Water and roads a priority for Hilltops at the summit

Hilltops Council has the backing of Member for Cootamundra Steph Cooke on a number of priority issues following the 2026 Cootamundra Electorate Mayoral Summit last Friday. Mayors and General Managers, including Mayor Brian Ingram and general manager Anthony O'Reilly were among those who attended the event held at the NSW Rural Fire Service South West Zone Fire Control Centre at Cunningar near Harden on Friday. Ms Cooke hosted the summit for the eighth time since she was elected to the seat of Cootamundra and prioritised three specific portfolios for across the electorate, health, water and roads. The big health items discussed were the need for a new hospital in Cootamundra, a new MPS in Coolamon and an improved MPS at Grenfell. Under the water portfolio was the need for Narrandera to get a new water treatment plant, the Boorowa pipeline, issues at Coolamon and sewage treatment plant upgrades at Harden, Boorowa and West Wyalong. Important items across the electorate for roads focused on the William Bradford Bridge near Murrumburrah, the Mary Gilmore Way crossing near Bribbaree in the Weddin Shire, a second bridge over the Lachlan river in Cowra and a new bridge in Narranderra. When talking on the Boorowa pipeline Ms Cooke said she has been aware of the issues the town is facing since before they became a part of her electorate. "I said to my mayors earlier, I only wish that the community of Boorowa had been part of the Cootamundra electorate prior to the last election," she said. "This is an issue that first came across my desk following that redistribution of boundaries, which saw the Boorowa community come into the Cootamundra electorate. "I have given that community an undertaking that I will fight tooth and nail to resolve this water issue. "I know it's long standing, I'm just a few years into representing them. "I'm coming from a position of opposition, but that doesn't matter to me." Ms Cooke vows she will continue to take the fight to Sydney. "I will continue to do everything that I can to work with the government of the day, to keep the issue on the agenda, talk to the Minister about it, talk to the NSW Parliament about it and make sure they know what a real priority it is for us," she said. Ms Cooke was very keen to address the road priority and highlight the top of the list on the agenda for that particular portfolio. "Top of that list is the William Bradford Bridge, not too far from here," Ms Cooke said. "This is a bridge that is in need of widening or replacement, it's very hard to explain which, because we can't even get a decent study done to identify what's the best way for it. "What we do know is that this is the site of many incidents and near misses and it's high time the government took the replacement of that bridge seriously." Though not in the Hilltops LGA, it is very close to the border, and is a known site for vehicle and train collisions. "On the issue of safety, the upgrade of the Mary Gilmore Way level crossing is critical," Ms Cooke said. "We've been running a trial there, it has indicated that to do more fundamentally and what we need to see there is an active crossing. "We need lights and moon gates, and the Mayor and I will continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with our community to make sure that actually happens." Ms Cooke has a very good argument she plans to use when she is discussing these issues on Macquarie Street. "As has been pointed out to me, when you go to Sydney and you see the roads and the development around the new Western Sydney Airport, for a tiny fraction of that, we could deal with most of the road issues in the Cootamundra electorate," she said. "That's the argument that we will be making to the NSW government." Ms Cooke is eager to working with the LGAs to fight for the priorities of the Cootamundra electorate in the coming 12 months. "We're up for the challenge and today is an opportunity for us to go through our strategies and how we will take that forward," she said.