The crowd, which was divided into tables, responded to questions about the importance of the site, the “must haves” on the site and how we blend the commercial with the “must haves”.

Woolworths, the owner of the Food for Less site, is in direct negotiation with Crown Lands to buy the adjoining Plaza car park.

Port Macquarie-Hastings Council called the community workshop at the Glasshouse on Monday night.

Information gathered at the meeting will be provided to the state government. 

People linked the importance of the site with the views, accessible car parking and its visual first impression of the town centre and foreshore.

The crowd also found it was important to get the best value for the land and any money from the sale must to go back to the community.

They felt the site must have parking, alfresco dining, a foreshore walkway, while any development must have attractive facades, be tiered building and development must be appropriate to the site.

The process must also be transparent, the meeting heard. 

Feedback from the tables showed, in terms of how we blend what is important with commercial development, there must be transparency between Woolworths, Crown Lands and the community.

Other views included keeping the commercial footprint small, avoiding political solutions, and incorporating community and commercial uses.

The Woolworths’ proposal includes shop fronts along the Kooloonbung Creek foreshore with modern architecture, landscaping and pedestrian links.

There development would feature a Woolworths supermarket.

There is provision for public art under the proposal.

Mayor Peter Besseling said the Plaza car park site was prime waterfront land.

“It’s important land, it’s community land,” he told the meeting.  

“It’s important whatever commercial development that’s going on that site, we get it right.”

The council will collate information gathered during the workshop with feedback from pop-up booths and views from the council’s community consultation website.

Cr Besseling said the information would be sent to Crown Lands for consideration as part of a public interest test.

“Where to from there, we shall wait and see,” he said.

Councillors will also receive the feedback.

The sale of the car park site has not been finalised.