Port Macquarie-Hastings Council adopts COVID-19 recovery and stimulus projects

The projects are funded through $1.8 million from the federal government's Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program and Port Macquarie-Hastings Council's $1.49 million COVID-19 Relief Reserve Fund.

The council adopted the COVID-19 recovery and stimulus projects at its meeting on Wednesday, August 12.

The 21 projects funded under the federal government contribution range from footpaths to rural road safety improvements, bus shelters and landing pads, Hay Street resurfacing, Wauchope Stadium cladding replacement and repainting the outside of Jubilee Hall.

The council's COVID-19 Relief Reserve Fund will enable 27 projects to go ahead.

The community can look forward to projects including grant writing workshops, Kendall bridge rehabilitation, a Laurieton main street masterplan, signs on Pappinbarra Road for speed reduction and renewed Comboyne Plateau maps.

The council reduced additional investment in tourism PR and marketing from $150,000 to $140,000 and put the $10,000 towards communication to the community.

The council thanked the COVID-19 Recovery Working Group members for their significant efforts in identifying and progressing projects and initiatives which will support our community and economic recovery.

Mayor Peta Pinson said a $3.3 million investment, on top of everything else the council was committing to for the community, was a sizeable amount.

She thanked each and every COVID-19 Recovery Working Group member.

"It just shows how when community works together, and council is close to its community, what sort of things can be achieved," Cr Pinson said.

Deputy mayor Lisa Intemann also thanked the working group, particularly the leaders, and council staff.

"It has been a great process, I believe, and really impressive involvement from the community," she said.

Cr Intemann said the projects went right across the community and that would be a great boost.

But Cr Sharon Griffiths voted against the decision.

She acknowledged there were some very good ideas but raised concern about the lack of detail.

"I really did want to see more on ground and more spread across the whole LGA in the use of those project funds," Cr Griffiths said.

Cr Rob Turner said the key word was balance.

Cr Turner said each of the working groups came up with some really good projects which would help the community recover for the short, medium and long term, and council staff had done a great job in managing that balance.

Cr Peter Alley said it was a great list of projects and congratulated everyone involved.

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