Rous settles into Ballina as first council meeting held at new HQ
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Rous County Council has held its first formal council meeting at its new Ballina headquarters, marking another milestone in the organisation’s move to the $25 million Gallans Road complex.
The meeting this week was the first to be conducted in the purpose-built council chambers since staff relocated from Lismore to the former Thursday Plantation site last month.
General Manager Phillip Rudd said the occasion marked the culmination of almost five years of planning, design and construction.
“Councillors and staff are very excited to be able to use the new facilities,” he said.
The move has brought together staff who were previously spread across multiple sites across the Northern Rivers, some of them flood-prone.
Mr Rudd said the long-term benefits would go well beyond providing a modern workplace.
“Before we were scattered at multiple sites,” he said.
“Having everyone co-located, not having to worry about every time there’s a moderate flood having to evacuate, pack stuff up and relocate, there are efficiencies there.”
He said some savings would come from managing fewer properties and reduced insurance-related risks, while other benefits would flow from improved collaboration between teams.
“Some of it you can put as a bottom-line saving, others you can’t, but you can see better outcomes,” he said.
Rous is also exploring ways the wider community and local government sector could make use of the facility’s extensive meeting and conference spaces.
Mr Rudd said the organisation had already received inquiries about using the venue.
“The plan for us is to get the site working, make sure all the technology is functional and then work through how the wider community can utilise the space in a fair way,” he said.
He said the facility’s location, close to Ballina Byron Gateway Airport and the Pacific Motorway, made it well suited to regional meetings and training events.
“It doesn’t just service us, it services our partners as well,” he said.
Above: Rous GM Phillip Rudd pictured in the kitchen of the new council chambers and events building, which has capacity to host meetings with capacity for several hundred people.
Main image: Councillors pictured in the new chambers ahead of their first meeting yesterday, (L to R) Byron Shire Mayor Sarah Ndiaye and her colleague Elia Hauge, GM Phil Rudd, Ballina Shire Mayor Sharon Cadwallader, Rous chairman and Richmond Valley Mayor Robert Mustow, Ballina Shire’s Eva Ramsey, Andrew Gordon from Lismore, Richmond Valley rep Sandra Humphrys and Lismore Mayor Steve Krieg.
Mr Rudd said the venue could become a hub for local government training and conferences across the Northern Rivers, reducing travel requirements for councils and partner organisations.
The headquarters project was completed within its approved budget and transformed the former tea tree production and tourism complex into a modern administration, operational and civic centre.
While staff are now fully settled into the site, work is continuing behind the scenes to optimise technology systems and develop future uses for the meeting and event spaces.
For Ballina, the facility represents not only the permanent home of one of the Northern Rivers’ most important regional organisations, but potentially a significant new conference and meeting venue for the wider region.
