youth crime on the northern Gold Coast can be fast tracked.
Council
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New designs for the planned Pimpama PCYC show how a 20-year project to stop youth crime on the northern Gold Coast can be fast tracked.
Councillors at lifestyle committee meeting on Thursday backed officer recommendations to offer land tenure on a council owned site to the award-winning charity.
Division 1 councillor Mark Hammel also successfully pushed to have the project considered in budget review talks in September.
Committee chair Glenn Tozer said the council had long supported the PCYC providing leased facilities at Ashmore, Nerang and Broadbeach Waters.
“With the rapid growth in the north of the city a site has been identified for the development of a new PCYC to enable a range of facilities, services and programs for youth and the general community,” he said.
“Located at Pimpama Village North, the site is centrally located and close to the community and existing infrastructure.”
PCYC received $5 million in State budget seed funding, and Cr Hammel hopes with an election in October the charity group can fast track designs and get support from both political parties.
Southport councillor Brooke Patterson cautioned about the item gaining budget support, arguing it was for the State and Commonwealth to fund the estimated $30 million for facilities.
“We are the ones with the risk here, not the state or federal,” she said.
But Cr Hammel told colleagues: “We are not giving the land away. We are leasing it to them. Any building built upon it is owned by us.
“I’m not asking for a capital contribution. I’m asking to go through the budget process.”
Cr Hammel was backed by councillors at committee, with a final decision to be made at the next full council meeting later this month.
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