Revealed: The real reason the RSL backed out of the land swap

Three years after it signed an agreement with council to swap the Dubbo Bowling Club site for a 3.3 hectare parcel of land in Keswick Estate, Dubbo RSL formally pulled out of the deal.

At the time of recission, council's chief executive officer Murray Wood explained the move was because council had not completed an access road to the site by the agreed-upon date.

However, Dubbo RSL Club Group general manager Gus Lico has now revealed the real reason the club backflipped on the offer.

He claims the "pivotal factor", which was not disclosed to the public, was the discovery that the Keswick land was contaminated.

"This critical information was withheld from us by council staff despite their prior knowledge," he told the Daily Liberal.

Mr Lico said the initial quote for decontaminating the land was over $5 million.

"Subsequent estimates reduced the cost to $1.6 million, yet despite extensive discussions, council declined to offer assistance or rectification," he said.

Mr Lico said council staff and then-CEO Michael McMahon initiated the conversations about swapping the deeds for 74 Wingewarra Street and the Keswick Estate land on March 28, 2019.

On September 15, 2020, Dubbo RSL and council entered an agreement. The club hoped to use the land to construct a second RSL Club, as well as sporting fields for cricket, rugby league and tennis.

But in September 2023, Dubbo RSL notified council they would be scrapping the deal.

"From the outset, Dubbo RSL Club has diligently followed due process and maintained transparency," Mr Lico said.

"A comprehensive contract was established to delineate responsibilities and timelines for both parties... The decision to rescind the contract was not taken lightly."

A letter from the club's solicitor to council notifying them of the decision to rescind the offer made no mention of contamination. The letter said the council had not fulfilled a condition to register a plan of subdivision of the Keswick land.

The revelation comes after the council agreed to a new deal with the RSL Club which could see the same parcels of land exchanged for $1.5 million.

During the closed section of the council meeting on Thursday, April 11, councillors agreed to buy 74 Wingewarra Street and sell the same lot subject to the original agreement.

Asked about the new claims from the RSL Club, Dubbo Regional Council mayor Mathew Dickerson said he was not on council at the time the original land swap was agreed to.

"You would have to ask the previous councillors and previous CEO about [it]," he said.

Cr Dickerson said he believes council has been appropriately transparent about the whole process.

"Keep in mind that we often receive communication from organisations we are dealing with that are marked 'Commercial in Confidence' and there is an expectation from those organisations that we would not make public that information," he said.