Ballina council contractor debt waived after company goes bust

The Ballina Shire Council has voted to write off debt owed by a failed private company initially hired to develop six industrial lots six years ago.

Council staff reported to last week’s ordinary council meeting how the council in 2017 had hired Civic Logic Pty Ltd to develop the publicly owned lots at 54 North Creek Road.

But the company failed to pay an outstanding bill of $17,444.40 to the council for its use of the resource and recovery centre during preliminary works.

Council staff sent reminders but in early 2018 Civil Logic advised administrators had been appointed to manage the company’s finances.

Council staff and lawyers went to a meeting of creditors in February 2018 in Sydney, where administrators David Iannuzzi and Vincent Pirina revealed Civil Logic was $600,000 in debt, with only $100,000 due to come in from clients still owing.

The council ended up having to hire another contractor for the project at 54 North Creek Road.

Towards the end of 2019, liquidators of Civil Logic informed the council it was unlikely unsecured creditors would receive payment.

Last month the council received a final letter from liquidators confirming there was ‘inadequate asset realisation and recoveries in the liquidation to enable any further distribution to creditors’.

Liquidators said a final dividend had been paid towards unpaid leave entitlements for former Civic Logic staff and there was nothing left.

The letter, which staff attached to the agenda for last week’s meeting, advised all creditors to classify their debts as irrecoverable.

Staff had to seek the council’s approval by vote before writing off the debt, in accordance with state law.

Independent Councillor Phillip Meehan moved to support the staff’s recommendation to write off the debt, with Cr Eva Ramsey seconding the motion and all councillors voting in favour.

Cr Rodney Bruem was absent from the vote.