Room to move back in? Council goes full disclosure on Ray Walsh House

Tamworth Regional Council (TRC) general manager Paul Bennett announced on Monday morning that every document relating to the local government's handling of asbestos in Ray Walsh House is now on public display.

Some documents, like a report from Northcorp Consulting Engineers on the current structural conditions and possible future design of Ray Walsh House, are fully redacted.

But Mr Bennett said even in those cases council has nothing to hide.

"Some of the documents have been listed to demonstrate that they exist, but have been completely redacted because that information is subject to the Copyright Act," he said.

"With those documents that have been completely redacted the public can access them. They can ring our customer services department, make an appointment and come in and view them. We just cannot publish them electronically."

The documents paint the full, complex picture on how a faulty air conditioner coupled with a small amount of friable asbestos in the ceiling led to a months-long saga of staff relocation and cost blowouts.

The Leader has combed through the documents to bring you a comprehensive timeline of everything that's happened since the first detection of asbestos in December 2021.

The release of documents follows demands for transparency from the community, which prompted councillors to vote in favour of putting them all out on public display during a meeting in May.

"The reason these documents have been published is because there's been a lot of speculation around what the asbestos is, how it was dealt with, and how the whole incident evolved," Mr Bennett said.

The full list of 55 documents will continue to be available on council's website.

The documents themselves are plenty interesting, but it's this bit from Mr Bennett's press conference this morning about council's next steps which has the local ratepayers' association jumping for joy.

"The process we're working through now is to identify the different options that may be available, and that could still be a re-occupation by council at some point in the future," the general manager said.

"But obviously there are other developers and other investors out there looking for opportunities to exploit that location in the main street as well."

Mr Bennett said TRC is not currently talking to developers about selling Ray Walsh House, and any decision on the building's future will need to be made by the next council after the September election.

TRC voted not to move staff back in to Ray Walsh House at a council meeting on May 28, but that decision can be reversed by a subsequent council.

David McKinnon from the Tamworth Regional Residents and Ratepayers Association said he's thrilled to hear that moving back in to the old HQ will be an option for the next council to consider.

"We're very pleased that it's been deferred to the next council, because clearly this council is not respecting the value of the building," Mr McKinnon said.

"Tamworth has so little history, and so little respect for history, we must save and refurbish that site, which would still be a way cheaper option than building a brand-new building."

Estimates from Public Works NSW show the estimated cost of refurbishing Ray Walsh House ranges from $52 million to $64.5 million, while building an entirely new site would cost between $94.5 million to $120 million.

Mr McKinnon also said the documents now on display still don't fully absolve the council's decision-making process.

"It's really appalling what they've done inside that building, and unnecessarily so," he said.