Dear Editor,
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It is pleasing to see there is a conversation starting to happen regarding the proposed redevelopment of our memorial town hall and I look forward to the detailed draft plan being presented to the community for comment in the near future.
But before I get onto that I would like the opportunity to stand on my soap box for a moment.
I am one of nine councillors committed to doing what it takes to develop and grow our shire in a sustainable and equitable way.
“We are you” and “you are we” and this relationship needs to become much closer if we are to survive the flawed council amalgamation proposals that may be before us in the near future.
We are the most productive agricultural shire in Australia and ironically this is both our strength and our weakness.
When it’s good it’s great but when it’s not good it’s tough going for us all.
Farming will always underwrite our economy, however to survive it will continue to employ fewer people.
Reversing population loss is one of the greatest challenges we face in our shire.
Your council has directly and indirectly facilitated record amounts of infrastructure spending, stimulating the local economy, thereby creating - and at worst maintaining - jobs.
The Gateway development is a prime example of ensuring our shire is positioned to maximise the changes that the new bypass will bring to our economy.
Hundreds of construction and operational jobs will eventuate as the site fills in the next five or so years.
Apart from creating jobs it will in the long-term generate millions of dollars in additional rate income, reducing the burden on us all.
Now let’s have a chat about the town hall redevelopment proposal.
The community indicated to us some time ago that we needed to investigate how we could facilitate a cinema in town.
A detailed study has been undertaken and a fully researched proposal has been developed. Five options were evaluated by the committee and it was determined that refurbishing the town hall into a multi-use facility would give the best value and outcome for our community.
This was a site that council already owned, is in need of repair, is underutilised, does not meet current disability access and fire standards, has poor acoustics, requires air-conditioning, requires toilet upgrades and the list goes on.
It is however a beautiful building bequeathed to us almost 100 years ago by the community.
It has basically remained as it was built and subsequent councils have maintained it ‘as is’’ but we have moved on as a community and it now no longer provides the nucleolus for us that it once did.
Ironically the hall was always designed so that it could be used as a movie theatre and still has its original film projection room and upstairs seating.
This proposal I believe can return our memorial town hall back to its rightful position as a place of gathering, a place of entertainment and learning.
No, it won’t make a profit, but then is it any different to the pools, libraries, parks, gardens, roads, bridges, art galleries, rubbish tips, ovals, sporting facilities, showgrounds, and the list goes on.
Council’s role is to provide the services and facilities that the community needs to enable it to grow and prosper.
To fund the additional expense of this refurbishment we would need to find a mere 0.7 per cent saving on our recurring budget.
So that is less than a one per cent saving or change of priority in the services we supply as a council.
The multi-use facility will conservatively attract over 15,000 visitations per year into our CBD and I believe this represents good value for money.
Now is the time to be bold and to keep investing in our shire’s future.
It will never be cheaper than now.
So let’s keep the conversation going at the next barbie, be proud of our town and our shire.
I would also like to ask all those interested, both for and against, to keep an eye open for the consultation phase, become informed and be a part of the debate.
Councillor James von Drehnen
Moree