From the Mayor's Desk

Yelarbon CCC Meeting

Last Tuesday I attended the Yelarbon Community Consultative Committee (CCC) meeting, where we reached an agreement on the type of aggregate to be used for the footpath upgrades on Taloom Street. The construction work is scheduled to commence shortly, and I am eager to see the progress. During the meeting, the community had the opportunity to talk with some new Yelarbon residents who are planning to organise a 'sculpture weekend' on June 10, aimed at promoting a range of artworks including ceramics, metalwork, woodwork and more. Such events not only generate local interest in the arts, but also attract visitors to our region, which is extremely important for our regional towns.

The next Yelarbon CCC meeting will be held on Tuesday, June 13 at 5.30pm at the Anglican Church Hall and all are welcome to attend these meetings.

ANZAC Day Commemoration

There will be plenty of local events across the region for residents to pay their respects and give recognition to this important day. It is a significant event to acknowledge the immense value our community places on the sacrifices made by those who have served and defended Australia. My fellow Councillors and I will be attendance at the local ANZAC remembrance services, which will be held at Goondiwindi, Talwood, Texas, Yelarbon and at Inglewood.

Tourism in the Region

By all accounts, the Easter weekend was a very busy one for visitors and events across our region, including a visit from the Historic Singer Club, which brought hundreds of people into our region. Against this backdrop, Council met last week with Southern Queensland Country Tourism (SQCT), Chief Executive Officer, Mr Peter Homan.  Council has a three-year Memorandum of Understanding with SQCT and appreciate the experience and knowledge that SQCT are able to bring to this region. 

SQCT discussed with Council a number of current tourism trends including the strong focus on nature-based tourism. Research confirms there are over 770,000 caravans registered in Australia in 2021, and over 12.7M caravan/ camping trips taken in the last financial year (2021-22), with an estimated spend of $10.5 billion nationally.  Coupled with the high cost and limited availability of international travel, along with the current cost of living challenges, the Goondiwindi Region remains well placed to capitalise on domestic tourism opportunities.

Waste Management

I advised in the last Mayor’s Desk that I would provide a series of updates and information sharing on waste management in the region to provide residents with a greater understanding of this significant Council service. This financial year, Council is projected to spend $2.2 million on waste management. While Council receives rebates from the State government, and collects rates and service fees to offset some of these costs, Council is finding it increasingly challenging to match reasonable local increases to ratepayers with compliance requirements that address environmental concerns associated with waste.

This fortnight I’m focusing on the state government priorities that form the context and regulatory environment in which Council must now operate. It is not inconceivable that there will be future changes to waste management in the region as we all work towards reducing the amount of waste that ends up in landfill.

The State government has outlined three key strategies, including reducing the environmental impact of waste, transitioning to a circular economy for waste, and creating economic opportunities, which are expected to shape all local governments’ approach to waste management.

These strategies have identified the following targets for 2050:

• 25% reduction in household waste

• 90% of waste is recovered and does not go to landfill

• 75% recycling rates across all waste types

These targets are both ambitious and challenging, particularly given consumer and manufacturing trends that continue to drive ever-increasing volumes of waste.
 

Reminder of Town Visits

I would like to remind residents that I will be at the Inglewood Civic Centre on Friday 28 April as I continue to hold office hours outside of Goondiwindi at Inglewood on the fourth Friday of the month. The following regional visit will be at the Texas Cultural Centre on Tuesday 9 May, these visits remain a highlight to me every second Tuesday of each month. Appointments are often available in line with visits to these towns - please call 07 4671 7437 to make an appointment. 
 

Casa Mia Update

Council has an update on the Casa Mia facility. We have lodged a funding Expression of Interest (EOI) under the Housing Investment Fund (HIF) with the State government. It is expected that shortlisted proposals will be known mid-year, however we are confident that the State government will assist in providing quality housing for Inglewood residents as the HIF is focussed on supporting ‘ready to proceed’ projects that involve new construction or existing dwellings on privately-owned sites.

The cost of converting the Casa Mia facility into five independent living quarters that better cater to the needs of the community is estimated to cost approximately two million dollars. However, relying solely on ratepayers for funding is not feasible. As a gesture of support, the Council has already pledged $500,000 towards the project. Further updates on the progress of this proposal will be shared in future FTMDs.