FIRSTLY, I would like to thank Bunyip journalist Brendan Simpkins for his interest in the matter relating to the Gawler Car Club and my motion.
I would like to elaborate on a couple of points for your readers.
The previous tests carried out by council were for environmental reasons and don’t provide the information needed for a building.
The only tests that have been done to date to check buildability are the standard boreholes the Gawler Car club had done that any new building would require when needing to design a footing system.
My motion calls for a soil bearing capacity test which is needed to inform council and the community on the viability of the land as the standard boreholes commissioned by the club were inconclusive given the nature of the site.
To date this sort of test has not been undertaken on the parcel of land on little Paxton however it is required in the construction industry when the standard tests don’t tell the full story.
My hope would be that this test will come back positive and allow this great community club to build their club house on this community owned land.
Regardless what happens I still believe council can’t own a parcel of land without understanding its full potential otherwise it is wasted.
I would also just clarify that the site being tested is the block that is in front of the old landfill site.
This block’s historic use was an old brickworks and storage area (as shown in the GHD report to council in 2019).
Council has also capped the spend to $20,000.
My hope would be we come in under that but once the test is done the data is there forever to help council make informed decisions of potential activation of the space.
Nathan Shanks, Town of Gawler Councillor
