KOGARAH Council reckons the city has a good case for national broadband priority and has asked Councillor Nick Varvaris in his new role as Barton MP to hurry things along.
The mayor Stephen Agius put up a good argument for expediting the rollout of the network.
He said Kogarah was recognised as a major medical, financial and educational precinct, servicing not only the St George area but the entire southern Sydney region.
"A large number of small businesses also operate in the area, with the Kogarah CBD alone employing more than 10,000 people daily," Cr Agius said.
"These industries and businesses have a rapidly growing reliance on access to online data networks and are well positioned to capitalise on the significantly increased speeds and capabilities which the NBN roll-out offers.
"The NBN rollout would also generate further economic growth and development across Kogarah."
Cr Agius said it was vitally important for the NBN to be available to all business sectors and residents within the city in the near future, but understood it was not scheduled to be rolled out "for some time".
There was also some debate about businesses being hooked up to the fast fibre optics while households would have to cope with having slower copper connections.
Crs Nick Katris and Kathryn Landsberry suggested that Cr Varvaris should assist Kogarah in getting fibre to all households.
Cr Varvaris said he would do what he could to get Barton business districts and residential areas that had limited broadband services onto the priority list.
He said that he had already discussed the NBN rollout in Barton with Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
Mr Turnbull had indicated the ranking of priority areas was currently under way, and that the needs of Barton would be taken into account when the ranking was completed next year.
"The government has a clear policy for a faster, more affordable rollout of the NBN and is currently examining ways to ensure the rollout is as efficient and as cost-effective as possible," Mr Varvaris said.
"The aim is that all households and businesses should have access to broadband with download data rates of between 25 and 100 megabits per second by the end of 2016.
"By the end of 2019 the government expects the NBN to be complete, with download data rates between 50 and 100 megabits to be available."
Should Kogarah receive National Broadband priority?
