Mr Constance ruled out funding for a wave attenuator in Cattle Bay late last Wednesday, infrastructure the developer wants the government to pay for to help kick-start jobs, private investment and tourism opportunities in Eden.

“The government is funding one wave attenuator at Eden which is the Snug Cove attenuator to be funded by the $10 million Eden Safe Harbour Project,” Mr Constance said.

“Transport for NSW is not providing financial assistance towards any aspect of the Cattle Bay development including the wave attenuator,” he said.

Eden Marina and Eden Resort Hotel project spokesman Bob Carter this week released the full, 20-page report by consultants GHD to the Magnet, claiming that “[government] investment in the wave attenuator is supported” with a business case that exceeds government benefit cost ratio guidelines.

Mr Carter said investment by the government of $7.97m in the wave attenuator would unlock further private capital investments of around $4m in the marina and up to $116.9m in the hotel resort.

The Eden Resort Hotel would be the first international 4.5 star hotel to be built on the Sapphire Coast; the one of its kind between Wollongong and Melbourne would support international tourists flying into Canberra on Singapore Airline, he said.

The GHD report said that the proposed development package would provide “the first significant upturn in local employment since the closure of the cannery in 1999”, transforming an industrial wasteland into a tourist, hospitality and residential precinct.

“This is the classic textbook development which delivers jobs, private investment and tourism opportunities,” Mr Carter said.