Councillors met, at an Extraordinary Meeting on Tuesday afternoon last week to discuss a report on tenders for the construction of the building project.
It is believed councillors learned the lowest tender was some $400,000 over council’s budgeted amount. Councillors voted 6-1 to revise the scope of the project to avoid the need for increased funding over budget.
Mayor Pat Bourke was the sole councillor to vote against the motion and said he would have liked council to negotiate with tenderers to identify if there was an opportunity to revise the building scope and find savings.
“This has been the previous process,” he said. “But I respect the direction of council which resulted in a different outcome from the original concept.”
The mayor acknowledged the difficult time being experienced in the construction industry with huge rises in material costs.
“Council will go back to the market to assess options to proceed with delivering a public administration building that will best meet the needs of our user groups within the available budget,” he said.
Council staff will prepare a report, with recommendations, for Monday’s meeting. “I look forward to receiving the report to progress this project,” Mayor Bourke said.
Deputy Mayor Shaun Whitechurch was an apology from last week’s meeting, as was Cr Andrew Kennedy who declared a pecuniary interest.
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