Committee4Wagga has fundraised and organised the project, which will see 104 solar light poles installed around Lake Albert.

When installed, the lights will be operational from 5am to 10pm, and are anticipated to allow greater use of the recreational area when it is dark.

But since plans for the project were put into motion last year, the project, which was supposed to start in June, has been delayed.

While council had originally pegged the delay on rain, Committee4Wagga CEO Chris Fitzpatrick told The Daily Advertiser last Sunday the delay was the result of Wagga City Council not signing a contract.

Now Wagga City Council has countered the claim, saying in an email the claim was “inaccurate”.

“There has been no intentional delays made by Council towards this project,” a council spokesperson said.

“Lights for the Lake will progress once fundamental project documents are finalised by Committee4Wagga.

“A final site visit must also be carried out before work starts to ensure all industry planning and safety standards are met.”

But on Friday, Mr Fitzpatrick again disputed council’s reasons for the delay.

He said they had not fulfilled their contractual duties, which would require Wagga City Council to hand over the money it pledged for the project.

Once installed, council will be responsible for further ongoing costs such as maintenance of the lights.

Mr Fitzpatrick said because of the delay, Committee4Wagga was now seeking to have council install the lights.

All of the light poles were sitting in a Wagga warehouse just waiting to be put in the ground around the lake, he said.

“Committee4Wagga have suggested to council that it undertake the installation which would resolve the issue quite quickly,” Mr Fitzpatrick said.

A site meeting was “not an issue”, but could not take place until there was a signed contract with council.

Finding a way forward which would see the lights installed was paramount,  Mr Fitzpatrick said. 

“It’s not our money, we’ve raised that money on the behalf of the community,” he said. “Committee4Wagga maintains that this is a significant and beneficial project for the community and needs to be resolved quickly.”

In a report tabled to council, infrastructure services said areas around the lake and surface were too soft and installation could cause “a lot of damage” to the water’s surrounds.