Griffith mayor John Dal Broi outlines plans the city in 2017

“I have already had good discussions with our local member Mr Piccoli just before Christmas and he is 100 per cent supportive of it,” he said.

“I am not suggesting we will have it built in the next year, but I would like the community to have this and to have word it will be built from the state government.”

Cr Dal Broi also said helping the community find a solution to the debate surrounding the high school mergers was another of his priority’s for the year.

“I said in the beginning if the community felt they wanted $5 million for each school or $25 million for a new school, my commitment was that I would go with whatever they wanted,” he said.

“Since then there has been a new proposal put forward for a new high school on a green field site to take us through well into the next decade to provide schooling for the city’s students.”

“I think we as a council wouldn’t be doing our job if we didn’t embrace this concept.”

Cr Dal Broi said the proposal showed the state government recognised the city was moving ahead, despite the blows it had taken in the past. “What we are finding is the state government has realised even though we had the Murray Darling Basin noose around our neck restricting our ag production we still managed to grow the city,” he said.

Ensuring the community moved ahead with upgrading the central business district was another priority for council in the year to come, according to Cr Dal Broi. “During the elections there was a lot of concern about Yambil Street, but there is one major drawback to beautifying that and that is we have to upgrade the water main and we would be foolish to upgrade it and then have to dig it up again,” he said. “Instead we will be looking at Kooyoo Street as a semi passive recreation area, it is not the first time we have said that but this time we have the funds set aside.