The state government handed down its 2017-18 budget last week. Charlene Macaulay sat down with Treasurer Tim Pallas to discuss which projects made the cut, and which ones missed out.
The state government has said it might have to look into compulsory acquisition to build two new schools in Point Cook. What kind of issues is the government facing in acquiring the land? And is it vacant land or land with properties already on it?
It’s all about trying to manage the enrolments and growth, which are enormous in Wyndham. The investment that is going on in that area with schools is going to continue for years to come.
Compulsory acquisition tends to mean that the state government will have to acquire land from a non-government owner.
What it means is we’ve probably got a situation where there’s no state-owned land that would suit for the appropriate siting of a school.
Our compulsory acquisition powers would generally be applied sensitively. We tend to make sure that if we are acquiring, we acquire in a way that doesn’t impact upon people’s homes. This will generally be around vacant land that is available and we seek to acquire it.
When are these schools likely to open?
We’ll need to check with the [school building] authority on when each school will be completed, but it’s generally an 18-month to two-year build process.
Money has also been put aside to acquire land for a new school in Wyndham South. Will it be a P-9 or senior campus? Has a site been selected?
This is a primary school accommodating prep to grade 6 students. This exact location will be confirmed once land is acquired.
What building upgrades will be undertaken at The Grange P-12 College?
I can’t give you a breakdown of the specific works, but we know that the Grange has been subject, in the past, to considerable damage due to high-water events. At the time, I was unhappy with the upgrade that the school got … I thought that we would need to further enhance the quality of the school. This would aim to complete the capital works program.
When will the winning tender for the $1.8 billion Wyndham road package be announced?
The funding is already there – the funding was put into the mid-year update of the budget. [It should be announced] before the end of this year.
Some residents were under the impression that the government would allocate funding for the construction of the Werribee justice precinct, not just for planning. When can residents expect to see this project under construction?
You don’t put money into planning unless you’re serious about building, and you’ve got to plan before you build … I’d like to flow the transition from completion of the planning stage straight into the building stage.
Why has the state government slashed funding for its Growing Suburbs Fund in half?
We were starting to get a bit concerned about the quality of the offerings coming out of bidders for access to these funds. These funds are aimed at providing community facilities and upgrades that growth areas should expect.
I want to make sure that councils are making the effort to give us a clear appreciation of what they want – and what they’re prepared to commit, as well.
The budget included funding for new SES units in Point Cook and Caroline Springs/Plumpton. Why were these areas identified?
We recognise that it’s a volunteer service that does an amazing job. We also recognise that councils are under a bit of pressure … we’ve said that we will take over all of the funding of the SES so that the state manages it.
So when councils start complaining about rate capping, we are now starting to move into the provision of some of their service areas to help them out a bit.
Importantly, what this will mean for the SES is security of funding into the long term.
What we’re asking councils to do as part of those arrangements is to be prepared to hand over the leaseholds of the facilities. I think we’ll see more and more co-locations of our emergency services in the future – it makes sense.
