After a four-four spilt, Greater Shepparton City Council has voted to not move forward with the purchase of the former Dhurringile Prison site.

At the April council meeting, councillors debated whether council should withdraw its tentative expression of interest to the first right of refusal process to purchase Dhurringile Estate.

The executive recommendation was that council should withdraw its EOI, but support where possible and outside the FRRP any suitable private investment opportunities that could benefit the region.

This motion came after the council-commissioned Dhurringile Estate Options Assessment Report by independent consultant Urban Enterprise was made public on Thursday, April 17.

The report recommends the purchase, stating the long-term benefits outweigh the financial risks; however, council management has pushed back, saying there are too many risks.

Before the motion was put forward, Cr Geoff Akers declared he had a conflict of interest, making him ineligible to vote on the matter.

Cr Sam Spinks forwarded the motion, saying the whole issue had gotten bigger than it should have.

“What I think it’s done is created some expectation within community that should have been dealt with at a formal decision right at the start,” she said.

“At no point has council had an aspiration, a direction, or a strategic justification to pursue the purchase of a new asset.”

Cr Spinks highlighted the costs associated with the purchase.

“The initial figures that have come back is that its going to cost $2.5 million to buy, another $3 million to repair the heritage buildings that are there, $400,000 ongoing to maintain the property and then miscellaneous other costs,” she said.

“We do not and should not get involved because the moment we step near it, we carry all responsibility and all risk, and we’re seeing that even in that we’re on the headlines today, for something we haven’t even discussed.

“As far as I’m concerned, we each sit here, and we have a role to make strong and stable decisions that are based in good governance and good long-term strategic justification, and this proposal does not have any of that.”

Cr Anthony Brophy seconded the motion, agreeing with Cr Spinks.

“Unknown costs are in the purchase, in maintenance, all the upgrades and that we have here, and is the state government really cost shifting and the responsibility potentially on to local government,” he said.

“Some are saying it’s a gold mine, but ... it is about as viable as a prize-winning racing greyhound with only three legs.”

Cr Fern Summer spoke against the motion, saying this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to purchase the estate had fallen into their laps.

“If we do not proceed with the EOI process and allow Dhurringile to go to open market, it will likely become unaffordable,” she said.

“I might remind councillors that we are not a profit-driven entity. If profit was our focus, the only thing left standing would be the sale yards because everything else runs at a financial loss.”

Cr Summer wanted to push for the purchase of the site, with opportunities in equine, tourism and beyond available at the site.

“There’s plenty of money in equine that is untapped with our current resources,” she said.

“We are quite happy to fund upgrades to an existing basketball stadium, but not invest in basic infrastructure for a more lucrative sport.

“I’m really struggling to understand why we go against the recommendation in our consultant report, and sincerely hope it’s not because equine is predominantly a female sport.”

Cr Rod Schubert, whose ward includes the Dhurringile site, spoke against the motion, saying community backlash would be severe.

“Council needs to take more time to work through this matter with the community,” he said.

“Some local residents have stated to me that ... if Dhurringile were in Shepparton, council would have voted to express an interest and or purchase Dhurringile. I want to prove them wrong by opposing the motion today.”

Cr Steven Threlfall and Cr Paul Wickham spoke against the motion, while Cr Kieron Eddy spoke in support.

City of Greater Shepparton Mayor Shane Sali said his position came down to costs.

“From my perspective, I don’t believe at this particular time we can afford to purchase an asset like Dhurringile,” he said.

“I feel at this particular point ... we shouldn’t be entertaining assets that come with a significant cost, and adding those assets to our books when we’re trying to upgrade and maintain our current assets across our municipality.”

Council voted, with Cr Sali, Cr Brophy, Cr Spinks and Cr Eddy voting for the motion.

Cr Schubert, Cr Threlfall, Cr Summer and Cr Wickham voted against.

As there was a four-four spilt, Cr Sali made the final call, with the motion passing. Many community members in the gallery left soon after the decision was made, frustrated with the result.

Cr Sali assured the community that council would continue to advocate for the future of Dhurringile Estate.

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Wednesday, 4th June 2025

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