BERRI residents have shown support for a retrofit of Riverview Drive, with a majority of respondents to a recent survey voting in favour of the project.
Berri Barmera Council opened the survey as part of a second round of public consultation on the controversial project, with 61 of the 88 total respondents voting for the retrofit to go ahead, versus leaving it ‘as is’.
While the majority of respondents voted for the more “user-friendly” and “safer” retrofit to be implemented, many voiced their displeasure with the design, consultation process and cost.
“This is still not a proper fix for the river front – just a half-hearted ‘we are doing something’ fix – but better than nothing,” one respondent said.
Another local, who voted in favour of the works, said they were “disappointed about being consulted yet again”.
“Sadly, this 3D-plan doesn’t appear to go far enough in fixing the problem…” they said.
“I have voted yes to this substandard fix, purely because you offer no other alternative and what currently stands is unsightly and unsafe, and must be fixed.”
One resident who voted against the new design called the retrofit “the local planning equivalent of putting lipstick on a pig”.
“It does nothing to address all of the problems created by this town-planning disaster and is nothing more than a complete waste of valuable ratepayer funds,” they said.
“A public meeting should be held before any works commence, allowing council and ratepayers to voice their opinions/concerns and come to an agreed final solution in an open and transparent format.”
Plans for the retrofit of council’s $1.56 million river-front redevelopment first went to public consultation in March 2019.
After receiving no offers during the initial tender process, council underwent a selected tender process, with the final tender amount coming in at $250,000 – exceeding the original budgeted amount of $150,000.
In a report to council, personal assistant to the infrastructure services manager, Michelle Fourie, said if elected members decided to proceed with the project works would commence towards the end of the current financial year and be completed in 2021/22.
If elected members voted to leave the precinct as is, the redevelopment’s original contractor, Outside Concepts, will be engaged to fix the existing defects.