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Legislative Council - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2008-06-03 Daily Xml
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TRAM BARN SITE

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS (15:58): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the minister representing the Premier a question on the subject of the old tram barn site.

Leave granted.

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS: In recent months there have been a series of media articles and concerns expressed about the nature of the deal entered into between the South Australian government and a representative arm of the Catholic Church in relation to the sale of the old tram barn site, and also the new building there, which is (significantly) now to be inhabited by SA Water as its corporate headquarters.

One of those articles was in The Independent Weekly in March of this year, written by respected financial commentator Bill Nicholas. In that article he made a number of comments, and I will refer to several of them. In talking about the original sale price, he states:

That's around $734 per square metre.

That is the sale price of the old tram barn site to the Catholic Church Endowment Society Incorporated. It continues:

This compares with an average price of around $1,500 per square metre that was the going price just over two years ago. Now the price would be $3,000 per square metre according to senior valuers.

Later on in the article he states, in a copy of an email he sent to the Premier asking questions:

Why was the block of land on the corner of Angas Street and Victoria Square sold to the Catholic Church for a price that was about half the market rate at the time?

Mr Nicholas goes on to quote from an email received from Ms Jillian Bottrall providing some responses to the questions he asked. In part, he quotes Ms Bottrall as stating that the deed of agreement was signed in October 2003 between the Catholic Church and the South Australian government. However, he also quotes the Catholic Church PR, Chris McWilliams, who stated that the deed of agreement for the sale of the land was signed not in October 2003 (as claimed by Ms Bottrall) but in October 2004.

So, he highlights a difference of opinion between the Catholic Church and the South Australian government as to when the deed of agreement was signed. I do not propose to go through the detail of the article, but in it he highlights the issue of the role of Monsignor Cappo within both the church and the various arms of the South Australian government, and he raises questions about some of those issues. My questions are:

1. When was the deed of agreement actually signed? Was it either October 2003 (as claimed by Ms Bottrall) or October 2004 (as claimed by the Catholic Church representative, Chris McWilliams)?

2. Is it a public document; if it is not, will the government make it a public document in terms of public accountability?

3. What is the government's response to Mr Nicholas's claim that the price the Catholic Church paid at that time was about half the market rate at the time it did the deal with the South Australian government?

4. Did Monsignor Cappo discuss the issue of the sale of the tram barn site to the Catholic Church with the Premier, any minister, any staff member in their offices, or any public servant involved in the issue, prior to the government's making the decision on this matter?

5. Did Monsignor Cappo discuss the issue of SA Water's deciding to construct a new building on the tram barn site with the Premier, any minister, any staff member in their offices, or any public servant or officer of SA Water involved in this issue, prior to the decision of SA Water and/or the government?

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (Minister for Police, Minister for Mineral Resources Development, Minister for Urban Development and Planning) (16:03): I will refer those questions to the Premier and bring back a reply. However, I note that it is great finally to see some new buildings being constructed within the city. I for one am very pleased that we will have a five-star building to accommodate SA Water on that very important site in Victoria Square. As I say, it is just one of a number of significant buildings that are currently being constructed in this city. We do not have quite the same number of cranes as Dubai, but I think that this government can be very pleased that it has been able to generate so much development in the city. I will refer those questions to the Premier.

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