22/04/2026
Hi Callala Beach, Callala Bay, Currarong and Myola Crew 🌊
It’s time to grab a glass of your favourite wine or pop the kettle on for a brew—maybe two teabags for this one—because you’re going to want to sit back and have a very thorough read of the Shoalhaven City Council’s 2026 Callala Bay, Callala Beach, Currarong, Myola & surrounds, Community Infrastructure Needs Analysis. 🍷☕
We’ve had a deep dive into the document, and while it’s a lot to digest, there are some pretty significant points that affect our neck of the woods.
NOTE: While Council is seeking feedback on the draft CISP 2056 and the CISP Action Plan, feedback is not being collected on the Needs Analysis itself.
📍 First Things First: A Little Geography Lesson
The cover currently lists our district as Planning Area 1: Ward 1. We are firmly planted in Ward 2!
📉 The "Over-Provision" Puzzle
According to the findings on page 15, Council believes that for a community of our size, we are actually "well-provisioned" or even "over-provisioned" in several areas (Needs Analysis, p. 15). Their benchmarks suggest we have "too much" of the following:
* 4 extra local recreation play spaces (Needs Analysis, p. 15).
* 7 extra passive recreation parks (Needs Analysis, p. 15).
* 3 extra community buildings (Needs Analysis, p. 15).
* An "excess" of local tennis facilities (Needs Analysis, p. 15).
🚫 What’s on the Chopping Block?
Because the report identifies this "over-provision," several of our local assets are being looked at for decommissioning or divestment (that’s Council-speak for potentially losing them):
Callala Bay Progress Hall: The recommendation on page 18 is to decommission the tennis court, hall, and playground, and investigate options to divest the asset entirely (Needs Analysis, p. 18, 20).
Local Playgrounds: Council plans to decommission the play equipment at Encounter Ave Reserve and Gowland Cres Reserve (Needs Analysis, p. 18, 22).
Reserves: Both Australia Avenue Reserve and Hollingsworth Reserve have been flagged for divestment (Needs Analysis, p. 20, 23).
Callala Beach Community Centre: While renewal works are mentioned, Council also wants to investigate "alternative governance" and "improved cost recovery" due to the alleged surplus of halls (Needs Analysis, p. 18). Our "on the ground" metrics for use of the Callala Beach Community Centre and Tennis Facility are notably higher than those described in the Needs Analysis.
🧐 We Have Questions
As a community, we’d like to question some of these outcomes. We are particularly interested in the source of the metrics used to develop these projections. For example, the report notes on page 5 that our district saw upwards of 30,000 online accommodation bookings in 2023 alone (Needs Analysis, p. 5).
How does the analysis account for this massive influx of visitors when deciding we have "too many" parks or "excess" facilities? We want to ensure our infrastructure meets the actual needs of our residents and visitors, not just a spreadsheet benchmark.
The link to the full document is below. Please take a look and let us know your thoughts!
Click the image above to return to the CISP Hub page The Community Infrastructure Strategic Plan 2017 – 2036 (CISP) provides a framework to guide the planning and strategic management of open space and community facilities owned and / or managed by Council. Open space
