The 15 Independent candidates of Team Central Coast have thrown their support behind the Central Coast Airport Draft Masterplan and will advocate for its implementation to achieve regional economic objectives such as attracting business investment, developing tourism and generating employment opportunities.
Presented to Central Coast Council in December 2023 and on public exhibition until early this year, the draft masterplan proposes “to develop the Central Coast Airport at Warnervale into a general aviation hub that integrates aviation, technology, education, and business and provides opportunities for interaction, collaboration and alliances in the aviation sector”.
Team Central Coast Leader Lawrie McKinna said the draft masterplan provided a 10-year road map to guide development of an aviation precinct that aligned with several of the team’s key objectives, namely strong economic leadership and critical infrastructure development.
“The Central Coast is falling behind other regional centres,” he said.
“As the third most populated council region in NSW, a newly elected council needs to leverage our region’s huge economic potential with catalyst projects such as the Central Coast Airport to boost employment, tourism and economic performance.
“The absence of strong council leadership in recent years and minimal collaboration between government and industry has stunted infrastructure growth in our region.
“Without access to local aviation services, our capacity for local trade and tourism to grow and compete with other major regional centres has also been constrained.
“A key driver for Team Central Coast is to ensure key infrastructure projects like the Central Coast Airport are realised to improve our region’s economic competitiveness and ensure our future sustainability so our whole community can benefit.”
McKinna said Team Central Coast was aware of the environmental concerns expressed by some residents regarding the airport expansion and (the team) planned to further address these, if elected to Council.
“We know there have been many technical, financial, social and environmental complexities worked through in the development of the draft Central Coast Airport Masterplan and we would seek to continue to address these factors with all parties as this project evolves,” he said.
“We further support the draft masterplan’s strategic vision to make this catalyst project a benchmark for environmentally sensitive and sustainable development in our region.”
I don’t see how Team Central Coast Council can promise to support a draft airport Masterplan while technical studies, costings, and financial feasibility studies commissioned by Council remain outstanding.
A business case also needs to be presented to councillors before an informed decision can be taken.
It is odd that Team Central Coast Council, one of whose candidates is George Paterson (President of an aero club that would benefit from such ratepayer subsidies), can promise such support before financial studies, costings and business case are available.
Yet, when asked their position on the Wamberal Sea Wall, where all the information has been public for some time, they refuse to be transparent with voters claiming they need more information.
An inconsistent approach to say the least.
The airport precinct has to stay and be developed as this team propose. The asset has been continually held back for decades by people moving to the Central Coast well after the airstrip was originally recognised by local people as an asset to the area. Some people are just stuck in a continuous negative mindset. They never fail to turn up to block any progressive proposal put forward. All they achieve is an escalation of costs and the time projects take to be achieved.
Kevin let’s put the president aside.As financial gain seems irrelevant.I have always thought that if the council could get rid of the airport, they would be able to build another Westfield’s. I hope I’m wrong let’s wait and see.
Here we go again! delusional empire builders and the self interested that want to use other peoples money for their thought bubbles and think a few sightseeing flights and hangar storages will make us into an aviation hub! what exactly is that apart from those evocative words they have used. The ratepayers of the Central Coast will receive no benefit but will have more noise and carbon emissions to contend with. The upgrade will be expensive and as Kevin Brooks has said there are no costings, only a report on the upgrade that has already cost $400,000 of ratepayers money in addition to the $500,00 annually to maintain the airfield for the benefit of a few who own their own aircraft, this is about 250 homes that contribute all their rates for a few. We are still in debt, only fools spend money on a new car when already behind in their mortgage payments. How about we vote for some prospective candidates that want to keep costs down and provide services to benefit the people that live here.