Following a community consultation process the Greater Bendigo City Council has declared seven City owned properties as surplus to the City's needs and has authorised the CEO to commence a process to sell the properties.
The seven properties are:
- Crown Allotment 61C Houliston Road, Leichardt
- Settlement Road, Elmore
- Crown Allotment 10, Fosterville
- Former Leichardt Hall and Tennis Courts (Cleary Road Leichardt)
- Former Lockwood Tennis Club at 519 Crusoe Road, Lockwood
- Rear 158 Eaglehawk Road, Long Gully (carpark)
- 3-4 Lindsay Court, Strathfieldsaye
The Council has also declared that the proceeds from the sale of the properties are to be deposited into the Public Space Reserve or the Land and Buildings Reserve in line with relevant policies.
The Council voted to retain two properties located at 6 The Strand, Kennington and 3 Lona Close, Spring Gully due to the lack of safe access to similar nearby green spaces.
Section 20 of the Subdivision Act 1988 specifies that Council can sell public spaces if the funds are used for improvements of existing public space or the acquisition of new public space. For the other properties sold, funds are transferred into the City's Land and Building Reserve which is designed to provide funds for future strategic purchases of land and/or building assets within the municipality.
City of Greater Bendigo Mayor Cr Thomas Prince said the City manages a portfolio of assets valued in excess of $3 billion.
"As part of the City's strategic asset management and long-term financial plan, the asset portfolio is continually reviewed to ensure that it meets the growing and changing needs of the community, is provided equitably across the municipality, and that buildings are safe and fit for purpose," Cr Prince said.
"As the population grows and the demographics of various areas change, there are different building and land needs.
"The significant and growing costs associated with maintaining such a large property portfolio is not sustainable and means there are limited funds to undertake upgrades and renewal projects to meet current community expectations and needs.
"This means it's becoming even more important to regularly monitor the portfolio of properties across Greater Bendigo in line with the City's Long Term Financial Plan 2025-2035.
"Progressing the sale of the different properties will take various amounts of time depending on what is required to get the sites ready for sale."
