By Katya Quigley
?Port Macquarie?s entertainment hub the Glasshouse has been named Australia?s performing arts centre of the year. It?s a wonderful accolade for a building that has been steeped in controversy since its inception. But awards aside, what is the future of this building which is costing ratepayers $6 million a year to run and continues to burn a $23 million hole in Council?s pockets?
Love it or hate it, there?s no denying the Glasshouse in Port Macquarie is attracting some major talent to the town.
It?s a building with controversy in its foundations, a project that had massive cost blowouts and led to the Port Macquarie Hastings Council going into administration.
?Despite the national accolades, the Glasshouse is the elephant in the room when it comes to talking about its future viabilityand Council?s ongoing budgetary headaches.
?Both Peter Besseling and Lisa Interman are vying for the position of Mayor in the upcoming local government elections. Peter Besseling is the former state member for Port Macquarie and Lisa Interman is a former Councillor and both have very strong views on the future direction for the building.
On June 15 2012 the ABC ran the following story.
Port Macquarie?s Glasshouse development has again become a hot topic, ahead of this year?s Local Government election.
A community group in the Hastings wants the newly elected council to address the issue.
The Lake Cathie Progress Association has reacted to the 15 percent rate increase recently approved by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal for the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council.
The group notes that a high number of pensioners and low income earners are already struggling to keep up with constantly rising rates.
The Association has commended some cost cutting undertaken by the council, but is concerned the ongoing cost of the Glasshouse is the main reason for rate increases.
It wants newly elected Councillors to conduct a community wide poll to determine what can be done to avoid the six million dollar annual cost of the facility.
Association spokesman Jack Jones said local opinion is divided between people who love it and others who think it?s too expensive.
?If there was a poll of ratepayers as to whether it stays in council management or whether it?s put into private management then it?s a clear way out of the problem for everybody,? he said.
?The annual losses are $6 odd million, and a cost of a poll?s probably a very small percentage of that.?
We must ensure that Coffs Harbour? doe not get faced with a similar disaster just for the sake of having an ?Entertainment Centre? It is very unlikely that they will succeed in finding a private investor to cover those costs
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