Community members are encouraged to attend a public hearing as Weddin Shire Council moves to formally correct the classification of a number of Council owned properties across Grenfell.

The public hearing will be held at 6pm on Thursday, 14 May at The Hub, 88 Main Street, and will be chaired by an independent chairperson from Currajong Planning, Property and Project Management.

The session forms part of the statutory process required under the Local Government Act 1993.

Council have prepared two planning proposals.

One which aims to make amendments to the Weddin Local Environmental Plan 2011 to allow for the reclassifications of 15 public land allotments from Community Land to Operational Land and the other which aims to make amendments to the Weddin Local Environmental Plan 2011 to allow for the reclassifications of one public land allotment from Community Land to Operational Land and to remove the Public Reserve Status from this site.

In total, 16 land allotments are involved, including medical facilities, a former bank building, Council owned dwellings, the caravan park, Goodsell Park, and Bogolong Dam.

Council’s Director of Environmental Services, Luke Sheehan, said the process is about accuracy and transparency and has nothing to do with selling off community assets.

"It's a matter of council has done a review of our council land mainly within Grenfell itself and identified that some of those pieces of land are incorrectly classified," Mr Sheehan said.

Under the Local Government Act, all Council land must be classified as either community or operational.

Community land generally includes parks, reserves and sporting fields that are open for public use, while operational land is used to support Council functions or is subject to controlled access, such as Council buildings or leased properties.

“It comes down to how the land is actually being used,” Mr Sheehan explained.

“Places like the medical centre, dental surgery, leased buildings or council owned dwellings aren’t open spaces for general community use, so they are more appropriately classified as operational land.”

Many of the sites proposed for reclassification have been owned by Council for many years.

Because the initial classifications were not corrected at the time of acquisition, a formal planning proposal and public hearing process is now required.

“This is a common process across local government.

“It’s about making sure the classification complies with legislation.”

Some residents have expressed concern about what the changes might mean for access or future use of sites such as Bogolong Dam, as well as the medical and dental facilities in Grenfell.

“To be clear, this proposal does not mean Council is planning to sell these properties or restrict public access,” he said.

“For places like Bogolong Dam, there is no intention to introduce new restrictions. The classification change simply reflects the purpose of the land from a legislative standpoint.”

He also reassured users of local health services that there are no plans to displace existing tenants.

“Council has long term lease arrangements in place for the medical centre and dental surgery.

“This process does not change that. It simply ensures the land type is correctly classified, which actually makes lease arrangements clearer and more secure.”

The separate planning proposal relates to a lot at Stan McCabe Drive, currently classified as community land and dedicated as a public reserve.

Council is proposing to reclassify this land as operational and remove the public reserve status.

“This site was originally set aside during residential development for a possible future reserve,” Mr Sheehan said.

“Council is now assessing whether there may be a better long term use for that land. Because it involves removing public reserve status, a public hearing is required.”

Anyone is welcome to attend the public hearing to hear a presentation on the proposals, ask questions, or make comments.

After the meeting, the independent chairperson will prepare a public hearing report, which will be presented to Council.

Further information on the planning proposals is available through Weddin Shire Council.