Shoalhaven City Council has confirmed cladding on the Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre is combustible and will be removing it, but says there is no risk to the public.
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So far, the red cladding (Alucobond) on the centre has been identified as a combustible product. For the grey coloured cladding (Kingspan), council is awaiting test results from the CSIRO.
Alucobond has since been banned from being used externally in new buildings but Shoalhaven City Council will be looking to remove both internal and external Alucobond cladding.
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Council's CEO Stephen Dunshea moved to reassure the public there was no elevated risk to the community using the building
"Safety is always at the forefront of council's mind," Mr Dunshea said.
"While the State Government has identified the Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre as a potentially affected building, it is not noted as high risk and council has taken appropriate measures to ensure safety of patrons.
"We are taking all measures so the community can feel confident the building is safe."
Council said it had reviewed the building's fire evacuation procedures and has trained fire wardens.
Council had also implemented some recommendations made by Fire and Rescue NSW but those were not directly related to cladding.
It's unknown what the cost to replace the Alucobond cladding on the Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre will be.
A local company has been engaged to look at alternative products but because Alucobond was a light product, if the replacement product is too heavy, structural improvements to the building may be needed.
An estimated cost will be provided as part of the investigation into alternative products. The price is expected to be known by the end of the financial year. Council will then seek to have it funded in the 2020/2021 capital works budget before it is put to tender.
It will also look at what other improvements could be made to the building while the cladding is being replaced.
The NSW Cladding Taskforce said it had established a cladding support unit in September 2019 to assist councils dealing with cladding issues.
"The unit is working with councils to understand the status of cladding-affected buildings across NSW, facilitate information sharing and consistency, and identify and troubleshoot any issues preventing the timely assessment and clearance of buildings," a spokesperson said.
It was first identified in September 2017 that the Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre could be constructed with combustible cladding.
The Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre is the only council building listed on the State Register.
"The Ulladulla Civic Centre is not an identified building on the State Register requiring further investigation," Mr Dunshea said.