First Toowoomba leaders meeting to be held on July 18, organised by Groom MP Garth Hamilton

A date has been set for the convergence of Toowoomba’s political leaders at what is set to be the first of quarterly meetings between three levels of government.

A unified vision for Toowoomba’s contribution to the 2032 Olympics will be part of the agenda for the city’s community leaders when they meet for the first of a series of regular meetings.

Federal Groom MP Garth Hamilton has confirmed he will hold talks with Toowoomba mayor Geoff McDonald and deputy Rebecca Vonhoff as well as state MPs Trevor Watts and David Janetzki on July 18.

Commitments towards quarterly meetings were secured from the three tiers of government following a campaign by The Chronicle to address inaction on a number of key projects and fix perceived communication issues.

Member for Groom, Garth Hamilton. Australia Day celebrations at Picnic Point in Toowoomba. Thursday, January 26, 2023. Picture: Nev Madsen.

It also comes at a critical time as both Mr Watts and Mr Janetzki look set to become part of a new state government, with the latter expected to be the treasurer.

The session, which has been organised by Mr Hamilton, will reportedly cover significant local ground and allow for the exchanging of separate agendas to create a consensus.

One item that will be discussed is what Toowoomba would like out of the beleaguered Brisbane Olympics, after the current state government scrapped plans for an upgrade of Clive Berghofer Stadium following a snap review earlier this year.

Mr Hamilton said pursuing the idea of an equestrian centre of excellence at the Toowoomba Showgrounds would be “low-hanging fruit” for the five leaders to work on.

“I want to have really clear and open communication, and that’s not just between me and the mayor and the state guys, but also relevant councillors,” he said.

“We’ve got a date and a basic agenda — I’m doing the background stuff and that requires a bit of work.

“The community would like us to come away with the agreed positions, and one of the key areas is, I’d like to have an agreed position on a prioritised Olympics agenda.

“To me, it’s obvious our position should be on the equestrian centre, and we should be coming out of this pledging to move that forward.”

Despite his criticisms of the council on delays to a number of key projects, Mr Hamilton said he wanted the meeting to be positive.

“I don’t want this to come out as a negative, I’m trying not make it sound like I’m dictating terms — I’m simply convening the meeting,” he said.

Mr Watts said he would be happy to talk about his agenda following the LNP’s state conference at the weekend.

The mayor and Mr Janetzki were also contacted for comment.