Hornsby Shire Council have been hit hard by a classic case of ‘use it or lose it’, after the Minns government advised the Council it will no longer fund the development of the Westleigh Park redevelopment project.
Not only knocking back the project, but the state government has also asked the council to repay the unused $36 million. A sum to the uninformed eye might seem rather shocking, however, the Council was granted this fund back in 2018. Since then, only $4 Million of the total $40 million has been spent.
It is clear the money has been sitting patiently, thanks to the barrage of Covid-19 delays, but with the NSW government seeing no tangible work, or unable to see the project on track, it seems they have made the final decision to back out of the project and request the remaining unused cash.
Hornsby Shire Council have now expressed that since the grant was awarded, they have undertaken extensive planning and community engagement, operating under the assumption that the funding was secured. However, almost 6 years of planning and consultation must not have been good enough for the government, it seems once grant money is given, you need to timely and effectively spend it, not hold it for over 5 years.
Minister for Local Government Ron Hoenig MP, said on Monday, June 11th after the decision was made.
“At a time when we are facing a cost-of-living crisis, every dollar counts.
"Hornsby Council has had years to utilise this funding and the original deadline written into the grant guidelines has long passed.
“Where councils have not demonstrated sufficient progress on projects that received grant funding, the government will be recouping this money and ensuring it is reinvested where it’s needed most.”
An understandably angry Mayor of Hornsby Phillip Ruddock, AO has expressed frustration with the NSW government's decision.
“I will not apologise that we have worked tirelessly on a sensitive and important site to get the balance right for our community,” said Mayor Ruddock, adding that Council has been regularly informing the state government of its progress on the project.
“We have cooperated with the NSW Government on their recently announced housing targets, agreeing to deliver additional housing above the 4,900 already planned for in our Hornsby Town Centre Masterplan. To learn that these new residents will no longer have access to the infrastructure they were promised is incredibly disappointing.”
The Post asked Hornsby Shire Council why the remaining $36 million had not yet been spent since the grant was provided to the council in 2018.
“The original timelines provided to Council were arbitrary and unrealistic given the projects are of such large scale and complexity. Council liaised regularly with the Office of Local Government regarding a suitable timeframe for the delivery of a project of this nature and provided regular updates on progress and achievement of milestones.”
“The Office of Local Government has requested that the Council pay back the money by 31 July 2024. Council is currently considering its options.” - Spokesperson from Hornsby Shire Council.
A shame for the community who would have almost had their hands on redevelopment to create a major space for sporting activities including football, athletics, rugby, AFL and cricket, and other recreational activities such as mountain biking, walking and cycling.
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