THE BYRON SHIRE Volume 31 #35 Wednesday, February 8, 2017
www.echo.net.au Phone 02 6684 1777 editor@echo.net.au adcopy@echo.net.au 23,200 copies every week CAB AUDIT
The shrinkage of Trumbull’s top hat continues – p8
SGB residents fear Parklands’ expansion plans South Golden Beach Community Centre was packed with residents last Saturday to discuss North Byron Parklands’ (NBP) intention to be declared a state significant development and a permanent music festival site. The SGB Community Association hosted the meeting, during which attendees ‘expressed anger and dismay at Parklands’ plans to double the number of festival days, increase attendance to 50,000 per day, and be able to increase both in future,’ according to vice-president Denise Nessel. Nessel said Parklands GM Mat Morris and other Parklands employees attended and answered a few questions before the meeting voted that they leave ‘so that residents could more freely voice their opinions.’ Byron’s deputy mayor Basil Cameron, independent Cr Cate Coorey, and Greens Cr Sarah Ndiaye attended and responded to questions, as did Tweed deputy mayor Chris Cherry.
Not in best interest Nessel said the general feeling of the meeting was that the proposal is not in the best interests of the community and that the council needs to support residents and speak out strongly against it. North Byron Parklands general manager, Mat Morris, answered questions from The Echo: Is it true North Byron Parklands is seeking to be a State Significant Development as a permanent music festival site? Under the current planning laws, continued on page 2
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A I M I N G T O R I S E A B O V E FA B R I C AT E D M AT E R I A L D U A L I T Y T O ACHIEVE NON-REACTIVE ZERO-POINT CONSCIOUSNESS
Vale Sandy Ghandi – p5
S Sorrensen gets his camping kit on – p12
Daniel Sage on Don’s UK visit – p16
Big beat celebrated
The Cabarita Beach foreshore was awash with a sea of red as Leanne Patch led the Samba Blisstas into a fiery goodbye for Paul Barrett. Family, friends and bandmates gathered to pay tribute to the founder of one of the far north coast’s most iconic music-making teams. Paul’s parents spoke of a very loved and sadly missed son and others remembered Barrett with words, photos and songs before the Blisstas made some soul-raising noise, a last farewell to their friend and leader. Photo Tree Faerie
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Byron Hospital staffing levels unsafe: union The local branch of the country’s largest health union have accused bureaucrats of ‘unsafe staffing’ at the new Byron Central Hospital, claiming there is resistance to employing an extra staff member to alleviate after-hour patient loads. Responding to last week’s story regarding a woman’s 13-hour wait for an ambulance transfer, NSW Nurses & Midwives Association (NSWNMA) told The Echo that while they expect ‘guidelines would have been utilised by Emergency Department (ED) nursing staff to triage and provide treatment to this patient, it does not belie the fact that the NSWNMA branch executive continue to raise concerns regarding unsafe staffing in the ED and In-Patient Unit since the hospital opened in June 2016.’ The union claims they are still in negotiation with the Northern NSW Local Health District (NNSW LHD) over ‘the clinical load the after-hours nurses manager and hospital incharge registered nurses carry.’ continued on page 3
Seven-and-a-half per cent rate rise planned A 7–2 majority of councillors voted for a 7.5 per cent Special Rate Variation (SRV) at last Thursday’s meeting. Another motion by Cr Sarah Ndiaye (Greens) passed with almost unanimous support (Cr Spooner against) and will see a review of Council’s rating structure and a possible redistribution between residents, business, and farmland. Paid parking looks set to go from
$3 to $4 from July and will be used for ‘asset renewal.’ Residential properties used for holiday letting will also be identified and a process will be developed to reclassify these properties as businesses for rating purposes. The 7.5 per cent rise will be a cumulative compounded rise: after four years rates will be 33.5 per cent higher than now.
Council’s media spokesperson said, ‘The increase over a four-year period on an average rate of $1,139 is a total of $382. That is, it would go from the current $1,139 to $1,521 in 2020/21.’ But the decision needs approval from the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART), which had already pegged a 1.5 per cent rise across the state for 2017–18. A Council spokesperson told The
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Echo that IPART requires Council to work on the assumption of a 2.5 per cent rise, despite the 1.5 per cent now being confirmed as the actual figure for the 2017–18 year. Staff also confirmed that the 1.5 per cent IPART rate peg will be included within the 7.5 per cent. Left-leaning independent Cr Basil Cameron put the motion continued on page 2
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