Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of the Greater Geelong City Council held at the Council Conference and Reception Centre in City Hall, 57 Little Malop Street, Geelong on 24 July 2018, commencing at 7:00pm.
Barry White
Anne Kavanagh
Frank Thompson
Tom Gilfillan
Alena Kralova
Rieny Nieuwenhof
Sarah Wright
Graeme Palmer
Councillors:
B Harwood (Mayor)
A Aitken
S Asher
K Grzybek
E Kontelj
S Mansfield
J Mason
P Murnane
P Murrihy
R Nelson
T Sullivan
M Cutter (Chief Executive Officer)
B Luxford (Director Investment and Attraction)
J Van Slageren (Acting Director Planning and Development)
V Shelton (Acting Director City Services)
L Quinn (Director Community Life)
P Anderson (Director Finance & Strategy)
A Keen (Executive Manager People and Organisation Development)
R Leonard (Executive Manager Governance & Legal Services)
The Chair declared the meeting open at 7:00pm.
Council acknowledged Wadawurrung Traditional Owners of this land and all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People who are part of the Greater Geelong community today.
Nil.
Councillor Grzybek moved, Councillor Mansfield seconded -
That the Minutes of the Special Meeting held on 26 June 2018 be confirmed.
Carried.
Councillor Kontelj moved, Councillor Mason seconded -
That the Minutes of the Special Meeting held on 3 July 2018 be confirmed.
Carried.
Nil.
Barry White lodged a question in relation to the old Geelong Gaol which was responded to prior to the meeting.
Anne Kavanagh, President, Rotary Club of Geelong asked the following questions in relation to the Old Geelong Gaol:
The Rotary Club of Geelong has leased the Gaol from the City since 1995. Activites have been developed to raise funds which are all used for community service projects. These include, leasing sections of the Gaol and grounds. Tenants include Barwon Health, GenU, Protective Group and Lazarus Drop in Centre for the homeless. Lazarus is heavily subsidised with lease rates of about half commercial rates. Opening the Gaol at weekends and holidays. Many displays developed. Tours – schools, bus tours, probus clubs, scouts plus more. Tours for Councilloruise Ships visiting Geelong. Every ship includes at least one tour. Developing “Ghost Tours” – more tourists. Developing “Escape Rooms” – more tourists. Other activities including filming, events and functions. All using volunteers. Fund raised in the last ten years over $1,400,000 has been raised – all used for community projects. Examples (there are many others) include accommodation at McKellar Centre, Geelong Mums, Indigenous Education, Geelong Symphony Orchestra, Tallis Street Primary School grounds and Bethany Father of the Year.
Regarding the sale of the Gaol will provision be made that will allow for the continuation of this project which supports the needy within our community (greater than $1,400,000 over the last ten years, plus numerous hours of volunteer work, attracts many tourists to Geelong and has the potential for significant development?
The Mayor responded he recognized the valuable contribution the Rotary Club has made to supporting various community groups through its involvement with the former Geelong Gaol building. Should the property be sold we will facilitate a meeting between the Rotary Club and the new owner to allow both parties to explore options for when the current tenancy arrangement expires in April 2020. Beyond the Rotary tenancy we have undertaken to continue to support the occupancy of the former Governor’s residence at the property by the Lazarus Community Centre until the end of April 2022 and has made this a condition of the property sale. We recognise the high level of community interest in the former Gaol building and its history and have provided in any sale documentation for a future owner to continue to allow community access to the former Gaol for a minimum of 500 hours per annum, as well as to commit to its restoration in accordance with Heritage Victoria permits and the existing Conservation Management Plan.
Frank Thompson asked a supplementary question relating to the 500 hours community access time per annum.
The Mayor responded the time allocated would be a minimum of 500 hours per annum.
Tom Gilfillan provided the following statement to Council regarding the Nuchev Goat facility in Lara:
Councillor Harwood, as a resident of Lara and still feeling the sting of the extraordinary granting of a permit for the Nuchev goat factory and the community backlash that this created, I have concerns about the rush to potentially build a Waste to Energy plant in the GREP site. Can you tell me the potential addressed within the GREP that are being considered and of the expected size of the facility, how many tonnes of waste per annum it will process and if there will be expansion of the facility allowed once it gets to capacity. What will be the impact of the myriad of trucks entering and exiting the site daily? What will be the allowance routes into and out of the facility?
Considering there is already an incredibly disgraceful rubbish tip in the immediate area can you understand that Lara residents are getting a bit sick of our town being a dumping site for poorly though out projects. To find out about this project in a press release without, apparently, community consultation is very disappointing. What other risks are there associated with such a facility?
The Mayor responded that much of the waste generated in Victoria is currently placed into landfill. Many landfills have a lifespan of less than ten years. New landfills require a lot of area and are very expensive to build and maintain. As such the City, along with many other Councils are in the early stages of investigating alternatives to the disposal of waste in landfills. One of the potential alternatives that is being investigated is ‘waste to energy’ technology. This technology as the name suggests utilises waste to develop energy or other products. Waste to energy facilities are common in many areas overseas, including within Europe and Asia. Waste to Energy potentially brings a number of benefits including jobs, economic development, large scale investment and the ability to dispose of our waste into the future. At this stage the GREP is one of a number of potential sites. Detailed planning and community consultation will be undertaken as part of the development of waste to energy facilities. Detailed risk analysis would need to be undertaken and a waste to energy facility would be required to meet strict standards, imposed by the EPA and other authorities. Waste to energy facilities have operated for many years in Europe in close proximity to homes and businesses.
The Mayor responded the facility is part of a discussion and no decision whether a waste management plant will be built in this region has been determined. Discussions are continuing, as is consultation.
Councillor Aitken added there will be extensive consultation and the same standards would be established for any part of Geelong.
Tom Gilfillan asked the following further question:
Councillor Harwood, are you award that in July 2018 Waste to Energy (WTE) proposed for Eastern Councilloreek in New South Wales was refused consent by the Independent Planning Commission regarding concerns of data provided in modelling not representing the actual waste streams proposed to be treated, insufficient evidence that the pollution control technologies are capable of appropriate managing emissions, issues around air quality, uncertainty in relation to health risks and site suitability. The WTE in Fyshwick Canberra was dumped in February 2018 over strong community concerns particularly regarding the incinerator component and emissions and air quality. My concern is the potential long term health effects on the people of Lara if this goes ahead so close to our town?
Are you aware that at the WTE site in Dundee that you visited recently the size of the plant will be 134 metres long and 38 metres high and that the exhaust stack height will be 90 metres – this is to process 110,000 tonnes per annum compared to approximately 300,000 tonnes per annum being considered in the WTE for the waste for Ballarat, Wyndham and Geelong. Can you advise how much bigger than the WTE in Dundee our plant would need to be and do you think considering the size of any proposed plant of this magnitude would be a comfortable fit anywhere in the GREP site?
The Mayor responded he was not familiar with the New South Wales proposal, but added the size of any future plant will need to be determined following extensive planning and community consultation.
Alena Kralova asked about the difficulties experienced regarding public transport and in particular Bus 24.
The Mayor asked Ms Kralova to provide her contact details so a meeting could be arranged to further discuss the issues.
Rieny Nieuwenhof asked questions regarding Councillor Kontelj’s Notice of Motion regarding Osborne House and the Stables:
I believe a motion is to be put tonight in regard to the future of Osborne House.
The Geelong and District Vietnam Veterans Association are former tenants of part of that building and therefore are one of the stakeholders in regard to what might happen to Osborne House in the future.
As citizens of Geelong we are also concerned that the historic integrity and cultural value of the building also be retained. We believe that Osborne House is a wonderful asset and should not be lost.
Naturally we hope that one day the Vietnam Veterans might return to Osborne House, but above all else we believe the building deserves our protection.
We believe that these objectives can be achieved if the buildings remain in community ownership, that a master plan be developed as was promised before the end of the year, that community consultation begin immediately and that the proceeds of the lease or sale of the adjacent former Council depot or other heritage buildings owned by the City of Greater Geelong goes towards the restoration of Osborne House.
Given these priorities will all Councillors support the motion as proposed by Councillor Kontelj?
The Mayor responded the above questions will be addressed during debate of the item.
Sarah Wright asked her question in relation to UNESCO Councilloreative Cities:
Does Council support the principles of smart cities and one planet living where these concepts seek natural drainage rather than constructed conventional infrastructure (Federal, State and Council policy alignment)?
Councillor Harwood responded it is part of our policy and we do share those views.
Would Councillors be concerned if officers were taking a position of not supporting a development that incorporates these principles as they do not believe it is within their current development standards and knowledge base?
Councillor Harwood took the question on notice.
Graeme Palmer asked his question regarding the Geelong Maritime Museum Future:
The Geelong Maritime Museum is a popular venue for busloads of visitors from aged care facilities as well as other tourist groups. Has any plans been made or suggested for its future. In the past it has been overlooked by Council?
The Mayor responded the above question would be addressed this evening during debate.
A petition was presented to Council from Sandra Madex in relation the sale of the Old Geelong Gaol. The petitioners are asking that the Gaol not be sold but to remain in public ownership.
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