Special Council Meeting wrap - 25 March 2024

Published on 03 April 2024

The awarding of tenders for The Glasshouse @ The Gannawarra and work to replace two wooden bridges was the highlight of a Special Meeting of Gannawarra Shire Council, held on Monday, 25 March 2024.

The meeting, held at the Kerang Senior Citizens Centre, was required after Crs Keith Link and Garner Smith walked out of the March 2024 Council Meeting prior to voting on a recommendation to award the tender for The Glasshouse @ The Gannawarra, resulting in the meeting not having a quorum to proceed.

The matter was one of six items initially listed for discussion at the March 2024 meeting addressed during the Special Council Meeting, with RTM Construction Pty Ltd awarded the tender for the $3.07 million project.

To be incorporated into Kerang’s Sir John Gorton Library, this regionally unique space will allow the Gannawarra Library Service to plan and deliver youth programs including movie making, sound and music recording, whilst the flexible and scalable meeting space will have the technology necessary for modern meetings, conferences and training sessions.

Construction of The Glasshouse @ The Gannawarra is supported by a $1.5 million contribution from the State Government’s Living Libraries Infrastructure Program and $718,000 from the Federal Government’s Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program. An additional $842,000 from Council’s capital works budget will be allocated to the project after Council identified during the tender process that the current budget allocation was insufficient to enable the project to be completed.

Council also awarded the tender for the design and construction the Apex Park Road and Kervins Road bridges to Murray Constructions Pty Ltd.

Supported by $760,000 from the Federal Government’s Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program, Council will contribute $363,000 from its capital works budget to ensure the project proceeds.

The project will involve installing a new concrete structure over Washpen Creek near Reedy Lake to enable access to the popular Apex Park facilities and campsite, which have not been accessible after the original bridge collapsed in July 2023.

The Kervins Road bridge, located east of Cohuna, will also be replaced with a new concrete structure after inspections found the current structure was suffering from defects.

Other outcomes of the meeting included:

• Adopting the revised Domestic Animal Management Plan;
• Approving a planning permit for the use and development of land at Kerang East for a poultry farm (free range layer hen facility) and associated buildings and works, subject to various conditions;
• Noting the report regarding the impact environmental flooding of Gunbower on tourism;
• Noting a response from North Central Catchment Management Authority in relation to environmental flooding of Gunbower Forest; and
• Confirming Council will permanently withdraw from providing building permit applications.

Four questions from the public regarding the VNI West project were addressed.

For more information, including a link to the video from this meeting and minutes, please visit www.gsc.vic.gov.au/meetings