Dollars, dimes and discrepancies at Eurobodalla council
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As the battle for public credibility between the Federal, State and Local Government continues our beloved council has sneaked out from under the battlefield barb wire.
It is introducing rates to the maximum allowable without justification and without encouraging any appreciable public involvement.
When confronted with this at a “Meet the People “at the Narooma Markets said they got the dates mixed up and didn’t have time to send out an explanatory flier.
They ignored the fact that there was sufficient time as they despatched out water and rate notices with the threat of “having your water cut off” or being charged interest four times greater than that of the banks for late or non-payment.
Councillors have promoted increases in property rates and water rates. They have not advised the Valuer General or the owners of 6000 properties that will be forced to retreat from their homes in accordance with their unscientific calculations.
Not one dime can be positively identified in the budget to protect any of these residential properties that may be swept away.
Questions of “Conflict of Interest” remain unanswered by the General Manager.
Despite the” Narooma Flat” being potentially the worse affected area its leadership has been exempted.
The all-powerful planners must have done a deal with King Neptune to send the sea to the left and right of the Narooma Bar Entrance.
Its leadership and negative contribution of the Eurobodalla Ratepayer Association have reinforced unrealistic people penalisation policies.
If one compares the consolidated financial statements of 2010-14 with that of 2013-2017 the differences are staggering.
According to their published figures employee costs have risen well above two out of every three dollars collected in rates and annual charges (70.7 per cent).
The 2011-14 plan shows a projected income of some $83.13 million for 2014.
The actual income as revealed in the 2014 -17 plan shows $94.22 million collected - over $ 11 million more than we were previously told . Misleading council accounting practices require closer public scrutiny and challenge for widespread public meetings is made by the writer. Councillors appear oblivious to the deceptive nature of their own accounting practices and that there is a state, federal and public financial crisis.
The hierarchy fail to equate that we paying for all mismanagement practices. The days of employing unproductive people to give grants of public moneys to unproductive employees applying for unproductive reasons must stop.
Peter Bernard
Dalmeny
Good old Shakespeare
One comment on Janette Neilson’s letter (NN 28/5/14).
"The lady doth protest too much, methinks” .
Kerri Binstock
Bermagui
Woolworths Bega and Bermagui
In response to you allegations posed via questions in your letter to Councillors the General Manager and now via the media we provide the following response.
1. The negotiations relating to a land swap related land in the Bermagui area and land occupied by Council facilities including the Council offices Bega which were found to be on Crown Lands. The Council land swap with the Lands Department was in no way related to the Woolworths development.
The process was timely due to the Woolworths project which highlighted the anomaly.
With the approval of Council, negotiations took place with the Lands Department to swap the Council owned land at Beauty Point and Beares Beach at Bermagui for the Bega Town Hall site and the front of the council building itself to the roadway. The result is the NSW Government now owns the Beauty Point and Beares Beach land, and Council owns its civic buildings.
We absolutely refute the claim that this relates or is linked to Woolworths and was unpublicised. To the contrary due to the arrangement with Lands there was extensive advertising and legal process involved.
2. In relation to negotiations with Woolworths throughout the many years to realisation of the project in Bega the Council resolved that the negotiations be carried out by a panel of Council officers.
The appointed officers panel variously consisted of Mr David Jesson General Manager, Mr Garret Barry, Director of Planning and Environment and subsequently a consultant to Council on this project, Council’s appointed legal advisor and upon Mr Jesson’s retirement Mr Graeme Faulkner and subsequently Mr Peter Tegart.
The Mayor, Deputy Mayor and other Councillors were involved in some meetings, workshops and briefings and were kept appraised of the negotiations. Cr Allen was not “authorised to negotiate with Woolworths”. In the role as Mayor he played a specific and proper role.
3. The Bermagui Woolworths development was not on the agenda at the time of the Bega development, which is over seven years ago. No guarantees were provided to Woolworths by any Council staff member, panel member or Councillor.
4. There has been no pressure in any manner applied to Councillors by the developer to approve the current Woolworths Bermagui DA.
General Manager Leanne Barnes and Mayor Bill Taylor
Bega Valley Shire Council
HuntFest Narooma
Having taken part in many hunting expos in Europe, I was delighted to have had the opportunity to visit the HuntFest held in Narooma this long weekend.
The organizing committee, in particular Mr Dan Field and members of the South Coast Hunters together with all exhibitors are to be congratulated on their excellent presentations and the high numbers of interested viewers, young and old, confirms that there is indeed an interest and a necessity for future informative exhibitions of this nature.
Despite opposition from a sadly misinformed minority who unjustly endeavour to stigmatize hunters and associate them with criminal elements it is vital that the hunting faculty be presented to the general public as a well-organized, legal and legitimate body and this has definitely been achieved in Narooma.
John Gray
Tura Beach
Build our ships in Australia
I am dismayed by Federal Government Defense Minister announcing that the two new Navy ships will be built by either Spanish or South Korean shipyards announcement made during the evening news on June 6.
In a same breath Prime Minister Tony Abbot is seen daily in one form of media or other repeating the Gospel how his Government is about saving and creating jobs for Australians.
I didn't know that the Australians he is talking about all work and live in Spain or in South Korea?
Defence Minister Thompson stated that his decision is based on a fact that Australia has no capacity to build these ships and that the cost saving is also a major driver for his decision for not considering Australian shipbuilding facilities as the best possible choice.
Australian shipyards have the capacity to build these Navy vessels and if any expertise is lacking in Engineering or in dry dock capacity both can be easily accommodated in Adelaide SA or in Fremantle WA.
Minister take a long hard look back at our nation’s achievements from the past like Snowy Mountain Electricity Scheme, Harbour Bridge and the Opera House and many more, Australia can build these ships with ease only thing missing is the political will from our very own elected members of our National Parliament.
It is obvious that accountants has influenced the Ministers thought process and decision making where the false economy thinking has once again been allowed to dictate the purchase of Australian Navy ships from offshore and as result deplete obvious economic benefits from Australian families.
Families of the prospective shipyard employees that would enjoy several years of secure employment and the prosperity that flowed on from that secure employment is now lost and soon enjoyed by the Spanish or South Korean employees and their families at our expense.
Building of ships onshore in Australia creates employment for several hundred people within our shores and in addition provides opportunities for our Engineering and to sub suppliers and steel makers to participate and add further economic benefit to the community and the nation as whole.
Ministers the decision must be reversed as a matter of urgency and the elected Federal Government must be made aware that the cost of these ships is financed by the Australian Tax Payers not Spanish or South Korean thus we the Australian taxpayer's decide where our defence assets are to be built or procured from.
If Federal Government decides to continue the madness of exporting Australian jobs to offshore they must understand that every dollar that is not earned by Australian tradesmen and women is a dollar lost from our Commonwealth, less income tax, goods and services tax and company taxes lost from our well-being as a nation.
Added loss is immeasurable from Engineering that could be harvested from such a demanding project for future generations along with skills from many trades that will miss out.
I call for all concerned metal tradesmen and women and every Engineering and Metal Fabrication business, unions and industry employer organizations to express your displeasure in an strongest terms possible, write, phone or text your local member and let them know that exporting jobs is not on.
Mark Ikonen
Dalmeny
Mayor’s say… Keeping our roadways safe
Our consistent lobbying to improve the safety of Eurobodalla’s roadways is continuing to pay off with the news that Eurobodalla will see the benefit of more than $530,000 from a total pool of $622,000 allocated to Eden Monaro through the Commonwealth Government’s Black Spot funding program.
The $530,000 will allow us to provide a safe walkway in Tomakin from the shops to Tomakin Road via the construction of a new footpath, pedestrian refuge and street lighting. We will improve safety along George Bass Drive by widening the road shoulders and installing new signage and a guardrail at Rosedale.
More work will be undertaken on the Kings Highway including improvements to the condition of a stretch of the road near Buckenbowra.
The NSW Government has also given us the good news that our application for a grant to improve access and safety at 57 bus stops across Eurobodalla has been successful and we have secured $174, 850 for this work. The works will include installing concrete hardstands, connecting pathways, and improving signage, seating and lighting at bus stops.
I have personally thanked and congratulated Eden-Monaro MP Peter Hendy and Member for Bega Andrew Constance for helping secure these important grants for Eurobodalla.
Road safety is something that everyone can help with and it’s timely to ask you to remember to follow the 40km speed zones at Council’s road work sites and the RMS sites.
Council’s road crews are reporting an increasing number of drivers speeding through roadwork sites. The 40km speed zone is set to ensure the safety of road work crews and the public and to reduce the risk of harm from hazards such as loose stones.
Please slow down and follow the speed zones signs on all our roads in Eurobodalla.
Please let me know if there are any issues that Council can assist with. You can contact me at mayor@eurocoast.nsw.gov.au or phone 0418 279 215.
Clr Lindsay Brown
Mayor of Eurobodalla Shire
Factions all around
Factions can be found in all organisations including politics where it is used to control and wield power.
Factionalism invariably destroys the entities it is found in and the people that are have a direct interest in that entity.
So it was with NSW Labor recently and so it will be with the Federal Coalition Headed by Tony Abbott.
This Government is hard right wing (believing money and free market forces should prevail, no matter what the Social cost) dominating all by division and deceit.
Their own back benchers are not comfortable with many of its policies and strategies.
Many Liberals I have spoken to are embarrassed. (Some have resigned from the Party). The majority of Australians are unhappy if you believe the polls.
Division within Australian is now more pronounced and as such the strength of our Community has been compromised, and will remain compromised, until the people begin to realise that we need to install politicians that represent the views and aspirations of the majority of Australians.
Don’t believe the factional propaganda that is rife within much of the media today which is designed to polarise our Society creating more bigotry.
This is not about Liberals verses Labor or any other political party: it’s about voting for a candidate that you believe is sincere about representing our entire Community regardless of the label placed upon them.
This Government should be banished to history ASAP before its hard right wing policies permanently damage the Social structure of our great Community.
Ray Sillett
Tuross Head
Thanks for rescue
A huge grateful thank you for those involved in the "My car tried to run me over" incident last week.
This includes my rescuers, those quick to alert emergency authorities, whoever got my car home for me, ambulance and police crews and Susan and Charles Richards.
The handbrake has now been fixed and I promise not to do it again.
Pip Thorn
Narooma