29 June, 2022
A few local projects included in budget
Among the highlighted projects in Toowoomba Regional Council’s 2022-23 Budget are a few directly affect our local towns.
Upgrades to Cambooya’s gravity mains infrastructure will continue with Stage 2 works totalling $300,000.
Water & Waste Committee chair Cr Rebecca Vonhoff said this project will be staged over five years to upgrade 13 kilometres of mains pipe for Cambooya.
She said $56,000 has been allocated for planning leading into the design and construction for improvements to the Wyreema and Highfields sewer reticulations.
In Westbrook, a budget of $250,000 has been allocated in 2022/23 for the construction of a new footpath along Barwick Street, from McIntosh Street to Gore Street. Construction is expected to occur from January to March 2023.
In Cambooya, a budget of $15,000 has been allocated in 2022/23 for the design of a new footpath along Alfred Street, from Quarry Street to Cambooya Connection Road. Construction is scheduled to be undertaken in 2023/24.
Infrastructure Committee portfolio leader Cr Melissa Taylor said Council is investing almost $2 million this year constructing and planning for new footpaths as well as maintenance through a Footpath Renewal Program.
“This program aims to upgrade footpaths across the Region to current standards to improve amenity and maintain functionality. Many of these paths are in regional towns right across the Region,” Cr Taylor said.
Concept and design work for a Drayton Wellcamp Road/ Wellcamp Westbrook Road upgrade will continue in 2022/23.
These roads are a major link from Westbrook and the other towns to Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport and to the Greater Toowoomba Waste Management Facility.
These sections of road are in poor condition and are prioritised to be reconstructed as a major road link.
Construction, to be completed in multiple stages, is expected to commence in 2023/24, with $150,000 allocated to this project in 2022/23.
Infrastructure Committee chair Cr Carol Taylor announced $1.5 million has been allocated to rehabilitate the pavement and surface of Greenmount-Etonvale Road at Greenmount.
Cr Nancy Sommerfield, Water & Waste portfolio leader, said $3 million will be invested to start the upgrade of the Greenmount Waste Management Facility.
“The project will greatly enhance the operations and better serve the Greenmount community, while providing new opportunities to maximise diversion from landfill,” Cr Sommerfield said.
More broadly across the region, Round one installations of the Smart Water Meter Program will commence.
A $5.5 million figure has been allocated to the program, up
from $2.35 million last financial year.
The Smart Water Meter project delivers a Region-wide network of customer water meters that automatically collect water usage figures on a regular basis.
This collected data will be provided to Council systems to maintain the current six-monthly billing cycle and to better manage the water network.
