Shoalhaven City Council and Mrs Gash had always favoured the central route from Pitt Street at North Nowra to Narang Road at Bomaderry for the link road but at a meeting of the Bay and Basin Forum on Thursday night Mrs Gash voiced her support for the northern option.

The decision has sparked consternation among her political rivals.

The Greens have been pushing for a road which would run through bushland south east of West Cambewarra Road, between Illaroo Road and Moss Vale Road near the sale yards. 

Mrs Gash said she wasn’t aware of the parallel West Cambewarra Road option until she was taken on a tour of the site by Greens candidate Terry Barratt and Friends of Bomaderry Creek member Robin Moyes.

“I don’t see this as a backflip, I see it as working for the community to get an outcome and that’s what I’m about,” Mrs Gash said.

“Over the years I have had many stoushes with both Terry and Robin regarding this issue, and I realised this project was never going to happen in its present form.

“I contacted them and they offered to take me on a tour of this site. I accepted and now having walked it I believe it is a better option and more realistic in gaining approval for.”

Mrs Gash scoffed at remarks she had done a deal with the Greens.

“There has been no deal done, I have said from the start I will not be swapping preferences,” she said.

“Local government is not about doing deals, it is about working for and getting the best outcome for your community – and I believe this proposal will.

“At the end of the day there has had to be compromise – I have compromised to see their point of view, they have also made compromises as this route will go through bushland and I think the parallel road 50 metres south east of West Cambewarra Road is now the way to go.

“I see it as a win for commonsense and the betterment of the community.”

Mrs Gash said if this decision comes at a political cost she will have to wear it.

“We need to break the stalemate, nothing is happening and I see this as a way of achieving it – I see this as a win-win,” she said.

“The residents of North Nowra – and I’m one of them – want this road.

“Nothing can happen at North Nowra in terms of development until we can get a link road.

“I will work across the political divide if I believe it will be better for the community and that’s what I’ve done here.

“This is local council, it’s not a political game, we are there to work for the community and I will always work for the community no matter who I have to work with or in some cases agree with.”

Mrs Gash took fellow mayoral candidate Andrew Guile to task saying it was the West Cambewarra Road option.

“Andrew has been a bit naughty saying it will be West Cambewarra Road,” she said.

“It won’t be on West Cambewarra Road itself, the new option is set 50 metres south in the bushland parallel to the current road.

“After years of no action he [Cr Guile] says we are almost there in getting the road approved in a current form, no one else knows about that.”

Mrs Gash said she was also concerned that funds set aside for the link road had been allocated to other council projects just six weeks out from the election.

“I am concerned that that funding has been put into some councillors’ other pet projects,” she said.

“If that money was to be borrowed for something it should have been put into something we need like working on our local roads.”