'Not if but when': April floods could be Groundhog Day for Wollongong

Wollongong city councillors were given an update on the recovery efforts from the April floods, and passed a motion calling on state and federal government to offer "funding for the repair and enhancement of infrastructure to contemporary standards".

At present disaster recovery funding only allows like-for-like replacements rather than upgrades - and the funds are tied to a specific project.

"This is not a matter of if this will happen again, it's a matter of when," Cr Tania Brown said.

"We could be facing Wollongong's Groundhog Day if we don't do something about our infrastructure. We appreciate the support that's come from federal and state governments, but we need to be able to receive funds unencumbered so that we can not just replace like-for-like, but so that we can start to future-proof our city."

Cr Brown added that she felt there were people in the community who were distressed about the April floods, even though they weren't directly affected.

"People are looking at stormwater drains and networks near their home and saying, 'will I be next?'," Cr Brown said.

"So I think there's a lot of anxiety out there."

Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery agreed that more protective measures were needed and could not be delivered through a like-for-like replacement policy.

"We can get funding for like-for-like, but we need to rebuild to a higher standard because these events are becoming more frequent and more intense," Cr Bradbery said.

"And so we need to make sure that the resilience of the city is part of the deal of the ongoing rollout of infrastructure and the repairs that we undertake.

"So councillors, we're just running up the flag saying we are wanting to engage with the state and more specifically with the Commonwealth to make sure that we address the financial implications.

"But we also put back in place things that means that this city is going to be more resilient into the future."

Cr Bradbery also praised the efforts of council staff's actions both during and after the floods.

"The problem and the challenge that we confront is everyone expects business as usual," Cr Bradbery said.

"That is that we expect our parks and gardens and, and our various ovals and so on to be mowed and maintained and all regular routines that this city kept going.

"And in spite of the events of the sixth of April, we've been able to continue to do that."

Cr Cameron Walters said it was "a waste of the state government's money" to rebuild stormwater infrastructure to the same standard it was when it failed - because it will likely fail again.