Agenda of Workshop Meeting

Hornsby Shire Council Agenda and Summary of Recommendations

Page 1

AGENDA AND SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS

PRESENT

NATIONAL ANTHEM

OPENING PRAYER/S

Acknowledgement of RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY

Statement by the Chairperson:

"We recognise our Shire's rich cultural and religious diversity and we acknowledge and pay respect to the beliefs of all members of our community, regardless of creed or faith."

ABORIGINAL RECOGNITION

Statement by the Chairperson:

"We acknowledge we are on the traditional lands of the Darug and Guringai Peoples. We pay our respects to elders past and present."

AUDIO RECORDING OF COUNCIL MEETING

Statement by the Chairperson:

"I advise all present that tonight's meeting is being audio recorded for the purposes of providing a record of public comment at the meeting, supporting the democratic process, broadening knowledge and participation in community affairs, and demonstrating Council’s commitment to openness and accountability. The recordings of the non-confidential parts of the meeting will be made available on Council’s website once the Minutes have been finalised. All speakers are requested to ensure their comments are relevant to the issue at hand and to refrain from making personal comments or criticisms. No other persons are permitted to record the Meeting, unless specifically authorised by Council to do so."

APOLOGIES / LEAVE OF ABSENCE

political donations disclosure

Statement by the Chairperson:

“In accordance with Section 147 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, any person or organisation who has made a relevant planning application or a submission in respect of a relevant planning application which is on tonight’s agenda, and who has made a reportable political donation or gift to a Councillor or employee of the Council, must make a Political Donations Disclosure Statement.

If a Councillor or employee has received a reportable political donation or gift from a person or organisation who has made a relevant planning application or a submission in respect of a relevant planning application which is on tonight’s agenda, they must declare a non-pecuniary conflict of interests to the meeting, disclose the nature of the interest and manage the conflict of interests in accordance with Council’s Code of Conduct.”

declarations of interest

Clause 52 of Council’s Code of Meeting Practice (Section 451 of the Local Government Act, 1993) requires that a councillor or a member of a Council committee who has a pecuniary interest in a matter which is before the Council or committee and who is present at a meeting of the Council or committee at which the matter is being considered must disclose the nature of the interest to the meeting as soon as practicable. The disclosure is also to be submitted in writing (on the form titled “Declaration of Interest”).

The Councillor or member of a Council committee must not be present at, or in sight of, the meeting of the Council or committee:

(a) at any time during which the matter is being considered or discussed by the Council or committee.

(b) at any time during which the Council or committee is voting on any question in relation to the matter.

Clause 51A of Council’s Code of Meeting Practice provides that a Councillor, Council officer, or a member of a Council committee who has a non pecuniary interest in any matter with which the Council is concerned and who is present at a meeting of the Council or committee at which the matter is being considered must disclose the nature of the interest to the meeting as soon as practicable. The disclosure is also to be submitted in writing (on the form titled “Declaration of Interest”).

If the non-pecuniary interest is significant, the Councillor must:

a) remove the source of conflict, by relinquishing or divesting the interest that creates the conflict, or reallocating the conflicting duties to another Council official.

b) have no involvement in the matter by absenting themself from and not taking part in any debate or voting on the issue as if the provisions of Section 451(2) of the Act apply.

If the non-pecuniary interest is less than significant, the Councillor must provide an explanation of why they consider that the interest does not require further action in the circumstances.

Petitions

presentations

Rescission Motions

Mayoral Minutes

ITEMS PASSED BY EXCEPTION / CALL FOR SPEAKERS ON AGENDA ITEMS

Note:

Persons wishing to address Council on matters which are on the Agenda are permitted to speak, prior to the item being discussed, and their names will be recorded in the Minutes in respect of that particular item.

Persons wishing to address Council on non agenda matters, are permitted to speak after all items on the agenda in respect of which there is a speaker from the public have been finalised by Council. Their names will be recorded in the Minutes under the heading "Public Forum for Non Agenda Items".

GENERAL BUSINESS

· Items for which there is a Public Forum Speaker

· Public Forum for non agenda items

· Balance of General Business items

Office of the General Manager

Nil

Corporate Support Division

Nil

Environment and Human Services Division

Nil

Planning Division

Nil

Infrastructure and Recreation Division

Page Number 1

Item 1 IR16/16 Hornsby Quarry Funding Agreement and Lease – Roads and Maritime Services - Hornsby Quarry

RECOMMENDATION

THAT:

1. Council note the contents of Deputy General Manager’s Report No. IR16/16 and endorse the negotiated position reached in line with Deputy General Manager’s Report No. IR8/15.

2. The Acting General Manager be authorised to finalise the detailed terms and conditions of the Funding Agreement and Lease subject to limitations outlined in Deputy General Manager’s Report No. IR16/16 and to execute documents in relation to the Funding Agreement and Lease as deemed appropriate by Council’s legal advisers.

PUBLIC FORUM – NON AGENDA ITEMS

Questions of Which Notice Has Been Given

Notices of Motion

SUPPLEMENTARY AGENDA

MATTERS OF URGENCY

QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

Deputy General Manager's Report No. IR16/16

Infrastructure and Recreation Division

Date of Meeting: 1/06/2016

1 HORNSBY QUARRY FUNDING AGREEMENT AND LEASE – ROADS AND MARITIME SERVICES - HORNSBY QUARRY

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

· Council has received a Draft Final of the Funding Agreement and Lease that enables Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) to use Hornsby Quarry for the disposal of NorthConnex tunnel spoil.

· The lease and funding agreement are consistent with the approval issued by the Minister for Planning in January 2016 and Council’s resolved position in March 2015

· RMS requires the documents to be executed the week beginning 30 May 2016.

RECOMMENDATION

THAT:

1. Council note the contents of Deputy General Manager’s Report No. IR16/16 and endorse the negotiated position reached in line with Deputy General Manager’s Report No. IR8/15.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this Report is to update Council on the outcome of negotiations prior to execution of a “Funding Agreement and Lease” to be exchanged with RMS.

BACKGROUND

In February 2015 Council received an offer from RMS (the Offer) to use Hornsby Quarry for the disposal of NorthConnex tunnel spoil. An equal investment of $7.33 million each was required by Council, the Commonwealth Government and the NSW Government to cover implementation of the Offer.

The Offer was seen as providing an opportunity to rapidly fill the Quarry with virgin material, which would enable the development of high quality parklands accommodating a range of exciting recreation and cultural pursuits on the land by 2021.

Council resolved on 11 March 2015 (Attachment 1) to accept the Offer subject to the following conditions:

· RMS gaining NSW Planning and Environment approval for the project

· Receipt of a detailed cost breakdown for the various capital and operational components that make up the $22 million estimated cost of the project

· Staged payments on the basis of agreed milestones

· Spoil delivery by trucks being restricted to a maximum of two years

· Agreement being reached on the details associated with the Offer, including but not limited to:

o The agreed landform

o Compaction rates and site reinstatement conditions

o Accommodation of the displaced mountain bike trails

o Extent of the project area and tenure arrangement and responsibilities.

DISCUSSION

Approval for the transportation of spoil from the NorthConnex tunnel and its placement in the Hornsby Quarry void was issued by the Minister for Planning on 18 January 2016 (Attachment 2). Notable among the conditions of the approval are provisions relating to:

· Commissioning of suitably qualified specialists to assess the stability of the slopes within the Quarry and surrounding lands and recommend measures to be implemented to ensure the stability of these areas prior to receiving spoil and during the carrying out of spoil emplacement work

· Preparation of a Traffic Management Plan to ensure traffic and access controls are implemented to avoid or minimise impacts on traffic, pedestrian and cyclist access, and the amenity of the surrounding environment

· Limiting all spoil transport vehicle entry and exit to Hornby Quarry via Bridge Road, other than in an emergency

· Limiting the number of spoil truck movements to or from the Hornsby Quarry site in any one hour period to 70 movements

· Restrictions on the hours of operation, construction noise and vibration

· Maintaining access to existing mountain bike trails and implementing changes to the trail network as a result of the project.

The RMS, NorthConnex Project Company and the Project Contractor (Lend Lease Bouygues) have been working through the conditions in the Planning Approval and finalising the commercial terms between the parties. This has led to the preparation of a Funding Agreement and Lease between RMS and Hornsby Shire Council. Council received the Final Draft of the Funding Agreement and Lease in May 2016.

RMS has advised Council that the Funding Agreement and Lease is required to be executed the week beginning 30 May 2016, otherwise the offer negotiated between RMS, NorthConnex Project Company and the Contractor lapses and, if delayed, could result in either a higher price or less spoil being placed in the Hornsby Quarry void.

Council has reviewed these documents and sought and secured amendments consistent with Council’s resolution on 11 March 2015.

The salient points of the Funding Agreement and accompanying Lease are outlined below.

Funding Agreement

This document sets out the terms and obligations of the parties to the agreement.

· The commercial-in-confidence provisions relevant to Council are summarised in Attachment 3. Suffice to say the commercial provisions are consistent with Council’s expectations as expressed in Council’s resolution in March 2015.

· Access to the Hornsby Quarry void by spoil trucks will be via Bridge Road into Old Mans Valley. This road has been designed to a higher standard than is generally the case in these circumstances and provisions are included in the Funding Agreement that ensure the road will be handed over to Council in a condition suitable to enable its use as a permanent access road to the recreational uses that are programmed to be developed in the Quarry and adjoining lands.

· There are some risks associated with the Funding Agreement. In particular it relieves RMS of its obligations in the case of an adverse event. Critical among these is any destabilisation of the Quarry void and any material change to the approved Transport Management Plan. These risks have been mitigated through the combination of the Minister’s Planning Approval which places responsibility on the RMS to identify and implement appropriate geotechnical measures to ensure the stability of the Quarry and surrounding lands. An Environmental Impact Statement has been prepared for the project which identifies that there is sufficient capacity in the road network to accommodate the expected truck volumes on the identified routes. Further the Funding Agreement places the responsibility on the RMS to procure the performance of its employees and the contractor to comply with or perform their obligations in undertaking the works. This obligation on RMS to procure the performance of its “Authorised Users” is absolute and without qualification.

· Milestone or staged payments have been agreed and these are set out in Attachment 4.

· The landform and the compaction of the spoil have been resolved to Council’s satisfaction.

· Provision has been made to relocate the mountain bike trails and implement other changes to the trail network as a result of the project.

Lease

This document sets out the terms and obligations of the parties to the agreement.

It gives RMS exclusive possession of the land comprising parts of Hornsby Quarry and Old Mans Valley for the purposes of filling the Quarry void with spoil from the NorthConnex Tunnel. RMS requires exclusive possession of the lease land, as distinct from a licence, to use the land for work, health and safety reasons.

All works undertaken within the leased area will be subcontracted by RMS to a subcontractor (Lend Lease Bouygues) and that subcontractor will be the principal contractor for the works and have control and management of the leased land.

The Lease (Attachment 5) will commence on the date the Funding Agreement is signed. It will expire 40 months after the Commencement Date or when the site is handed over to Council. There is a provision which allows RMS to extend the lease period to a maximum of 59 months should it be required, but this is not anticipated.

The current program for delivering and placing spoil in the quarry void anticipates the site being handed back to Council in late 2018. At the moment, spoil is programmed to be delivered by road to the Quarry void over a 14 month period commencing April 2017.

The Lease provides for a peppercorn rental of $1.00 per annum, if demanded.

Legal Advice

The Funding Agreement and Lease are being reviewed by Council’s legal advisers and they will be executed in accordance with this advice and the resolved position of Council.

BUDGET

Council’s contribution to the project has been capped at $7.33 million and these funds have been budgeted and are available to spend on the project.

POLICY

The project site comprises land which has been classified as community land under the Local Government Act 1993. Council adopted a Plan of Management for the lands on 11 November 2015 which permitted the draft Lease provided by RMS. The Plan of Management complies with Council’s obligations under Division 2 of Part 2 of the Local Government Act 1993 for the grant of a lease having a term of less than five years.

CONCLUSION

The execution of the Funding Agreement and Lease will result in fill being transported and placed in the Hornsby Quarry void and is a significant step is resolving the final use of the Quarry as an exciting cultural and recreation space. The Funding Agreement and Lease incorporate provisions consistent with Council’s stated position.

A decision not to proceed with the project would result in the provision of a less than optimal cultural and recreation space in the Quarry.

RESPONSIBLE OFFICER

The officer responsible for the preparation of this Report is the Deputy General Manager, Infrastructure and Recreation Division – Robert Stephens, who can be contacted on 9847 6665.

Robert Stephens

Deputy General Manager

Infrastructure and Recreation Division

Attachments:

1.View	Report to Council and Minute – 11 March 2015
2.View	Planning Approval Issued by Minister for Planning, January 2016.
3.View	Financial Aspects of the Funding Agreement - This attachment should be dealt with in confidential session, under Section 10A (2) (d) of the Local Government Act, 1993. This report contains commercial information of a confidential nature that would, if disclosed (i) prejudice the commercial position of the person who supplied it; or (ii) confer a commercial advantage on a competitor of the council; or (iii) reveal a trade secret.
4.View	Funding Agreement - This attachment should be dealt with in confidential session, under Section 10A (2) (d) of the Local Government Act, 1993. This report contains commercial information of a confidential nature that would, if disclosed (i) prejudice the commercial position of the person who supplied it; or (ii) confer a commercial advantage on a competitor of the council; or (iii) reveal a trade secret.
5.View	Lease

File Reference: F2013/00463

Document Number: D06961690