Adelaide council criticised after spending $50,000 on a single drinking fountain
Locals in Adelaide’s north have questioned its local council’s decision to spend $50,000 on a single drinking fountain.
The City of Salisbury announced it would build the drinking fountain at the corner of Mawson Lakes Boulevard and Main Street, even though another drinking fountain is just 400m away.
South Australia Premier peter Malinauskas admitted he was taken aback by the cost of the water fountain. Today
Residents questioned the spend, calling it extravagant for just one water fountain.
“That sounds a little bit extreme I believe,” one local said.
“It’s good they want to put a water tap here, but a little bit of an extreme sort of cost to go ahead with something like that.”
South Australian premier Peter Malinauskas weighed in, admitting he was surprised by the cost.
“Sounds like a lot of money,” he said when asked about the issue on the Today Show.
Liberal Senator James Patterson also questioned the cost of the project, telling the Today Show: “You would have to be getting a hell of a lot of use to make that a justified expense.”
In a statement to nine.com.au, a City of Salisbury spokesperson said the $50,000 bill was a “whole-of-project cost estimate”, which would include connection of services as well as other works other than the water fountain itself.
“This would be a standard drinking fountain. The design is yet to be confirmed,” the spokesman said.
The council has defended the cost of installing the water fountain, even though another one is just 400m away. Today
“The area is heavily utilised for recreational purposes including parkrun.”
The spokesman refused to confirm if ratepayers would foot some of the final bill.
“Funding will be determined through the 2027/28 budget planning process,” he said.
Despite some push back, some locals were in support of the drinking fountain.
“Drinking fountains can be pretty [expensive] because the government tax is real,” Logan City Mayor Jon Raven told the Today Show.
“When council builds these pieces of infrastructure, they’re not just ducking off to Bunnings and buying something off the shelf.”
He insisted that the fountain was viewed as a long-term investment, and that considerable cost would be required to maintain it.
“It’s got to last 30 years, and when you think about an asset that lasts 30 years, and when you think about an asset that lasts 30 years,” he said.
“The big costs isn’t the initial spend, it’s actually how much it costs year-on-year to maintain that.”
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