Archive for the 'Uncategorized' Category

A week away

sue October 1st, 2008

Just a quick note to apologise in advance. I have had some family health hassles recently and need to have a week away. I must admit that health services in Brisbane aren’t an improvement on ours and spending a day in hospital there (not as the patient) made me appreciate our local hospitals a lot more.

I will be away from tomorrow till the 10th October and am not sure if I will have web access so I may not be able to moderate comments etc. So feel free to continue to send comments but it may take a week or so for them to appear on the site. Take care, look after yourselves and never ever take good health for granted. Cheers, Sue

$10 Environment Levy for the Fraser Coast

sue July 20th, 2008

I am pleased that Council has adopted an Environment Levy. I would personally have preferred the Levy to be $15 but I understand that the cost of living is rising rapidly and that 3 out of the 4 newly amalgamated Councils didn’t previously have such a Levy.

Now I think it is time to focus on the implementation of our programmes and the building of necessary infrastructure to ensure we achieve the targets we have outlined within this budget. I believe we have challenges ahead and I appreciate comments and advice about how we can improve the way we do the things we do.

I will add some new categories to this blog to make it easier for people to post a comment on something other than current discussions.

I have included below my words to Council when speaking in favour of the motion to adopt our budget with the $10 Environment Levy.  

“I am personally very sad to see the Environment Levy reduced to $10. While I understand that this budget has been a great challenge and that we are all concerned about rising costs and the overall rising cost of living, $10 a year is a very, very small amount of money.

Our natural environment and our beautiful climate, I believe, are the main reason why many of us choose to live here and why we are the happiest region in Australia. I believe our Natural Environment is our biggest assest but our human activities often negatively impact on this most precious natural resource.

When I look to the detail within this budget we are raising over $65 million to spend on Capital Works. With a $10 Environment Levy we will raise just $454,390. Last year in Hervey Bay 56 hectares of land was purchased via funds raised by the Environment Levy there. This valuable land is now owned by the entire Fraser Coast community. An extremely positive outcome for our regional community I believe.

While I would personally much prefer that the Environment Levy could be levied at a higher amount I am very thankful that Council is retaining an Environment Levy within this complex budget.

 I am confident that the funds raised via this Environmental Levy will be put to excellent use and be of great benefit to our region”.

Environment Levy and why we need it.

sue June 20th, 2008

The ‘old’ Hervey Bay City Council introduced an Environment Levy which has been used to purchase land to protect it from development. Last year as I recall, the levy was $25. Many neighbouring Councils have a higher Levy than $25 but I hope to retain an Environment Levy within the new Fraser Coast Regional Council.

Although the price of living continues to rise I truly believe that this Levy is a small sacrifice for each of us to pay and results in enormous benefits for our region. The Levy has already been used to buy 3 large blocks of land at Booral. These blocks are thickly covered in natural vegetation and hopefully will assist in the linking of areas that are known koala habitat.

I expect in the future the carbon credits obtained from this land will be of a financial benefit to our entire community. An Environment Levy will allow us to place your investment directly into land ownership in your community. This land becomes your land! You directly assist in the preservation of our local biodiversity by protecting our natural areas from development.

Please let me know what you think and whether you support a $25 Environment Levy for the coming year? $25 is less than 50cents a week! I think it is an excellent and essential investment in our future.

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Dingo fences - do we need them?

sue June 1st, 2008

Many, many residents in both Happy Valley and Eurong townships are very unhappy about the decision made by our State Gov’t to fence the townships. They are even more unhappy, if that is possible, about the bulldozing and methods used to construct the fences.

The fences are supposed to ‘deter’ dingos but are now belatedly been described as ‘fire breaks’. After speaking to staff employed at Kingfisher Bay Resort it is apparent that dingos still frequent that Resort in spite of the fence there. The staff even have pet names for the dingo’s that habitually visit the Resort.

Around both Happy Valley and Eurong the entire route for the fence was bulldozed. The bulldozing is straight through thickly vegetated sand dunes and has been, in my opinion, totally and utterly destructive and unnecessary.  If it could be proved that the fences were needed I still would not support the methods used to construct them.

The residents and local Councils were not adequately consulted about these fences and as time goes on more and more questions are being raised. Why would any town need a firebreak between it and the ocean? Fire will not approach the townships from that direction. Do the townships want a firebreak? Has anyone bothered to ask the people? Will the electrified grids be safe for people if they come into direct contact with them? How big a shock will be received? Are they safe for children and in fact the dingo’s themselves? What if someone has a pacemaker for instance? Will vehicles with sensitive electronic systems be able to cross without damaging these systems?

I believe that if anyone, including Council, used a bulldozer in a National Park to do damage as has been done on Fraser Island, a court hearing and heavy fines would ensue! Is this how we show the world the best way to look after a World Heritage site?

Snakes and spiders can kill me in my own backyard. Sharks can kill me if I swim in the sea. Driving on the road can be deadly! I understand the dangers and risks involved when I visit a natural, wild area. Dingo’s are the top predators on Fraser Island and have been a part of our landscape for thousands of years. They have a right to remain there and when we visit the island we simply need to ‘take care’. Domestic dogs have killed more people than dingo’s have.

I am increasingly frustrated at Legislation designed to protect us from nature and from ourselves. Government has a responsibility to provide a safe community but it cannot insure us all against every eventuality. We must take personal responsibility and look out for ourselves. If I choose to sit under a tree I know a branch may fall on me. I make the choice. I don’t expect every tree to be choppped down in case a branch may one day fall!

Let both the people and the dingo’s on Fraser Island remain free. Fences are not needed and they are most definately not wanted!

Friday morning – Happy Easter everyone

admin May 19th, 2008

Phew! It is a relief to finally know that I have been successful in gaining a place as a Councillor on the new Fraser Coast Regional Council. Apparently the outstanding votes are not likely to greatly alter the current positions of the candidates with the only doubt being the 10th place. I am currently in 8th place.

http://election.lgaq.asn.au/electionResults_Fraser%20Coast_C_Fraser%20Coast%20Regional%20Council.html

You can easily copy this across into Excel if you like to sort the results. The week has been a very stressful one for everyone and I am so glad that it is over.

Firstly I would like to send my congratulations to those that have been elected and I am looking forward to working with a majority of women on the new Council, rather than a majority of men! All seven women candidates have been elected.

Secondly. I would like to thank all the unsuccessful candidates for their hard work and the excellent way in which they and all their helpers conducted themselves. It is a shame that we couldn’t have a larger Council as many candidates were worthy of the ‘job’ I feel. I wish Trevor M. and Bob C. all the very, very best for the future as it has always been interesting working along side them. Although we had differences in outlook these gentleman always showed respect and consideration for me and I appreciate that greatly. Good luck guys!

Lastly to all of you. Without your support and interest in your Local Government I am sure that I would not be your representative. I cannot thank you enough. I apologise for the odd hiccup on election day and do wish to reassure you all that I am honest and hard working and will do my very best in the years ahead to represent you fairly and ‘without favour’. Do let me know if you think I am ever misguided or heading down the wrong track. Constructive criticism is always welcomed and a necessary part of growing and learning as we adapt to new circumstances etc.

Newpapers

admin May 19th, 2008

Today I am the target of an inaccurate opinion piece by Nancy in her editorial. Am I surprised? Not in the slightest. Am I annoyed? Yes I am. Nancy is unfair and inaccurate in her statements and I will be asking for a retraction first thing this morning.

Now for the facts.

1 My behaviour is NEVER out of kilter with my ethics. Firstly I don’t peddle nasty unfounded opinions about other people. I do not publicly speak of anything that I am not prepared to say directly to someone face to face. This is my brand of ethics.

2 I don’t knock developers when they develop in sympathy with our Planning Scheme and produce good quality developments. I will never support development which is designed simply to return the biggest profit possible to the developer. I do not want our city to grow in that way.

3 I have only once ever been asked by my fellow Councillors to leave a discussion about a retail development and that discussion was to do with Centro well over a year ago. I did leave the discussion and did not participate in the debate, or vote, for that particular application when it came to Council. Feel free to check the minutes. At other times my fellow Councillors have welcomed my input and my very strong arguments to provide more not less retail development in our city. I supported the extensions to Pialba Place (with reservations due to the design) but because people told me they wanted ‘more shopping choice’. The new Big W is the biggest competitor in town to our own business Mind Games! If I was trying to protect my own business why would I be lobbying against the Planning Scheme that restricts the ability of large retailers to set up shop here? I want more shops not less and have supported all applications for ‘retail shops’ anywhere in the city to my recollection.

4 My colleagues have not directly intimated to me that they are concerned with my conflict of interest so why did they not do this? Who are my colleagues who are complaining? I would like to know. Maybe this comment is as a result of a decision at our last Council Meeting to give delegated authority to the staff, to make a decision on a commercial application at Bay Central, which is across the road from Centro? Maybe the Chronicle is confused and can’t understand the difference between making a decision about how an application is dealt with by Council, and actually making the decision itself? My involvement was simply about a procedural matter NOT about deciding on the extension to the centre, which I would most likely support anyway! Maybe this perceived ‘conflict of interest’ (according to Nancy) arose because the Mayor Ted Sorrenson wrote to the Acting CEO asking that the decision on this application be made by staff and not be brought to the public arena at a full Council or DSC meeting. Myself and Cr Belinda McNeven both thought that the application should be decided by Council so both of us voted against the recommendation. All this is recorded in the Council minutes on Council web site. To put it simply, all the other Councillors wanted the application to be decided by the staff and I. along with Cr McNeven, thought that this was inappropriate and voted accordingly.

5 The blog that Nancy refers to published peoples opinions about other people just as Nancy is doing herself in her editorial today. I agree that some of the published material is unflattering but much of it was accurate. I have information about Council that is private and personal and I am duty bound by Law to respect confidentiality. I have never broken that confidentiality via any web site anywhere.

6 The reporter when interviewing me last week did not ask me if I had posted to the blog site anonymously. On this web site I declared that my very FIRST postings were under a pseudonym called ‘babbling’ as I was defending information written about myself on the blog. What I do like about the Internet is that we can say what we like unedited, as I am doing here. I contributed to the strewth blog site when I knew that information being posted was incorrect and I will maintain that attitude and continue to do so. Do we shoot the messenger when we don’t like the message?

7 May I enquire as to whether the editor feels that she is defaming me via her editorial today?

8 If anyone should learn to ‘walk the talk’ it is not myself!

Please find here extracts direct from the Council Minutes and Agenda. All available via Council web site!

Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting No. 3 held on Wednesday 27 February 2008

ORD 10 OFFICERS’ REPORTS

ORD 10.5 Application for Development Permit for a Material Change of Use for Shops and Offices - CRI Australia Pty Ltd C/- Ken Hicks and Associates - Located at 135-143 Boat Harbour Drive; 7 and 15 Central Avenue; 6, 8, 12 and 14 Bay Drive; and 122 Beach Road, Urraween

MOVED ( Campbell / Dalgleish )

That:

1. Council delegate its power to determine development application 513/3-

071176 to the Acting Chief Executive Officer under section 472 of the

Local Government Act.

2. The register of delegation be updated to record this specific delegation.

AMENDMENT ( McNeven / Brooks )

That:

1. Council delegate its power to determine development application 513/3- 071176 to the Acting Chief Executive Officer under section 472 of the Local Government Act.

2. The register of delegation be updated to record this specific delegation.

3. Any planning issues or conflicts with Planning Scheme Policies that arise in the assessment process will cause the application to be brought to Council for determination.

The AMENDMENT was PUT and LOST (1/7). Upon a Division being called the following voting resulted:

FOR: Councillor McNeven

AGAINST: Councillor McDonald

Councillor MucKan

Counicllor Brooks

Councillor Kruger

Councillor Sorensen

Councillor Campbell

Councillor Dalgleish

The MOTION was PUT and CARRIED (6/2). Upon a Division being

called the following voting resulted:

FOR: Councillor McDonald

Councillor MucKan

Councillor Kruger

Councillor Sorensen

Councillor Campbell

Councillor Dalgleish

AGAINST: Councillor McNeven

Councillor Brooks

Letter I sent to the editor last week

admin May 19th, 2008

The editorial (FCC 5-3-08) poses some interesting questions about the use and circulation of information in our modern age. As a Librarian, finding and using information was my livelihood for many years. I recall however a moment when I was much younger, sitting in my classroom at school. I realised that the history text book I was studying, had been written by someone who had never lived in the times being discussed.

It was on that day that my life changed because from that day on I realised that nearly every single thing I ever read is someone’s opinion. Yes we have science and maths text that teach us ‘factual’ information (we are quite sure that the earth does revolve around the sun for instance) but the bulk of the millions and millions of words I will consume in my life time are simply ‘opinion’. Two people writing about the same event will describe it differently. Let’s not forget what was once written eg ‘the world is flat’!

Newspapers, magazines and web sites have that in common. Newspapers select and edit the letters that they receive and journalists interpret the words I say or the events that they witness in their own individual way. Not always accurately I might add.

The Internet has empowered more and more people to be heard. As long as we remember we are reading opinions and that we continue to treat each other with respect, it is a brave new world we are entering. Let’s not condemn the medium as easy communication across the seas and quick access to information is also very useful and empowering.

The newspaper versus blog wars!

admin May 19th, 2008

Well today the newspaper greeted us with the headline about the demise of Strewth!

My thoughts. I agree that the blog did target individuals and that sometimes the personal attacks were ‘gutless’. I refrain from that activity but would love the chance to speak my mind about the behaviour I have observed of people I mix with both privately and professionally. Wouldn’t we all! But if you want to criticise someone put your money where you mouth is and speak up without a cloak of anonymity. If you are being critical of an organisation and not personally attacking someone I think anonymity is sometimes the only way to express yourself if you want to remain employed. Much bad behaviour is ‘legal’ so it is a difficult line to balance upon.

So to today. I believe we have an example of the pot calling the kettle black. Yes Strewth! stooped to some very low points at times but it also increased debate and I am sure some people learned from it. If nothing else we all learned that humans do seem to have an appetite for ‘gossip’. I personally received some positive comments but also took a beating when I tried to explain how I operate in terms of preparing for Council meetings. The fact that I come to a meeting having read the report and researched the topic and with a point of view already made and arguments and questions ready to be asked and debated upset several bloggers! Apparently I should turn up and listen to everyone else and THEN make up my mind. How can I argue and debate if I don’t have a point of view first as a base for discussion… But I won’t start that debate again here.

Now the newspaper today tells us that the site was cowardly, vicious and malicious among lots of other negative adjectives. I can agree with that but also would add that it obviously was a forum for debate which many people were keen to use. Unlike the newspaper everyone had fair and equal opportunity to defend or correct anything that was posted there. In my opinion, our FCC publishes anonymous content also. Some examples are ‘The Squid,’ ‘Fast news,’ ‘SMS to Ed’, Brickbats and Bouquets’ ‘Letters to the Editor’ and leading news stories that don’t include the writers name! I have personally been quoted incorrectly within the FCC. After seeing my words in quotation marks, after a Council Meeting, I returned to Council and enquired as to the actual recording and minutes of the meeting. I simply didn’t use the words attributed to me.

Letters to the Editor are edited and selected. So all the letters sent in aren’t printed and those that are can have big chunks taken out, which shouldn’t alter the context but sometimes does. Names and addresses aren’t checked and I have heard of people regularly writing under pseudonyms. Our prolific local writer John Neve didn’t ever stop writing to the editor but after posting on the blog site he suddenly was never heard of again via the Letters page! Is this prejudice and bias at work? The daily editorial often is simply no more than the writer’s personal opinion. It should simply be headed ‘opinion’ and I would not have a problem with it. I do however have a problem when members of our community take the Editorial as accurate information. I am always concerned that in this day and age with everything revolving around money and profit, our papers and the media as a whole, has lost its purpose. I was raised to believe that the text books I learned from at school and the information printed in the media was ‘true’. It took me a while to realise that no, what is written in the media and in books is more often ‘opinion’. Two people witnessing an event will describe it differently. So for me, every time I read the paper I still want to believe that what I am reading is true but I have to remind myself that it is only opinion. Not much better or worse than anything you can read on the Internet or anywhere else. I love the Internet as it is a tool for quick and easy communication practically anywhere in the world. It is the biggest encyclopaedia ever created, with information freely available to those with access. Just remember to use it with caution as we should do with every book, magazine and newspaper and TV show that we read or watch.

Now to the story today about me. My hats off to Jessica as she has done quite a good job. I also understand that her story that she writes is subject to an editorial process so may be altered even though it has her name attributed to it. Yes Jessica and I met last Monday, and she asked me many questions including questions about Strewth!. I did say that ‘All’s fair in love and war and the cyberspace’. I would however qualify that remark by saying the use of the Internet for illegal activity is abhorrent to me. I didn’t make the comment at the time but this is my true belief. I was not a ‘regular’ contributor to Strewth! as is reported. I contributed when needed to try and correct inaccurate or incorrect information that I was aware of personally. I was never asked if I contributed to Strewth! anonymously, (and yes I was expecting the question) and would have replied that yes, in the early days I used the alias “Babbling’ as someone had described me thus. I then decided to be up front and used my name for further posts.

My email list is between 200-300 people and anyone can be included or opt out of it. I try to send out info about Council and ask for feedback. This is time consuming for me but I feel that it is a good cheap and quick way to communicate with residents and better do my job of representing them. My comments about defamation were in response to being asked if I thought that the site author(s) could be caught or charged with defamation. The picture of me that is used for the story is when I was trying to highlight the dangers of more and more high rise along our foreshore. It was taken before I was elected over 2 years ago (in winter) and is in front of the Bay apartments while they were under construction. An interesting choice of picture I think.

So at the end of the day I believe that blogs have a place. I prefer them to be hosted by someone prepared to use their name but I would only criticise a blog if every newspaper in the land decided to tell ‘the truth’ unedited and accurately and this simply does not happen. Even our ‘free’ newspapers have to make money so they have to advertise. These advertisers wield power and can be favoured by the paper. It is all a murky world and information now is reduced to short stories in short paragraphs with very few words. As you can see I am never short of a word or two or three. I am personally not perfect. I have many, many flaws. I sometimes drive too fast and have received a speeding fine or two in past years (although advancing age has seen me a much more sedate driver these days), my house is a total mess and I have no idea how my cleaner survives, I talk too much and interrupt people (although I know I do this I find it very hard to stop), I am not married but live happily with my partner Graham. Both my kids have had good times and bad and I love them to pieces no matter what, I forget to return calls to my friends but always try to return calls to residents, (my poor neglected friends…), and I have made bad judgements in my past. I still make mistakes but have learned to front up and own up. Life is much happier I find when one can own up when we get it wrong. But I am truthful and try to do more good things in the world than bad! I don’t care less if anyone ever remembers me when I am gone. I do what I can now while I am here and want to help my community and my planet, not hurt it.

Lastly. This is all my opinion and is my version of events. I write it and believe what I say to be true. Take care and remember that this is my own opinion and not to be construed in any way to be the opinion or in any other way related to Hervey Bay City Council.

Stop Press. Son (or daughter) of strewth is born it seems. http://strewthreloaded.wordpress.com/ and now another one http://bringbackstrewth.wordpress.com/

Cheers, Sue

My speech for candidate’s evenings

admin May 19th, 2008

I was once a Primary School teacher and then went back to Uni, after having my two children, and qualified as a Librarian. I grew up in Victoria, where I lived in both the city and the country. I moved to Bundaberg in 1993, where I met Graham and together we moved to Darwin for 4.5 years where I managed the main Casuarina library. I moved here over 9 years ago now and adore living at Dundowran Beach just a little bit outside Hervey Bay. There were no traffic lights back then and I was considered to live ‘out of town’. My don’t things change fast! I became interested in becoming a Councillor when I felt that our coast was in danger of becoming another Gold Coast. This still worries me greatly. I don’t want to live the ‘big city’ lifestyle.

I want to preserve and protect our natural environment but just as importantly I would like us to move towards building a sustainable economy. An economy that embraces the skills and knowledge of residents throughout our entire community.

If we look to the future we can provide only so much water and develop so much land, before we run out of these natural resources. Population cannot continue to grow and grow and grow forever. Our new Council must ensure we have strict controls placed on development approvals and that we don’t let development compromise our natural environment and water ways. Sensible road networks must be planned for now.

Over the last 2 years I have learned a lot and believe I have the skills needed to try and influence change, especially within our Planning Schemes, and within our policies, to ensure that our Council delivers what the community wants. I do remember however, that working within Council is a team effort. We must all remember that it is not Council’s job to tell you what is good for you it is your job to tell your Council what is good for you!

I want much less red tape and I want our Council to ‘get back to the basics’. I want sensible decisions to be based on common sense and good old fashioned excellent customer service. I don’t believe that our community demands more than it used to. I think we all simply expect decent service and decent facilities and that our Government doesn’t waste our money! I believe that we deserve to receive excellent services no matter where we live.

I want Council to treat everyone with care. It isn’t enough to turn up to Council meetings and simply vote on the reports that the staff provide for us. Councillors must be proactive and progress change. If our Laws and our legislation don’t provide the outcomes we want then we must change them. I believe I have developed the skills needed to progress changes within the Council structure. In Council meetings I often put motions and amendments forward for consideration. A motion, such as the recent Council Traveston Dam submission, which thankfully was supported by the majority of our Councillors, was a recent example.

I promise to do my very best if elected to our new Council. I’m not perfect, I make mistakes but I always try my best to do a good job!

I am confident that if we all work together we will ensure our Fraser Coast region stays the happiest place in Australia!