Dubbo Regional Council decides on new home for Macquarie Conservatorium

The councillors voted against the original motion recommended by the Culture and Community Committee after the Macquarie Conservatorium Chair, Nicholas Broadbent, spoke against it in the public gallery on Thursday, April 27.

"I'm speaking against those proposed resolutions and inviting council to approach this issue differently," he said.

Councillor Jessica Gough put forward an alternative motion that allows the Chief Executive Officer to negotiate the terms of the lease agreement for the Macquarie Conservatorium to occupy 139 Darling Street in Dubbo with a peppercorn lease per year for a period of five years, with an option for an additional five year term by mutual agreement.

This motion was one that Mr Broadbent spoke about positively in his statement to the councillors on the night.

The lease amount will be reviewed at the end of the initial five year period and the Macquarie Conservatorium will be responsible for all outgoings under the lease arrangements including but not limited to utilities, fit out, repairs and maintenance on the agreed arrangement.

As the lease amount is below market value it will be considered as a financial assistance grant to the Conservatorium by the council.

The preferred location for the Macquarie Conservatorium is part of a cultural hub that DRC is considering, which could be located adjacent to and include the Western Plains Cultural Centre.

Cr Gough said she was "really proud" to put the motion forward because she believes that music education is very important.

"If you want to develop a cultural hub in Dubbo, the Conservatorium is a must," she said.

"I just want to state that it's very disappointing that the State Government hasn't come to the party... and the Department of Education."

READ MORE:

The "contentious" matter has seen a lot of discussion in the community, Cr Josh Black said.

Cr Black, who voted against the matter two weeks ago at the standing committee meetings, said the State Government was to blame for cost shifting onto the council.

"They should have come to the party and provided permanent residence for the Conservatorium, which I'll remind everyone teaches music to school kids around Dubbo and is a not-for-profit," he said.

Mayor Mathew Dickerson agreed with Cr Black about the cost shifting but couldn't support the alternative motion, saying it set a precedent for other not-for-profit organisations.

"I certainly do struggle with this and I can't support it personally," he said.

"My four children went through the Conservatorium but I don't believe it should be the Dubbo ratepayers across the board that should be contributing funds."

The mayor said without an expressions of interest process the whole situation was "inconsistent" and "lacked transparency".

"I believe it's opening a Pandora's Box and the CEO has forwarded me an email recently with another request from another organisation on the back of this request," he said.

"It's suddenly lots of organisations that are going to see that the bank is now council rather than going through the normal funding processes."

Deputy mayor Richard Ivey said Dubbo was well-known for producing sporting talent but were not known for its cultural products.

"This is a way we can develop that," he said.

"This shows this council has supported music and in particular arts and culture generally...and it's worthy of State Government support.

"How about you help them find some money or get some money for them so they can find a permanent location."

After voting for the original motion two weeks ago, councillor Pam Wells said she was able to do some further research and found the participation of Aboriginal students in the Conservatorium was high.

"I was really pleased to see some of those statistics that were presented to councillors and to know a higher percentage of Aboriginal students use the facility," she said.

"I was recently speaking to someone on Anzac Day around their recent arrival to join The Con at a later age in life, which I think is a really great opportunity for a person who may be retired from work and to be able to explore their musical interests."

Councillor Matthew Wright said he felt a sense of frustration that they were four years down the track from when discussions for a new home for the Conservatorium first began.

"This council has to make a decision today when maybe these decisions could have been made a number of years ago, either by previous councils or previous governments," he said.

"There are many non-profit organisations in Dubbo and obviously there are many that are worthy of receiving some funds from council or from the State Government."