Lismore City Council has delivered a $7 million sewerage pump station on Pineapple Road, Goonellabah, on a site that could accommodate 600 future homes.

The flood-free land was unable to be developed due to wastewater issues, but the new infrastructure permits Development Applications to be processed.

Mayor Steve Krieg said, “Lismore City Council declared a housing emergency in May 2021, and the situation was exacerbated by the natural disasters in 2022.

“This significant public investment opens up the potential for 600 new housing lots.”

(Mayor Krieg is on the verge of being confirmed as Mayor serving another term but is hesitant to confirm until all the votes are in - he was very pleased to cut the ribbon for this, one of many projects he hopes to unveil in the next term of office.)

The DA process has faltered at times, and Mayor Krieg admitted the DA lag at one point was unacceptable, but for general DA processing, the council are now averaging an 8-day turnaround.

“A development of this size will take more than eight days, but we have teams to prioritise important sites. Graham Snow has done a great job reducing delays.”

Mayor Krieg said the land was not encumbered by any other restrictions, including Koalas, “Not a eucalypt in sight!” he confirmed.

The surrounding land is rural and held by landowners and a developer who has started marking out lots.  

The infrastructure is mainly underground, leaving a minimal visual impact on the surroundings. 

The tanks are sufficient to hold an entire day's worth of wastewater and have an additional emergency tank.

Developers will be providing services to the area, such as electricity, so the two pumps were commissioned using generators.  

The project was jointly funded by Lismore City Council ($5.6 million) and the State Government via its NSW Regional Housing Fund ($1.4 million)

MP Janelle Saffin said, “I am pleased that the NSW government can make a contribution to this important project that now has the potential to deliver more housing stock, desperately needed, and with the necessary infrastructure in place.”

This project was completed in conjunction with BASEC engineering, DGP Water and Ledonne Constructions. 

(The wastewater pump station is north of Summerland Christian College at the end of Pineapple Road, Goonellabah)