A FOURTH North Nowra link road option has been dusted off after years buried in one of Shoalhaven City Council’s long-term strategy plans.
Known as the Moss Vale Road Link it runs almost parallel to West Cambewarra Road but on the western side of the Bernie Regan Sporting Complex.
Shoalhaven mayor Joanna Gash said the road was mentioned in a briefing during discussions about the West Cambewarra parallel option.
“It was in the Nowra/Bomaderry Structure Plan and when [council staff] told us about it I asked why it hadn’t been mentioned in council before.
“We were told that it was so far in the future.”
Mrs Gash said at some stage in the future she believed council was required to build that road.
However, she has decided to put the option under the microscope to avoid what could end up a costly duplication of the North Nowra Link Road.
“At this stage I am just saying perhaps we should look at this more closely as an option.
“It would be silly to build two link roads so close together.”
Mrs Gash said the Moss Vale Road Link was not taken into account by the recent sitting of the Planning Assessment Commission, which approved the link road option that runs parallel to West Cambewarra Road.
Councillor Andrew Guile was scathing of Mayor Gash’s plan to add the Moss Vale Road Link, which he calls option four, into the mix.
“After announcing her support of the Greens’ link road route before the last election, after supporting the Planning NSW submission to the Planning Assessment Commission, and after changing council’s policy on the preferred route, Joanna Gash has now gone back on her promise to build West Cambewarra,” he said.
“The mayor has admitted to reading very little if any of the reports that are available on the Link Road project which was why experienced councillors urged the Gash block to be briefed before changing policy. With that ignored along party lines, we now hear of the mayor’s plan to build option four.
“It is obvious that the mayor needs yet more coaching from staff on this project because to build option four now, before the development north of Moss Vale Road is ready, would be literally building a road to nowhere.
“Planning staff have been clear that this area of expansion is 15 or 20 years away,” he said.
Mrs Gash said the councillors needed to do what was best for the community.
“We weren’t elected to make jibes at each other.
“And remember who took the money away from the link road in the first place, it wasn’t us.”
