After 10 months of turmoil the organisation charged with Dubbo’s economic development, Grow Dubbo, has reached what for all intents and purposes may be its reckoning.

The Department of Local Government is reviewing Dubbo City Council’s dealing with Grow Dubbo’s parent company, the Dubbo City Development Corporation (DCDC).

It comes after an almost year-long heated battle between the organisation and some Dubbo City councillors, primarily based on the issue of Grow Dubbo’s general manager, Rorque Poisson.

Mr Poisson was the focus of an article published in the weekend Sydney Morning Herald, shining a light on a series of failed, deregistered and liquidated businesses and casting doubt on Mr Poisson qualifications for the position he holds within the organisation.

None of the issues raised were new. They were a collection of concerns raised by a group spearheaded by councillor Tina Reynolds, who have constantly questioned Mr Poisson suitability to the $120,000-a-year ratepayer-funded role.

Today, the Daily Liberal looks back on the trouble with Grow Dubbo.

For a list of some of its main proposals, click here.

August-September 2008

While there had been rumblings of disquiet since Rorque Poisson was appointed general manager of Grow Dubbo in early 2008, the first major trouble came in August last year with the publication of a report in the Sunday Telegraph.

In it, Mr Poisson was accused of owing money to a string of investors who alleged they had lost hundreds of thousands of dollars to him.

He denied the claims, saying they were disgruntled investors from legitimately failed enterprises.

Questions also began to circulate regarding Mr Poisson qualifications.

His resume listed an Master of Business Administration from Midrand University in South Africa.

But allegations were made that he did not have the MBA and Mr Poisson was asked by Grow Dubbo to search for proof of the qualification.

He said his education certificate was lost in the process of moving from South Africa to Australia.

“He’s undertaken to do everything he can (to get proof),” then Grow Dubbo board chairman Wayne Mawbey said at the time.

Councillor Tina Reynolds called on Mr Poisson to step aside until the allegations surrounding his credentials were answered, but many in the Dubbo business community were supportive.

An emergency meeting was called that night where almost 30 business people threw their support behind Grow Dubbo and Mr Poisson.

Questions were raised at the meeting about the validity of the organisation and Mr Poisson efficiency in his position.

There was no mention at the meeting, however, about the validity of Mr Poisson qualifications or the allegations over money he owed to Sydney businessmen.

As the debate over Mr Poisson credentials raged on throughout the rest of the month, the chairman of a regional development board, Gowest, John Walkom, claimed the controversy was hurting the city.

He said the “public bashing of each other and Dubbo” is akin to “uncontrolled cannibalism” and the issues needed to be sorted out within council.

On the development front, on September 16, Mr Poisson said he would submit a proposal to the government about railway upgrades in the city in order to improve access to the Dubbo Regional Livestock Markets.

There has been no further mention of development on this front.

October-December 2008

The battle over Mr Poisson qualifications continued with Cr Reynolds attempting to stop council funding to Grow Dubbo over the issue of the still-yet-to-be-seen qualifications.

A motion at a council meeting on October 20 was lost.

Mayor Greg Matthews used his casting vote to reject the motion.

On October 22, Mr Poisson announced he was in the process of convincing Kmart to open a store in Dubbo. He also pointed to other developments he was working on, including a halal beef abattoir.

In all, the developments would create 720 new jobs, he claimed.

Orana Mall and the CBD were two areas deemed appropriate for Kmart to be built.

There has been no further news on this development or the mooted $40 to $50 million halal beef abattoir to date.

In December 2008, Mr Poisson attempted to make the Federal Government’s boosted First Home Owner Grant the basis of an incentive package for new residents in Dubbo. It was pitched that first home owners would receive up to $10,000 worth of incentives to buy a home in the city using the grant.

This plan is also yet to eventuate.

Meanwhile, the political nastiness continued.

Cr Reynolds claimed she had been threatened with litigation over the way she had confronted Grow Dubbo in the past months.

It was also revealed that 80 of the new jobs Grow Dubbo had facilitated in its first six months were not business investment related, as stipulated in its key performance indicators.

As part of the organisation’s charge, it must facilitate 50 new jobs each year, a target that does not appear to have been met in the last financial year.

January-April 2009

The debate over Mr Poisson mysterious MBA was revisited at the start of the year, though in truth it never went away.

Councillor Ben Shields claimed Grow Dubbo’s “head in the sand” attitude over the validity of Mr Poisson credentials had dragged on long enough.

He attempted to put a one-month deadline on resolving the issue.

Meanwhile, the Daily Liberal sought an update on a number of developments announced by Mr Poisson over the previous 10 months.

In May 2008, Mr Poisson said Dulhunty Power was searching for a premises to launch a $1.5 million business that would bring 35 jobs to the region.

“They want the plant to be operational in January of 2009,” he said at the time.

When approached by the Daily Liberal about the plant and a number of other developments including a Kmart store and a halal beef abattoir, Mr Poisson said he could not comment due to confidentiality agreements.

On February 25, Grow Dubbo proposed a new deal to go with the first home owner grant.

Mr Poisson planned to introduce a ‘Grow Dubbo card’, marketed to Sydneysiders, which would give the cardholder 12 months of cheap deals around town to help them set up a new house.

In April he announced a plan to turn a Macquarie Street eyesore into the entrance of a $50 million and 20,000 square metre retail shopping development, bringing more national retailers to Dubbo and 400-plus jobs.

As recently as a few weeks ago Mr Poisson said he was in negotiations with businesses interested in being part of the shopping centre.

May 2009 - present

In May, a council committee recommended that Grow Dubbo participate in a meeting with the council to satisfy both parties that the development organisation was using public funds appropriately and efficiently, after councillors at their meeting said it was not delivering on its claims.

During the meeting, Grow Dubbo’s chairman, Bill Kelly, declined to answer some questions posed to him, due to non-disclosure agreements between Grow Dubbo and other organisations over proposals.

On April 28, a brand new $160 million Dubbo Base Hospital was on Grow Dubbo’s infrastructure checklist. There has been no further mention of this development.

A direct plane route between Dubbo and Newcastle, as well as the resurrection of air services to remote areas was the next big ticket item with Grow Dubbo running a survey to measure interest in the routes.

Mr Poisson said a proposal had been put to an airline carrier and it had been willing to facilitate the idea.

On June 19, a proposal by Grow Dubbo to develop opportunities with a Centrelink customer service centre was revisited.

Mr Poisson revealed four months of investigations into suitable locations had occurred for a building that would also house two other Government agencies and boost local employment by possibly 100 jobs.

The organisation got a pat on the back from the Chamber of Commerce after a prominent corner shop in Macquarie Street was filled.

Staff thanked the organisation for helping them get on their feet with a jewellry shop and described Grow Dubbo as “gem”.

Then came the Sydney Morning Herald article and revelations in the Daily Liberal that the Department of Local Government would investigate Dubbo City Council and Grow Dubbo.

The next chapter in the saga of Grow Dubbo begins . . .