The sites include Leichhardt, Petersham and Ashfield town halls, as well as several administration buildings and depots, as part of a strategy "to address council's future accommodation needs". The council's chief executive Michael Deegan said the organisation needed to consolidate office space after the merger of Leichardt, Marrickville and Ashfield local government areas in 2016. "Council currently has seven separate offices – expensive to run and maintain," Mr Deegan said. "The heritage buildings with town halls are not going to be sold. In fact it is up to council whether any other buildings are considered for sale as part of this process," Mr Deegan said. But councillor Rochelle Porteous, who was among the Greens councillors who did not support the motion at last week's council meeting, said the town hall buildings "could be subject to long-term leases which would prevent public and community use for decades".

"The fact that these iconic buildings are in the expression of interest shows that every single one is up for grabs." Mr Parker said the council was trying to plug holes in its finances and it was "disappointing that Labor is teaming up with the Liberals to flog off some of our most iconic heritage buildings". "If council can’t manage its funds, the solution isn’t to flog off public assets to developers," he said. Labor mayor Darcy Byrne encouraged "local, not-for-profit organisations" to put forward proposals for the sites. "I'm hoping this process will result in exciting new uses such as an LGBTQI pride centre and a multicultural hub to open in council facilities.

“Inner west institutions like Reverse Garbage and the Bower need a new home - perhaps one of our depots could become a reuse and sustainability centre for Sydney. “With so many town halls, many of them sitting empty much of the time, there’s an opportunity to convert them into music venues and cultural centres.” Independent councillor Pauline Lockie said council staff had emphasised the need to shift to a single site. "We're working out of multiple offices, multiple buildings and it's just not sustainable," Cr Lockie said. "It wastes time and it's not great for the environment." However, Cr Lockie understood ratepayers might "have concerns about sell-offs in relation to this process".