Cessnock Mayor Responds to Watton’s Motion for Extensive Community Consultation on Wollombi Road Upgrade

Cessnock Mayor Jay Suvaal has issued a response to Councilor Daniel Watton’s motion, advocating for three town hall meetings to address concerns surrounding the Wollombi Road Upgrade. Mayor Suvaal expressed his uncertainty regarding the need to restrict community consultation and communication channels for such a crucial infrastructure project.

In a statement to MHV NEWS, Mayor Suvaal directly stated, “I’m unsure why Councillors would want to restrict the amount of community consultation that takes place on this important infrastructure project, nor why we would limit the communication channels available to the project team.”

Mayor Suvaal emphasized, “While Councilor Watton’s motion seeks additional town hall meetings, it’s crucial to recognize the extensive engagement efforts already undertaken by the project team.”

Mayor Suvaal highlighted the comprehensive initiatives that the project team has implemented, including:

• Three pop-up sessions at Cessnock Village Shopping Centre
• An information session at Cessnock City Library
• A highly successful Facebook Live Q&A session with over 9000 views
• A Coffee with a Councillor Session at the Providore
• Over 20 project updates on social media
• In excess of 300 conversations with residents

All these efforts were conducted ahead of the release of preliminary engineering reports and designs for the Wollombi Road Upgrade.

Councilor Watton has proposed holding three extra town hall meetings once the preliminary engineering reports are finished. The motion is scheduled for a vote in the upcoming council session in February.