Confidential statement of impact on 2024 attempt to cancel Moreau Mews Town Square project will be released

Two years after a controversial attempt to reinvestigate a 100 per cent public park project near Canning Bridge, Melville council is still discussing whether to make the reasons for opposition clearer.

Melville council voted in April 2023 to approve the Moreau Mews Town Square development. It involved the demolition of two office buildings on the corner of Kishorn Road and Moreau Mews to fully transform the council-owned site into a public open space.

Almost a year later, Cr Scott Green submitted a notice of rescission to reverse that go-ahead.

His February 2024 motion sought to reinvestigate development options for the site, but was withdrawn before the meeting began after elected members received a confidential statement of impact from officers, which detailed legal and financial advice and information about contractors.

Cr Green’s move to reinvestigate the development also met with an immediate public backlash.

He has now submitted a motion to make the confidential information about the development from that time available to the public. This passed 9-4 at last week’s meeting.

“I really do believe the community deserves to have the full picture of the impacts, firstly of the April (2023) council resolution but then secondly for both of the rescission motions,” he said.

“I think this is not only important for transparency, but also for future consideration by not only council but by the community for any future decisions that council may make.”

The move came after another councillor, Michael McGoldrick, made a recent attempt to pass a second rescission motion on the project. In an identical turn of events, that prompted Cr Karen Wheatland last month to move a motion to also make public a statement of impact related to his motion.

Cr McGoldrick again asked councillors to revoke council’s 2023 decision to go ahead with Moreau Mews. Instead, he said it should assess options for mixed public open space and property development on the site.

A tied vote from councillors meant his motion failed and plans will continue to progress the development of 100 per cent public open space.