A small solar plant, community centre, men’s shed and landscaping are among projects proposed in a village plan for Tarago.
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They’re all worthy improvements but the community has not been fully consulted about any of them, says the town’s Progress Association.
The document, completed by Elton Consulting, following initial community talks in August, was a hot discussion point at Tuesday night’s council outreach meeting in the town.
Under the plan, Veolia Environmental Services and the council would fund work, with the former kicking in an expected $200,000 annually. The company wants the community to take better advantage of funds in the Veolia Mulwaree Trust.
While locals welcomed the contribution, they challenged suggestions they fully supported the plan’s content.
Progress Association member and Tarago Show Society president Keith Hunter described it as “village centric.”
“This process has taken so long,” he told the meeting.
“We’ve sent emails (to the consultants) and we’ve seen very few of our suggestions going in the plan. In August we had a consultation meeting and we haven’t heard anything since and that’s the frustration...They need to listen to that input and they’re not doing that.”
Association president Judy Alcock agreed and said locals feared that projects they suggested would not be funded because they weren’t in the document.
However council general manager Warwick Bennett assured them the plan would have to be first ratified by the community.
The document proposes a community centre behind the village hall to house medical staff, a cinema area for indoor and outdoor screenings, a training, education and study room, commercial space, visitors information, a multi-sport indoor court and other aspects.
Rezoning more land to meet housing growth, sewering the village heart to allow more intense housing, a men’s shed, landscaping the main street, a community garden, creation of a town square, upgrading public toilets, public art and a central solar plant, possibly on Veolia-owned land, to power 100 houses, are among other suggestions.
One man told the meeting the public toilets should be upgraded as a matter of health and safety and should not be dependent on a State Government grant for which the council was applying.
Mrs Alcock agreed this was critical, given the toilets were “the only public ones between Tarago and Nowra.”
The village also has discretionary funds granted by the council which Mr Bennett said could also be used if the community deemed it necessary.
Mrs Alcock said there was still much to be discussed about the village plan
“We were told our application to the (Veolia Mulwaree) Trust for a memorial garden was not successful because it wasn’t in the plan,” she said.
“If that’s the case then we feel the plan has to be a living document for us to review and ensure we’re going in the right direction.”
Mrs Alcock, a real estate agent, said she’d like to see owners of 100 acre blocks close to town be able to subdivide into five-acre lots to accommodate residential demand.
The state of rural roads, weed spraying, the council funding split between city and rural areas and waste services were among other topics discussed at the meeting.
It was one in a series of forums in towns and villages in the council area. One is planned for Towrang on Thursday, November 16 at 6.30pm at the hall, another on Thursday, November 23 at Tallong Memorial Hall 6.30pm and one at Bungonia hall at 6.30pm on November 28.