Peninsula Chamber of Commerce has grave concerns that a mooted sale of the Gosford Council Chambers could lead to an under representation for the Peninsula.
The chambers building in Mann St was included in a list of Council assets which could possibly be sold to help address Council’s $89M deficit made public on November 27.
“This sale could mean real dangers for the Peninsula from a business perspective,” Chamber of Commerce President, Matthew Wales, said.
“The Council is already Wyong centric in its operations and southern business communities are concerned that there will be a level of detachment if administration is centralised in Wyong.
“We would not get adequate access to services where in the past the Gosford office was convenient, particularly for face to face meetings and consultations prior to COVID restrictions.
“Nonetheless, if this is being seriously considered, the Administrator, Dick Persson, needs to ensure that meeting and services facilities on a scaled down version are retained in the Gosford CBD.
“We are also anxious for assurances that there will be no moves to curtail operations on the Peninsula such as the Woy Woy library.”
Wales said the Chamber would also like an assurance that services such as the Woy Woy Council Depot are retained.
“The problem I see is that it’s already difficult to get access to the people you need,” he said.
“Teams meetings are no substitute for face to face dialogue and we need to ensure that that ability is retained in Gosford, especially when it is being touted as the capital of the Central Coast.
“It doesn’t bode well when you strip administrative services out of the capital’s CBD.
“I reiterate, don’t forget the south.”
Wales said the Chamber would be putting in a submission on the list of proposed asset sales.
“We will be particularly keen to see what else is on the chopping block in the future,” he said.
“We want to ensure that our communities on the Peninsula aren’t short changed as a result of any sell off,” Wales said.
Terry Collins