A few home truths about the long-mired Kiernan Park sporting precinct were revealed at the Special Council Meeting last Thursday.
In August 2020 the state government committed $20 million for the first stage of the development (1A), which covers two ovals with lighting, a pavilion, carpark, service road, landscaping, irrigation, drainage and water harvesting.
That’s on top of the estimated $30 million value of the land which was gifted to the shire back in 2018.
By 2022, the shire had already realised that the $20 mil wasn’t going to take them through to ribbon-cutting. So, they went cap in hand to ask for some more, please.
A further $2 million from the state government was arranged if the shire could match it.
“However, with the passage of time, costs have rapidly escalated and as a result, the grant is no longer able to cover the entire cost of Stage 1A,” shire officers reported on Thursday, stating a budget shortfall of $7.18 million.
So, to make it to the grand opening of Stage 1A – which does not include construction of the new BMX facilities or netball courts – it is now estimated to cost just shy of $30 million. That’s a ten-million-dollar budget blowout in two years.
The big caveat, of course, is that new $30 mil estimate is only relevant if the tender is awarded this year as planned. But the shire is also now recalibrating its delivery schedule – the construction contract could now be awarded in October next year, by which time the costs could have ostensibly climbed by another million or two, or three.
Officers are now scrambling to cover the cost explosion by using development contribution funds (paid by the shire and land developers for new community infrastructure for Mundijong and Byford). And if all of that is expended, then the shire will ask for a loan.
On Thursday, the shire CEO Paul Martin almost uttered a mea culpa on behalf of his team for the four long years and $4.5 million spent on the project’s development with not a single sod turned to show for it.
After councillor Morgan Byas pointedly asked how much of the original $20 million gifted to the shire in grant funding had been spent on staff wages, it was revealed that 5,560 internal hours have been billed to the Keirnan Park project at a total cost of $1,604,240.
As one very savvy resident pointed out, that calculates to $288.50 per billable hour.
According to a survey conducted by the Australian Institute of Project Management, the average hourly rate charged by project managers in Australia is between $150 and $300 per hour.
So, for nearly $290 per hour, one would hope that the Shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale has somehow managed to hire the most brilliant project management minds in the country. But the odds are slim that’s the case.
“I’d really like to see where those costs are coming from, please, in some sort of itemised detail,” asked Oakford resident Vanessa Reynolds, who brought the eye-watering hourly rate to light.
The naked facts elicited an eyebrow raise from the CEO and Ms Reynolds’ question was taken on notice.
Then the shire was taken to task by the Byford BMX Club and its supporters, who were livid that development contribution funds earmarked for the new BMX facilities (1B) were being pinched to fund the project’s blowout.
It was proposed by officers that it would take another five years to collect enough funding to finance the club’s new track and pavilion – and only then if they watered down the current design to a more affordable scope.
“Despite our unwavering dedication, the BMX Club has been continually let down by this council,” club chair Dan Landers said.
“According to the Briggs Park Master Plan, our track was supposed to close in 2014 and reopen in Briggs Park in 2015 with a fully rebuilt and relocated track. This did not happen due to last minute funding issues.
“In 2016 we were promised a new facility by 2023 at a different location. Yet again, nothing materialised.
“We were then moved to Stage 1B in the Keirnan Park Master Plan, with delivery expected by 2025, and we were told our new facility would be the first project funded by the development contribution fund.
“Promises from the council date back as far as 2007 to rebuild our track.
“Continuous broken promises have eroded the community’s trust in this council.”
He outlined that by building a national standard track for BMX in SJ it would be the first in the state, and attract significant revenue and major event opportunities for the shire.
“Greater Shepparton, a rural council in Victoria boasted about the $7 million boost to their economy from hosting the 2023 national titles. They are now investing millions more to secure world cup rounds. What will it take for our community leaders to harness that vision for our community?” Mr Landers asked.
“We need you to act now. Commit to building the proposed BMX track at Keirnan Park alongside Stage 1A of the precinct. Let’s not let another opportunity slip away.”
Points were also raised from community members and stakeholders about not frittering away the chance to use the earthmoving machinery to complete both the ovals, pavilions, and the BMX track at the same time.
A last-minute reprieve came from Shire President Rob Coales who introduced an alternate motion to have a rethink about the stagnating plans for the BMX facilities.
Councillors agreed and also voted to forge ahead with 1A, its elongated timeline and budget blowout financed through the new funding arrangements.
