Media release – Elise Archer, Attorney-General, Minister for Justice, 21 February 2022
Public Works Committee ticks off on Burnie Court Redevelopment
The Tasmanian Government welcomes the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works Report supporting the redevelopment of the Burnie Court Complex.
This is another important step in our $40 million commitment to develop a new Burnie Court Complex that will provide modern, fit-for-purpose courts for all court users in the north-west, while also supporting local jobs and investment in the region.
I thank all those who took the time to provide submissions to the Committee and appeared before it, and look forward to this critical project continuing to progress.
Jen Butler MP, Shadow Minister for Building and Construction, 22 February 2022
Reckless decision to move Burnie Court makes no sense for economy or community
The Gutwein Government’s proposed Burnie Court House relocation project been ticked off by just one vote after months of deliberation.
Shadow Building and Construction Minister Jen Butler said the government’s woefully misguided plan to relocated the court out of the CBD into a residential area is reckless and will cost the business community.
Ms Butler – who, as a member of the Public Works Committee, submitted a dissenting report – said the decision to move the court will remove 50,000 people from the city centre each year, was undertaken without any economic modelling and limited consultation and came with an exorbitant cost of $40 million.
“The evidence is overwhelming that moving the court from the Burnie CBD to Mooreville Road will have a huge economic effect on the central business district and the fact is this decision has been taken without consultation and is in spite of significant community opposition,” Ms Butler said.
“In a word, it is reckless.
“There was only token research by the Justice Department and the government’s procurement process involved extremely limited attempts to find an alternative site within the city area.
“The government presented no data to substantiate relocating the court three kilometres from the CBD to a largely residential area.
“There is no Master Plan to develop a legal precinct at the new site and, with police located in the city centre, there has been no thought given to security risks to the community associated with a court being located in a suburban area.
“The Mooreville Road area has limited amenities to support the 50,000 additional people this project will bring to the area annually.
“In addition, the question needs to be answered about how the exorbitant cost of $40 million for this relocation – a staggering increase on the $15 million the Attorney General originally proposed – is a prudent use of taxpayer’s money.
“It makes no sense and the concerns raised by the business community, local residents, council and legal professionals have simply been ignored.”
