Clarence Valley Council will consider a proposal at next week’s council meeting, to build an office building on Yamba Bay Park (adjacent to the Golding Street roundabout) – council staff have recommended against the proposal. The report to council states: “Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) is seeking Council’s assistance to obtain a suitable site in Yamba to build a joint agency operations facility, to accommodate RMS (Maritime), DPI Fisheries and Water Police. “Council and RMS have had discussions relating to the relocation of DPI Fisheries from their current premises at Maclean.” Relocation of the DPI Fisheries building in Maclean is a part of the council’s riverside redevelopment, stages of which are currently underway. “The RMS objective is to construct a two storey operations facility to cater for up to fifteen staff from the three agencies,” the report to council states. “According to RMS the parcel of land would give the three on-water compliance agencies easy access to the water via the adjacent launching ramp and the RMS marina facility.” However, the council officer who assessed the proposal has pointed out that the RE1 Public Recreation zoned land is considered unsuitable “due to [its] proximity to the exit of the roundabout”. Further, the “loss of waterfront recreational land is inconsistent with Council’s Open Spaces Strategic Plan and SEPP 71” and “commercial office development outside the CBD is contrary to the Yamba Retail Commercial Strategy and contrary to normal planning principles”. Nor has the proponent “demonstrated any essential need for the office development to be located with direct water access”, according to the council officer. One of the two parcels of land is “subject to Native Title, and the other to an Aboriginal Land Claim. Extensive consultation with stakeholders would be required.”