THE issue of an extended lifeguard service on Mollymook Beach will be back on the agenda at tomorrow night's meeting of Shoalhaven City Council.
As reported in last week's edition of the Times, council shelved the extended service before it even began because of supposed budgetary constraints.
Ward 3 councillor Robert Miller has since lodged a rescission motion - to be discussed tomorrow night - and is encouraging Milton-Ulladulla residents and members of the Mollymook Surf Club to attend the meeting to show their support for an extension to the paid life guard service, which will cost council $28,000.
He has accused northern councillors of 'pulling the pin' on the service at the 11th hour and believes a show of support from local residents could swing a few votes at the meeting,
"I would love to see surf club members at the meeting with placards," Cr Miller said this week.
"If there's enough pressure on the councillors, it may be enough to secure the service.
Meanwhile Councillor Andrew Guile has hit back at comments made by Cr Miller in last week's edition of the Times.
"The fairy tale of those bad councillors from the north coming to raid the villages of the good people from the south is a recurrent theme for Cr Miller yet it does not represent the way the current council is operating," Cr Guile said this week.
"We have supported significant projects across the city to ensure that no-one is left out - usually we work together quite well in this regard.
"It might sound popular to say we should pull the money out of a business like the (Shoalhaven) Entertainment Centre, but that is effectively saying we should not invest in our businesses like Holiday Haven (where we invest many more millions) that are designed to generate a return to council while providing a community service.
"If we do not establish the Entertainment Centre business in these start up years with adequate levels of investment, I can guarantee that there will be far less money in the future for surf patrols, playing fields, libraries and all the other services council funds.
"It is short term thinking and if we go for it, people will pay for it later."
Cr Guile said he didn't think there would be any councillor who wouldn't want to see the lifeguard service extended on Mollymook Beach.
"We just need to find a way of funding the increased services as there is currently no provision in the management plan," he said.
Cr Guile also accused Cr Miller of effectively misleading the community by telling them council would provide the service before the matter had been fully determined by council, adding that it was "no wonder" people were up in arms.
Tomorrow night's council meeting will get underway at 5pm, with seating available in the public gallery.
While rescission motions are normally left until the end of the meeting (as late at midnight), they are often brought forward if public numbers are strong.
"Sometimes councillors vote differently when the public's looking at them - it makes them accountable."
Cr Miller said the community was outraged at the decision to dump the extended service.
"I have had a lot of feedback from people asking why the south misses out.
"They cannot believe that every time we want something we can't get it.
"This is a case of true disappointment."
He said council should be injecting funds into tourist centres like Mollymook, Ulladulla and Huskisson and providing essential services to keep visitors and locals safe.
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