Bushfire recovery will receive a significant boost thanks to Stage 2 of the Bushfire Local Economic Recovery Fund, co-funded by the NSW Nationals in the state and federal governments.
NSW Nationals Member for Tamworth Kevin Anderson said $1.6 million will fund three key projects across his electorate alone, that will provide vital community infrastructure improvements and business and industrial development.
Mr Anderson said the local projects funded in this round are:
• $410,555 to upgrade Walcha Lions Park
• $866,962 to renew Walcha Skate Park
• $368,000 for Tamworth Regional Activation and Resilience Program
“These three projects will do a lot to ease the pain our communities experienced during the bushfires and throughout this pandemic. Walcha looks set to further their stamp as a tourism hotspot and businesses in Tamworth will be offered a 2-year training program which will include training in marketing, grant writing, strategy and financial literacy,” Mr Anderson said.
“The projects announced today are just one part of the complete recovery journey of our region and will help us to continue repairing the social and economic fabric of our communities.”
Deputy Premier John Barilaro said the diverse nature of the Stage Two Bushfire Local Economic Recovery Fund projects was driven by the specific recovery needs of each community and guided by locally led applications.
“One year has passed since we cleared 3600 properties damaged or destroyed by the Black Summer bushfires and we are continuing to deliver the support that the Tamworth region needs to keep moving forward in recovery,” Mr Barilaro said.
“People are rebuilding their lives and we are backing projects that will bring communities together, support tourism, provide improved or new social amenity, and increase preparedness to future bushfires. All of these things play a part in recovery.”
Government support was also given to the Putta Bucca Wetlands in Mudgee.
NSW Nationals Member for Dubbo Dugald Saunders announced Mid-Western Regional Council received $859,700 from the Bushfire Local Economic Recovery program.
He said the Putta Bucca Wetlands were a wonderful natural asset that had not really been tapped into as much as possible – until now.
“The project will provide community and tourism infrastructure including picnic shelters, a boardwalk, a playground, signage, extended carpark, new walking tracks and a shared pathway that connects Mudgee to the wetlands,” Mr Saunders said.
“There’s also benefits for the native wildlife that call the wetlands home, including nesting boxes and augmented hollows.”
In addition to the funding for the wetlands, there’s also $495,000 for Mudgee Region Tourism’s ‘Feel the Love in the Mudgee Region’ campaign.
