New South Wales Treasury Corporation (TCorp) was offering councils deemed ‘fit’ low-cost loans to build infrastructure, but because Griffith was still ‘unfit’ it didn’t qualify.

Without access to the loans, ratepayer dollars will need to be stretched further to cover the cost of infrastructure projects.

Mayor John Dal Broi said the way Griffith City Council had been dealt with was “very ordinary”.

“I’m really disappointed in Premier Baird and the Local Government Minister with the way they’ve handled these mergers,” Councillor Dal Broi said. “We were visited by TCorp late last week and they said they couldn’t see why we’re not fit. There’s no good reason, in my opinion, why we’re still unfit.”

The state government’s controversial Fit for the Future reforms were aimed at strengthening the financial sustainability of councils, but critics accused the government of forcing mergers and ignoring the wishes of local communities.

The Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) initially recommended Griffith and Murrumbidgee should merge. Merging councils were even offered up to $15 million as an incentive, but when an agreement couldn’t be reached Griffith opted to stand alone. 

Griffith City Council was found unfit as it did not meet the scale and capacity criteria, despite meeting efficiency, sustainability and service management targets. 

Cr Dal Broi said he believed Griffith’s ‘unfit’ status was because they did not follow IPART’s recommendations.

“We’ve got all the infrastructure and a $35 million cash reserve, yet we don’t meet ‘scale and capacity’ while a council less than half our size does,” Cr Dal Broi said.

“Murrumbidgee Shire is locked in to get their $15 million but here in Griffith we can’t even get a response from the Minister. The local member, Adrian Piccoli, has also been less than helpful.”

Cr Dal Broi said there was a lot of development activity going on with the Widgelli Rail Hub and solar farms, but the government was “penalising” Griffith.

Council general manager Brett Stonestreet said a letter had been written to Mr Toole asking for a review of the ‘unfit’ status. A copy of the letter had also been sent to Mr Piccoli. 

“There’s been no response from the Minister or Mr Piccoli,” Mr Stonestreet said.