You know what we are talking about.

It’s a beautiful piece of our country and attracts thousands of visitors each year.

It’s the first place residents choose to cool down when the weather heats up and it’s close to the CBD, food and amenities.

But come on, that 5 o’clock wave.

It is also often the first icon in the city that goes under water when it floods.

Too often we have seen flood waters up to the gates of the car park during some of the city’s worst natural disasters.

Then the water subsides and we wait to see the damage.

And while we have a start date on the levee bank (the one council said they couldn’t afford to fund not long ago), it won’t help the beach.

Now, imagine spending more than $6 million on that facility.

It’s a staggering amount of money.

And this is not to say the beach doesn’t need or deserve an upgrade. 

It’s a tourist attraction that needs to be maintained.

Losing Wagga Beach would be detrimental to the city.

Where else would we host the Gumi Festival?

And Australia Day wouldn’t be Australia Day without a barbecue at the beach.

No one is suggesting that it doesn’t deserve an allocation of funds.

But does the allocation have to be quite so large and on such left-field proposals?

Council cries poor mouth but somehow these funds magically appear.

Is there not a way less could be allocated to Wagga Beach and some distributed to other projects, such as upgrading roads or lights at Robertson Oval.

Ask any resident in Wagga and there would be at least five projects they would want to see funded before they spent $6.2 million on the beach.

Or they would recommend the funds be distributed differently at the beach.

Parking and amenities could use some improvements but instead of a pop-up shop avenue, what about revisiting the idea of lifeguards during summer?

Or clearing the river of snags to decrease the chances of drownings each year.

How would you like to see money spent on the upgrade? Visit www.dailyadvertiser.com.au to have a say.