Shellharbour council Deputy Mayor Michele Greig has launched a scathing attack on the secrecy surrounding her council's $1.5 billion Shell Cove development.

The ALP councillor wants the Shell Cove Management Agreement made public, and personal copies made for each councillor to take away from council offices to peruse.

She told the Mercury she was confident her notice of motion to tonight's Shellharbour City Council meeting would attract sufficient support from fellow councillors.

However, general manager Brian Weir recommends councillors defer the matter to allow for further investigation and to consult its development partner, Australand.

Work will begin in May or June on the $100 million marina, the residential and tourist development's centrepiece.

Councillor Greig likens the Shell Cove Project to the NSW Government's Cross City Tunnel, and said there was a strong case to be transparent about council's dealings with Australand.

She said the six changes to the management agreement since its inception in 1993 were not always as minor as council staff claimed.

Last year the council approved a host of changes, including selling the town centre and retail site to Australand and allowing Australand to develop the core of the retail centre in conjunction with the boat harbour's construction.

Cr Greig said the council owed it to ratepayers to be transparent with such a big project, where conflict of interests could be perceived.

"Since 1993 it's been a commercial-in-confidence document," she said.

"That's a long time."

Cr Greig said the management agreement was such a hefty pile of complex paperwork that it was inappropriate to expect councillors to work their way through all of it under the eyes of council staff. She wanted to take it home to digest and have on hand for reference.

She gave little credit to the general manager's comments attached to her notice of motion for tonight.

Mr Weir noted that in his view it was contrary to the request from Walker Corporation in 1993 that the agreement be regarded as commercial-in-confidence (Australand later took over from Walker Corporation).

He said the council's solicitors at the time also recommended it protect its own position by keeping the agreement confidential.

However, Cr Greig said since the Shell Cove agreement was signed in December 1993, the Cross City Tunnel debacle had shown that Private Public Partnership contracts should be made public.

Her recommendation was for the agreement to be made available for viewing to members of the public during office hours by appointment, and for councillors to receive their own copy.