Shock and grief at sudden passing of former Wagga town planner

The community is mourning the death of Garry Salvestro at the age of 66 after a short illness.

Wagga developer and former mayor Kerry Pascoe reflected on the tragic passing of a colleague and friend of more than 30 years.

During this time, Mr Pascoe came to know the Wagga town planner not only in his capacity as a councillor, but also as a friend and recalled how Mr Salvestro was always generous with his time and had "a lot of talent in many fields".

"Town planning in particular was where he was a real shining light with me. He guided me through projects and so forth during his time with council," Mr Pascoe said.

After leaving the council, Mr Salvestro went into his private venture, Salvestro Planning, with particular expertise in environmental law and development of new and existing suburban and industrial areas.

Apart from his private clients he worked with the council on many projects in recent years.

"Garry did a tremendous job addressing the council with many matters [during that time]," Mr Pascoe said.

He praised Mr Salvestro's efforts to benefit the city in both the public and private sectors and said he will be sorely missed.

Mr Pascoe said Garry was also a talented musician and they had worked together organising charity music events in the community.

"He had a real talent in his music and put it out there in the city also," he said.

Griffith music legend Pat Sergi knew Mr Salvestro for nearly 40 years, and said news of his death hit hard.

Mr Sergi described the death of his friend as "gut wrenching" and said it left him "speechless".

"I have no more tears, I'm drained right out," he said.

Mr Sergi described meeting Mr Salvestro back in the 1970s at school dances in Griffith.

"I used to play in another band and he would come and watch us play. So we sparked a friendship from there," he said.

They began playing music together when Mr Salvestro asked him to play at a wedding

"We sparked it off that night," he said, describing Mr Salvestro as a very talented musician.

Reflecting back over the years, Mr Sergi said a key memory was the story behind Griffith Takes Two and how it began in Wagga.

After a group of Wagga musicians played at a function in Griffith in 1988, they were all having a few drinks at his place when he shared an idea which came from a TV show called It Takes Two.

"Garry said it was a great idea and that something should be done about it," Mr Sergi said.

He recalled how the idea grew from there and it took root in Griffith, Leeton and Wagga.

He credited Mr Salvestro with bringing the idea to Wagga, where it has raised well over $2 million for local charities since the first Wagga Takes Two in 2007.

Across Griffith, Leeton and Wagga, the events have now raised approximately $5 million.

"Garry poured power, strength and passion into everything he did - putting his heart and soul into it," Mr Sergi said.

Serving Wagga councillor Amelia Parkins described Mr Salvestro as a "mentor" and reflected on her time working on many projects with the urban planner in the years after he left his role at the council.

News of his passing was "such a shock I can't believe it," Cr Parkins said.

She said Mr Salvestro has had such a long history of involvement in the planning and development of Wagga and was "very proud" of what he did during his time at council.

This included his work in strategic planning and his vision for the Wagga CBD which involved a major restructure of Baylis and Fitzmaurice Streets, recognising the need for the provision of bikeways, changes to building development control and levy bank provision in North Wagga.

She recalled how Mr Salvestro was "wonderful" to work with on the new Riverina Conservatorium of Music building as it was a "challenging project" that involved dealing with different levels of government and jumping through a lot of hoops.

Cr Parkins also reflected on his "excellent sense of humour" which helped navigate "contentious situations".

Former Wagga mayor Greg Conkey, who took the helm after Mr Salvestro left the council and moved to the private sector, was also taken aback at the news .

"I'm very shocked to hear of his passing," Mr Conkey said.

"He was highly respected in his field and a true professional."

Mr Salvestro focused on planning and rezoning issues, working with a "whole variety of clients large and small".

Mr Conkey also acknowledged that he was a "very talented musician, highly regarded in musical circles".

"His passing will be a loss for the Wagga community," he said.