Jim MacKellar (FCC 4/2/12), asks the question of the Council Revenue Policy in relation to the recently announced Responsible Pet Ownership Initiatives. FCRC does aim to maintain a user pays focus when setting its fees and charges but this is a general approach and by the nature of the work that Council does it has to be this way. Library, Gallery and Parks users don’t pay to use these facilities directly so the cost of maintaining them has to be obtained from somewhere. Our community has a right to have access to many and varied services and facilities and it also has the right and the expectation that Council will deal with wandering and/or homeless dogs and cats. The money spent on customer service calls, compliance officers driving around and collecting stray animals, pound services and feeding the poor pets that end up in the pound and ultimately euthanizing animals etc, far exceeds the income derived from animal registration charges.

Council has committed to the Responsible Pet Ownership incentives to try and reduce the overall cost to the community that wandering and homeless animals cause. The initatives are aimed at assisting those that can least afford desexing costs such as pensioners, to have their pets desexed. The RSPCA desexing van should run on a cost neutral basis and Council will also undertake a compliance door knock where persons with unregistered animals will be fined.

All residents are paying towards animal compliance and therefore it is important for those who own animals to do the right thing and have them registered, thereby reducing the cost burden on all of us. What we have done in the past, while achieving some positive outcomes, has not had any measurable success in decreasing the problem of homeless pets or the numbers of pets being euthanized. Sometimes it is necessary to invest some funds to gain a future saving. If these initiatives show no positive results I don’t expect that they will be continued.

I believe these initiatives will actually save ratepayers money in the long term and I will continue to ask that Council also introduces compulsory dog and cat desexing and breeder permits via its Local Laws. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to live in a society where owning a desexed cat or dog was the socially acceptable thing to do and where so many Council pounds and animal rescue shelters were no longer required.

As I wandered along our bit of beach the other morning walking our small pack of foster dogs… I couldn’t help feel nothing but gratitude that I live here. When I think about all the other places I could live throughout this wide brown land, and even further away over the ocean, I keep returning to the wonderful relaxed feeling of being ‘home’. So why has this patch of earth called the Fraser Coast become my home?

I was born over the sea in a far away land. My parents chose to come to this young country only to give us their children, a better life. What a sacrifice they made leaving everyone and everything they loved behind! But thank goodness they came.

I have travelled far and I have travelled wide but nowhere else calls to me like here does. We enjoy a wonderful climate even with our fair share of droughts and flooding rains mixed in. We can live mostly outdoors close to the natural world and I have a deep need to be able to do just that. We all share a love for our peaceful patch of paradise and that is something that unites us and makes us all proud Fraser Coast Aussies.

When we walk along the beach or stroll down to the shops we mostly do the right thing and pick up the litter we see. We say gday to everyone we meet and greet every morning with a cheery smile. We know who our neighbours are and we help them out whenever we can. No ‘big smoke’ rush and no big city traffic jams and no big city unfriendly rush and hurry for us..

We are Australians of the Fraser Coast. We laugh at ourselves and we have a bit of a whinge now and then. We reckon we are better than the Yanks, the Poms, the Kiwi’s and almost everyone else from everywhere else. We are irreverent and we know how to take the Micky out of almost everything and everyone especially our mates. We are not very politically correct even though many folks would like to make us so. We say it like it is and we don’t beat around the bush.

We are Ozzies. We laugh together, we cry together and we bloody well stick together when the going gets tough. On this our Aussie Day, we celebrate all that is special about this great wide brown land and the people who live upon it. We are all truly privileged to live in The Lucky Country! Lets try to remember each and every day just how truly lucky we really are!

Now is the time to Have Your Say on Stage 2 of the Shoreline Erosion Management Plan better known as the SEMP. The plan is nearing completion and will give us guidance as to our options when trying to combat shoreline erosion.

I know that some members of the community believe combating erosion is a waste of time and money and that we should let nature take its course but we are faced with losing millions of dollars of public and private beach land and infrastructure and I am firmly in the let’s do something camp.

I would like to see the urban beaches preserved and protected so that this unique coastal strip can be enjoyed by our descendants. To do this we must ensure we do it right the first time. There is nothing worse than wasting money on so called clever solutions that don’t work.

Now to the SEMP. The first section is all about stuff we mostly already know but the Appendices are where you will find the important detail. Appendix C outlines the costing’s of various erosion protection activities from sand pushing to rock walls. My only complaint about this section is that there are no local costing’s and I believe our Council conducted sand pushing at a greatly reduced cost than is quoted here.

App D. The options criteria are described and I believe this section is quite well dons. App E describes the erosion prone areas and maps the predicted inundation by the sea to the existing coastline. A bit scary if you are a property owner in the areas outlined. App F shows what we will lose. App G totals up the land value that could be lost based on current pricing. The total of $887 million dollars’ worth of land potentially lost provides an idea in real terms of what we are fighting for. App H describes the options for action or no action.

My concern with this last Appendix is that it has ranked the options according to the current legislation. By way of example if the Marine Park zoning prohibits certain activities e.g. sand pushing or sand scraping as the SEMP calls it, then the SEMP says we can’t do it. I would have preferred that the SEMP provided a list of options that would be the best ones for the coastline regardless of legislation and then another list demonstrating whether the option was permitted or not under current legislation. This will be the basis for my feedback.

I want to know what the best solution is first and foremost. If that solution is the best then I want the legislation changed. I don’t want to lose coastline or waste money on less effective solutions if the only stumbling block is current legislation. We need to treat our coastline with respect, with care and we need to spend money sensibly on outcomes that are proven to work.

Feel free to copy any of this and use it to assist you with your submission but please take the time to voice your opinion. If we don’t have our say we can’t really complain later on!

http://www.frasercoast.qld.gov.au/web/guest/semp

I know it is still holiday time for a lot of you and I have already had the opportunity to provide some input but while the weather is wet and entices us indoors maybe this is an ideal time to catch up on some SEMP reading and write a submission?

The main point I will be making is that we need solutions regardless of the current State Government legislation. If the SEMP only provides solutions to erosion based on current State Government Legislation we may be short changing ourselves.. I want to know what are the best engineered and environmentally responsible solutions to our coastal erosion regardless of what we are ‘allowed’ to do or not! We don’t want to spend thousands upon thousands of dollars on solutions simpy because of State Government red tape. My idea is to change the State Legislation to make it meet our needs.

I would appreciate it if Mr Rolf Light (Council candidate Div 5) writing to The Indy (12/1/12) should possibly give me a call or do some research prior to publicly making assumptions about Council and myself. Several years ago a number of Craignish and Dundowran residents came to me and complained about the regular beach munching machines being used along our beach. The residents believed the beach cleaning ‘muncher’ was disturbing the natural habitat of crabs and worms etc and was a total waste of money. The residents in this beach side area take pride in keeping their beach clean themselves. Many of us use our doggy poo bags for picking up and disposing of the odd piece of litter we find along the beach ourselves.

While I agreed with the residents that regular beach sand cleaning was not needed at that time I was very aware that council needed to retain the permit to use the beach cleaning machine on this stretch of beach to facilitate beach cleaning when and if required. If Mr Light would like to acquaint himself with the Council adopted Beach Cleaning programme he will find that the Dundowran Craignish beaches are on the programme to be cleaned on an ‘as needed’ basis. This means that at any time Council or residents believe the beach needs a mechanical clean it can be done. It also means that gaining the extra approval required from the State Government to remove beach seaweed etc is easily and quickly obtained. Regular beach cleaning permits do not allow Council to remove plant matter decaying or not. An extra permit is required. In response to the most recent smelly problems as soon as residents told me about the problem a request was made by myself to the Council staff via Mayor Mick and the weed cleaning was done very quickly. As soon as the tick was received from the State Government Council had machines on the beach! If residents now desire to have regular beach cleaning reinstated that is a simple process to do. Not forgetting that there is a cost attached!

Our beach front caravan parks are one of our biggest attractions. They are unique and bring a myriad of visitors to our shores who probably collectively add more to the local economy than a string of new resorts would. I thought the vacancy rates in the numerous resorts we already have tells the story. Wall to wall resorts would not in my opinion improve our Esplanade. Rather the diversity of small businesses and detached low rise residences coupled with some medium rise buildings brings a friendly and welcoming feel to the street. I like to see the sky and the trees when I drive The Esplanade rather than towers of concrete and glass.

The Hervey Bay foreshore is unique in that it stretches a long way and has room to cater for many different types of uses. Stop and talk to anyone walking along it and the message is consistent. People appreciate the natural beauty of our foreshore and it, together with our low rise lifestyle and calm waters and mostly great weather, is what attracts residents and tourists alike.

The foreshore is an attractive naturally beautiful sheltered place for all of us to enjoy. Residents and visitors alike. It is a tihng of beauty. It is a place to use and it is our jewel in our crown. Let’s not spoil it by turning it into a tourist resort only precinct. Keep the caravan parks, keep the parklands, keep the playgrounds and keep the trees.

This funding is part of the $45 million Local Government Grants and Subsidies Program which for 2011-12, the Government prioritised up to $5 million of the Local Government Grants and Subsidies Program (LGGSP) funding to councils for capital acquisitions to support disaster preparedness, for example the provision of flood warning systems (including sirens, ALERT and SMS warnings) and the provision of additional flood and rainfall gauges.   Where a Council is provided with funding under another program ie Natural Disaster Resilience Program they are not eligible.  Applications for LGGSP closed on 31st October
 
At the time of the LGGSP funding round Council had an application submitted under the Natural Disaster Resilience Program (NDRP) for the following:
 
The installation of a fully automated solar powered system to measure river levels and rainfall that will transmit the data to Council and the Bureau of Meteorology via radio telemetry is the ideal solution for flood hazard mitigation on the Mary River. The new Flood Warning Stations will be installed on the Mary River in Maryborough at the Bruce Highway bridge and at Tiaro further up the river. The existing flood warning methods on the Mary River at Maryborough and Tiaro are manual gauges. These will be upgraded to fully automated Flood Warning Stations and report rainfall and river height at these locations via a new Rain/Repeater Station that will be installed at Dundathu.
 
Given that at the time of the LGGSP funding round Council had an application submitted with NDRP for Flood Warning System upgrades, it was not submitted under the LGGSP Program rather the following projects were submitted:
 
CCTV Security Camera Network Expansion
Hervey Bay Esplanade Precinct Upgrades
25m Pool Aquatic Centre Roof; and
Discovery Centre Fit-Out.
 
 
Council was advised on the 17th October that it was unsuccessful under the NDRP funding program for the Flood Warning Stations being advised that due to the over subscription of the program funding had been allocated to higher priority projects and to reapply in Round 4 in 2012 (it was too late to prepare application under LGGSP by the time we were notified). 
 
Post the Flood Enquiry Commission – Sydney and I have met with the Marina Business operators and have in place a sub-evacuation plan, we also discussed with them their concerns expressed at the Flood Commission Hearing regarding the operation of the gauges (both manual and automatic). We have recently undertaken a review of Flood Warning Stations including their operation and identifying the responsible agency for reading manual gauges. We will continue to seek funding to upgrade our Flood Warning Systems which will include a combination of manual and automatically read gauges.
 This from the CEO, Lisa Desmond..

So to Council. I still have some enquiries coming in regarding roads and drainage issues in particular and while this week is a restful week for most Council staff please do remember to ring Council if there is an emergency. Other operational issues will be attended to next week.

So while we all try to relax and enjoy family friends and the holidays I turn my attention to the next Council election due on March 31st. I detest self promotion, don’t go looking for it though at times it comes to me, but I will have to start to write up my brochures and pamphlets in the next few days. I notice a lot of new candidates focussing on perceived negatives of this Council. I sometimes smile at the generalisations being made. It is so easy to take pot shots and be critical but when one is actually faced with the reality of a situation it often looks different. Once before I stated that it is unwise to make comment about others without taking the time to walk in their shoes. I often remind myself of the importance of this. I ry not to make hasty judgements unless I know all the facts. I believe in listening and learning about both sides of any argument or debate. For instance I used to believe that the media only had the truth as its primary goal. But then I realised it is actually very big business and while a fair amount of truth is reported, the emphasis of the stories and the decision as to what to tell us about can be influenced by those paying for advertising etc. I suppose I am growing more cynical as I get older..

So please take care, keep safe, hug your loved ones, look after those canine and feline and furry and feathered innocent companions of ours and enjoy yourselves. And as always if you require help or assistance just call. I am converted to Skype now as my phone bill went atmospheric due to Pet Warriors. So maybe I will talk to you on Skype via ipad sometime soon… Best wishes for 2012 cheers, Sue

Jim MacKellar (FCC
21/12/11) says that a recently released Council concept plan for a sporting centre is a good idea but that it should be built in Maryborough. Last time I looked Maryborough was quite well serviced with sporting facilities. Hervey Bay is not. Hervey Bay requires new netball courts, sporting ovals and grounds to accommodate a variety of sports. Hervey Bay sports people still have no access to an adequate basketball facility nor an indoor cricket/netball facility. Yes the PCYC is very well used as are private facilities, but with the predicted population growth Council needs to plan ahead. The complex proposed at Urangan, while not as central as I would prefer, will cost Council zero dollars for the land. To purchase the large amount of land required to build a truly multi use complex elsewhere, would cost this community millions. Isn’t it time we realised that both Hervey Bay and Maryborough require their own facilities and that while we enjoy sharing the Brolga theatre, art galleries and the like,
Hervey Bay requires its own entertainment venue and sporting grounds. I don’t agree that all things should be built in Maryborough. Both cities and all our surrounding towns deserve a level of services and facilities commensurate with their population. Please don’t deny Hervey Bay and surrounding residents accessto their own much needed facilities.

I should have added that we do not want to duplicate facilities also though….

Now recently Councillors advised that our pay is being reduced. I have no problems with this reduction in pay. I don’t know why they ever placed an amalgamation loading on the first term after amalgamation anyway. Yes it was different work but work is work!

The Structure Plan for the Eli Waters to Dundowran Beach land has been released and I urge all residents that are interested in it to Have Your Say. This land is exceedingly low lying and Council has endeavoured to restrict the development footprint by increasing density into smaller pockets. I trust that this will be a better outcome than bringing in tonnes of fill and developing the entire area.

As always let me know if you have concerns about Council related and other issues and also pop over to Facebook. I have both a personal and a Councillor Sue Brooks Facebook pages. Take care, Sue