Cr Sam Coupland may not own a Renewable Energy Zone property but the way he has set up the process for collecting community benefit contributions from renewable energy production and battery storage companies and signing voluntary planning agreements (VPA) raise many questions for residents of the ARC Local Government Area
The setting up of a Future Fund is highly open to manipulation by Councillors, its General Manager and the Director Planning.
VPAs are negotiated by ARC’s Mayor, General Manager and Director Planning, then presented to ARC Councillors for rubber stamping. Then the VPA is put on Public Exhibition for 28 days for public comments. ARC staff prepare another report incorporating public comments and present to ARC for rubber stamping the VPA. So far $70 million worth of VPAs have been signed. We expect this number to rise greater than $100 million.
That contribution by Armidale Renewable Battery Systems giving $20,000 per annum for 20 years for Cycling+Walking trail upkeep, was negotiated this way.
But we cannot find any public exhibition of the VPA? The governance mechanism for funds in the Future Fund is the Board of Guardians. Cr Sam Coupland is on it. There is to be a Community Benefit Panel also. But what worries me is that he has stated that 70% of funds will go to ARC infrastructure projects. Only 30% to community projects identified by the Community Benefit Panel. It is possible that millions of $$$ will be allocated to NERT‘s trail unless there is community wide opposition.
Armidale Regional Council have weak councillors outside the Mayor’s core group, with no backbone to question how the funds from REZ companies will be managed and allocated. Ideally I believe all of it must to go to Community Benefit projects.
Why should ARC retain 70% when ARC gets grants from both levels of government and have already access to council rates ?
Dr Siri Gamage
Armidale Resident
8-jun-2026