LAUNCESTON City Council will determine at a meeting today whether it will continue leasing three buildings at Youngtown Oval to the South Launceston Football Club.
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The lease term is for an initial proposed five years, backdated to July 1. It will be extended for a further five years if the club continues with its debt repayments in that period.
It was revealed last year that the club, which had sought a 10-year lease of the buildings, had debts to a number of entities, including the council and the Australian Tax Office.
In the first year, the debt repayments will start at $6535, plus GST and linked to CPI, increasing to $8000 in the fifth year and then beyond.
If negotiations proceed, the club will pay 35 per cent of the land tax, council rates and building insurance as part of the arrangement for the term of the lease.
Council parks and recreation manager Andrew Smith has recommended that the council approve the lease terms.
Mr Smith said he recognised the proactive approach of the new board who inherited the poor financial position of the club.
The council has leased the grounds to the club for more than 50 years.
Also to be discussed at the council meeting, will be two development applications for two units at each 13 and 15 Palmerston Avenue, Prospect.
Council’s development planner Leon Murray has recommended the council approve both DAs subject to a number of conditions.
The council received seven representations and a petition signed by 11 people, in regards to the DAs.
Those representations included concerns about a lack of on-street parking, pedestrian safety, devaluation of property and increased traffic flow.
According to a nine-day traffic study conducted by council near the proposed site earlier in the year, of the 3559 vehicles that travelled on the street - 20 per cent of those travelling South, exceeded the 50km/hr speed limit.