Byron Shire Council has elected not to proceed with plans to fix up the old Mullumbimby Scout Hall, after the budget for the project blew out.
But the Council will take one last look at the options for the historic local space before it is consigned to the scrap heap.
The two-storey Burringbar Street building was badly damaged in the 2022 floods, forcing it to close pending major reconstruction works.
An inspection by flooding engineers identified structural issues with the building’s concrete floor including cracking, subsidence, concrete cancer, delamination, and extensive efflorescence. Additional basic structural concerns unrelated to the floods were also identified.
Council elected to go down the path of reconstructing the old hall, acknowledging its important ongoing role as a community space. However, when Council eventually undertook the tender process for the project, it discovered that the cost of fixing up the building was twice what had been budgeted.
The discovery was not only a blow to the Council, but also to the Mullumbimby & District Neighbourhood Centre, who had been awarded the lease for the space just prior to the floods.
At last week’s Council meeting, councillors voted not to proceed with the proposed reconstruction. However, they did ask Council staff to come back with a report on what, if any, options remained for salvaging the hall.
‘It would be great for us to find the money in the next year or two to fix it up and make it once again a vibrant and useable hall for community,’ Labor councillor Janet Swain said.
‘They don’t have much space down at the neighbourhood centre in Mullum, so it would be great if they had that extra room. I think it would be good for us councillors to keep an eye on that and to encourage that work to take place.’
Possible demolition
Council’s Manager Of Open Spaces and Facilities, Malcolm Robertson, said that the demolition of the existing building and repurposing the site might be an option.
‘We have investigated all potential options for funding internally,’ Mr Robertson said of the reconstruction plan.
‘We did submit a grant application which was unsuccessful, so just at the moment we haven’t been able to identify another project that can be deferred or funds that will enable this to continue. My recommendation is that we do an options report and come back.’
Byron Mayor Sarah Ndiaye said her preference was for the Council to continue to pursue grant funding, or to find the money within Council’s budget.
‘The longer we leave it there derelict, the harder it is to repair,’ Cr Ndiaye said.
Council is to receive the options report on the hall ‘at a future meeting, prior to the adoption of the 2026/27 budget’.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
