Ballina Mayor Sharon Cadwallader is refusing to let a State Government knockback sink plans for a major marina and housing redevelopment at West Ballina.

The ambitious Ballina Marina Master Plan could transform the under-used trawler harbour precinct with a marina, waterfront public spaces, commercial development, boating facilities and as many as 350 homes.

But almost a decade after the master plan was developed, a major obstacle remains — the NSW Government wants to keep its Transport for NSW depot on part of the waterfront site.

Roads and Regional Development Minister Jenny Aitchison has told regional leaders the depot is considered a critical operational facility and part of Transport for NSW’s long-term plans for Ballina.

Transport investigated alternative locations in 2023, but found the Transport-owned sites considered unsuitable because of issues including highway access, flooding, topography and their available footprint.

The government has also recently spent about $1.7 million upgrading a laboratory at the existing depot and is considering consolidating Maritime Services staff there.

However, Cr Cadwallader says she does not accept that the government’s position should spell the end of a project with the potential to deliver hundreds of desperately needed homes.

She raised the issue directly with Ms Aitchison during the recent Country Mayors Association Roads and Transport Forum.

“I said, you know, I’d already raised this with the Premier,” Cr Cadwallader said.

“I also said to her that I don’t accept that when all they talk about is housing, housing, housing, and yet we’ve got a site there that could accommodate 350 dwellings, and you write back and say you’ve got a better use for it.

“No, I don’t accept that.”

According to Cr Cadwallader, the Minister responded: “Well, let’s keep talking. Show me the site.”

A waterfront precinct almost a decade in the making

Ballina Shire Council developed the marina master plan in 2017 on behalf of State Government agencies including Crown Lands and Transport for NSW.

It envisages redevelopment of the West Ballina Trawler Harbour precinct with an expanded marina, public esplanade and open space, commercial development, residential housing and improved boating infrastructure.

Council modelling examined development incorporating 350 dwellings, potentially including social, affordable and key-worker housing alongside private housing.

In a strongly worded letter to Premier Chris Minns last October, Cr Cadwallader accused State Government agencies of “prevaricating” over the site, with agencies blaming each other for the lack of progress.

She argued there were potential alternatives for the Transport depot, including council-owned land at the Southern Cross Industrial Estate and undeveloped Crown land at Tamarind Drive.

Aerial view of the depot site and trawler harbour as it is today

The Mayor also pointed to earlier discussions between council and Crown Lands about an equity partnership under which council would undertake rezoning work in return for an interest in the State-owned land.

Those discussions stopped following the change of government while NSW reviewed its land holdings.

Cr Cadwallader told the Premier the marina project could become a high-profile example of State agencies working together to unlock regional housing.

But the response from the government makes clear Transport for NSW has very different plans for its land.

Ms Aitchison said Transport considered the depot essential for road maintenance, maritime operations and infrastructure projects, as well as emergency responses including Cyclone Alfred.

The Minister also raised another possibility — retaining the Transport depot within the commercial component of a redeveloped marina precinct rather than relocating it.

She said that option had not been explored in the existing master plan and could allow Maritime staff quick access to the marina while creating a consolidated regional government office in Ballina.

That could potentially provide a new avenue for negotiations between council and the State Government.

‘We have to continue to advocate’

Cr Cadwallader said she remained determined to pursue the project despite the government’s response.

“We have to continue to advocate for that,” she said.

The Mayor’s argument is that the redevelopment represents considerably more than a marina.

At a time when housing affordability remains one of Ballina’s biggest challenges, council believes the State-owned waterfront land could deliver hundreds of homes while rejuvenating one of the western gateways to the town.

It would also open more of the Richmond River foreshore to the public and create new commercial and marine activity around the existing harbour.

For now, however, the competing visions remain some distance apart: council sees an under-used waterfront precinct capable of delivering housing and urban renewal, while Transport for NSW sees a strategically important operational base it intends to retain.

Cr Cadwallader is determined to keep trying to bridge that divide.

And after her latest exchange with the Roads Minister, the door — however narrowly — appears to remain open.

Mayor Sharon Cadwallader