DUBBO City Council wants to gift Crown land worth more than a quarter of a million dollars to a volunteer organisation seeking to build affordable accommodation for people travelling to Dubbo for treatment at the city's public hospital.
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But its first step would be to sell the "surplus" Crown land in east Dubbo to the Dubbo Base Hospital Accommodation Project, known as Macquarie Homestay.
The council would use the $262,000 proceeds of the proposed sale for the renewal of irrigation in Victoria Park.
Then it would divert the same amount of money set aside in its 2018/2019 forward budget for the park project to Macquarie Homestay.
Community services director David Dwyer recommended the shuffling of money in a report to the council's monthly meeting on Monday.
"In effect, this would mean that Macquarie Homestay received the land at no cost and could allocate all the funding it has raised and received to date on capital construction," he said.
The plan hinges on the permission and goodwill of the state government, particularly Minister for Primary Industries, Lands and Water Niall Blair.
"The minister may allow council to retain the sale proceeds to expend on improvements on other parcels of Crown land under council's trusteeship or the minister may retain the funds as revenue for the state government," Mr Dwyer said.
Councillors unanimously backed the "financial assistance" plan that aims to meet government requirements.
Once part of the Dubbo racecourse, the Crown land sought by Macquarie Homestay is at the corner of Cobbora Road, Yarrandale Road and Tony McGrane Place.
The more than 3.5 hectares with zoning that would permit construction of patient and carer accommodation has been valued at $262,000 by ASPECT Property Consultants.
A valuation was requested by the government after the council sought ministerial consent to sell the Crown land in April.
The council has also been asked to detail how the sale proceeds will be spent on Crown land in its care.
In his report Mr Dwyer indicated that the council had not ignored its responsibilities with $17 million spent in the past five years "embellishing" Crown land in the city, including Victoria Park and its Dubbo Aquatic Leisure Centre, Elston Park, Old Dubbo Gaol, the racecourse, the new and old Dubbo cemeteries and Dubbo Regional Theatre and Convention Centre.
In 2014 Macquarie Homestay's bank account was boosted by a $3.3 million grant from the state government's Restart NSW Cobbora Transition Fund, set up to compensate communities affected by the stalling of the Cobbora Coal Project near Dunedoo.
Construction of the accommodation facility has been delayed by the red tape involved in acquiring its preferred site.
