The site – bounded by Wallamore Rd, Goddard Ln, Oxley Highway and Marathon St – is the largest single land holding near the airport and adjacent to the possible site of the terminal.

Mayor Col Murray said the purchase price could not be made public under the terms of the sale, but he did say it was a significant, multi-million-dollar purchase and the “community would get a return”.

“This will set the future development of industry in Tamworth for the next 20 or 30 years,” Cr Murray said.

“This does provide quite a lot of opportunities for new business, particularly with an export component.”

Cr Murray said having the land for sale would promote growth in Tamworth.

Council’s planning and compliance director Peter Thompson said the industrial area would be “the room for growth in Tamworth for the next 20 years”.

Mr Thompson said the community would have a say in the direction of the industrial area. 

“The community and the council will determine how we develop it and we will certainly be selling the land as freehold land at this stage,” he said.

“If you were to sell that off and someone held it privately, then they would control who in the industrial estate could use the rail hub. 

“We don’t want to see that happen.”

He said it was forecast that the industrial area could host thousands of jobs.

“This development is very similar to a development in Ballarat,” Mr Thompson said.

“The numbers they’re forecasting for direct jobs when its developed – bear in mind that will be a generation before it’s developed – but it could be the site of as many as 9000 direct jobs.”

The council has allowed for two years to do master planning before the first site is released.