Wollongong City Council staff attended the Neighbourhood Forum 1 (NF1) meeting on March 12 to provide an update on the long-awaited new Helensburgh Community Centre and Library, which will be built across two blocks of land at 53-55 Walker Street.
The forum has been critical of council's engagement process for the centre's design and concerned that local voices were not being heard. To show council what residents want, Helensburgh local Ross McLean used community feedback to draft and print conceptual plans, which were presented to all attendees at the March meeting.
"Those at the meeting were advised recent project works have focused on completing a draft scope of works," a Council spokesperson said afterwards.
"Residents were assured that community feedback gathered last year informed this scope, along with technical advice, legislation, relevant policies and benchmarks, environmental, social, economic factors, and budget.
"The draft scope of works forms part of the procurement documentation and contract for the project. This information will be released to the market as part of the procurement process to ensure probity and no commercial advantage is provided to anyone looking to enter contract with Council. As such, Council is unable to share this scope in full, but we will provide the community with a summary of the scope of works at the next NF1 meeting on 9 April.
"This information will also be made available to the general public on Council’s dedicated Helensburgh Community Centre & Library webpage, which will be made available before the end of the month."
Helensburgh has not had a community hub since the old centre on Walker Street was shut due to mould in December 2021. The library – which serves the 2508 district, population just under 10,000 – has been in a demountable building for over 50 years.
In January 2025, council reopened the refurbished Community Rooms in the old centre at 26A Walker Street. This is where NF1 meetings are now held on the second Wednesday of each month.
Run by volunteers, neighbourhood forums are independent groups of residents, supported by Wollongong City Council. Warwick Erwin is the current convenor of NF1, which covers the 2508 area.
The next meeting will be at 7pm on April 9. All community members are welcome to attend.
Read more: Hoons, litter and a broken portico: Council responds to Helensburgh Cemetery concerns