The Mercury can reveal the costs of the council’s NSW Land and Environment Court challenge, which sought a review of the proposed amalgamation with Wollongong City Council, total $216,449.86.

“These costs are spread over both this and the last financial year and so council’s legal costs remain well within its allocated annual budget,” a council spokeswoman said.

The revelation came after deputy mayor John Murray recommended council “release the total legal costs incurred to date to inform the residents on this matter” during an extraordinary meeting on September 22.

The motion was seconded by Cr Kellie Marsh and carried unanimously.

Earlier, Cr Murray told the meeting residents were entitled to know the legal bill. 

“I think it’s a very reasonable amount of money and I think if people were informed of the facts, it might put a whole lot more rigour in the debate,” he said. 

“I think it’s a fair and open thing that we should be doing. We should be accountable for the money we’re spending and people should know what that is.”

The day before the extraordinary meeting, September 21, council moved to calm community concern over its legal budget, issuing a media release that said “the legal costs to date … are well within council’s current annual budget”.

The council said it had set aside a budget of $250,000 in 2016/17 for legal expenses, with additional “contingency funding” of more than $440,000 set aside for extra legal costs.

The Land and Environment Court dismissed Shellharbour’s case on September 20, with the council also ordered to pay the NSW government’s costs. 

The Mercury revealed the government’s legal bill was about $65,000.

The council is challenging the Land and Environment Court’s decision via the NSW Court of Appeal.