NSW Lands Minister Tony Kelly has poured cold water on calls for a referendum on a region-wide levy to maintain Killalea State Park.
Mr Kelly said he did not support such a referendum and even if it was held, it would not make a difference to a decision to lease part of the site for 52 years.
A spokesman for Mr Kelly said if a referendum was held "it would not change the fact that the Killalea State Park Trust has an existing agreement in place entitling Mariner to submit a DA for assessment".
Mr Kelly also accused Killalea activists of trying to "hijack" calls for a levy by turning it into "a call for an unnecessary referendum".
He was responding to a public meeting on Tuesday night when 100 people overwhelmingly supported a referendum to determine the future of the park.
The meeting was held in the wake of a proposal by Mayor David Hamilton that Shellharbour City Council take over control of the park from the Killalea Trust as an alternative to leasing part of the land to developers.
Included in his proposal was an Illawarra-wide levy and a $2 million, Government-funded development that would help pay for the estimated $250,000 annual maintenance bill. To determine support for the levy, he recommended a poll of residents in Wollongong, Shellharbour and Kiama be held.
Yesterday, Mr Kelly's office said the Minister would not foot the bill for a referendum on the issue.
"The Minister does not support Councillor Hamilton's suggested referendum, to decide if the people of Wollongong, Shellharbour and Kiama LGAs should pay a new levy to fund ongoing costs at Killalea State Park.
"The Minister does not support the subsequent attempts by the South Coast Labour Council and the Save Killalea Alliance to hijack this suggestion and turn it into a call for an unnecessary referendum on the future of parts of the park."
LIGHT, sustainable and discrete - that's the philosophy behind the accommodation that may appear at Killalea State Park.
The units are designed to "touch the earth lightly" according to Killalea Coastal Investments, which signed an agreement with the park trust to lease about 7 per cent of the park area for 52 years.
Native trees and plants will replace noxious weeds and, overall, buildings will not limit access for anyone wanting to walk, visit, surf or simply enjoy the area, the developer says.
Illawarra Mercury - 20 September 2007
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