Council try to pin Ministers down on MPS land hitch.

An apparent impasse to resolving the disused railway line issue at the end of the Tumut - Batlow line in order to facilitate the current design for the proposed Batlow Adelong Multi Purpose health Service (MPS) has prompted Tumut Shire Mayor Gene Vanzella to make further representations to two government ministers.

The Council is seeking meetings with the Minister for Health, John Hatzistergos" and the Minister for Transport, Mr Watkins.

An approach to the Health Minister was made at the recent Shires Conference, when Mr Hatzistergos apparently agreed to a meeting, but no date was set and attempts since to have the meeting confirmed have failed to produce a result.

The MPS is to be built on a section of Department of Railways land adjacent to Mill Road.

Tumut shire general manager Chris Adams says as far back as 1998 the MPS working group had established that a small section of the line would need to be closed, and knowing that could take some considerable time had advised the relevant parties things should be put in place to enable that to happen.

"But that action was not followed," said Mr Adams.

Whilst there-appears to be no problem with the vast majority of the site involved being utilised for an MPS building and associated carpark, the actual railway line has emerged as an 11 hour" hurdle.

"The MPS design involves a square building and until recently negotiations with the Department indicated it was prepared to shift the railway line "on paper" closer to Mill road to facilitate a square site," said Mr Adams.

"Now we learn someone has said no, leave the line where it is, which would require changing it to a long skinny hospital- after all this time."

"It's good that the government has said the money for the project is there, ($3.957m towards a total eventual cost of $11.8 million) was allocated in this year's Budget.

"But this needs to be sorted out, and quickly."

"That railway line is never likely to reopen and it would be silly to have to redesign the hospital at this late stage.

"Why can't common sense prevail and agreement be reached to provide the optimum MPS rather than a 'make-do' result which would still cost as much and yet be less efficient.

June 20, 2006

Tumut & Adelong Times