WHAT YOU DO MAKES A DIFFERENCE, AND YOU HAVE TO DECIDE WHAT KIND OF DIFFERENCE YOU WANT TO MAKE – DR JANE GOODALL
The Byron Shire Echo • Volume 35 #47 • Wednesday, April 28, 2021 • www.echo.net.au
Byron Shire Mayor resigns What’s happening on Rajah Street, Ocean Shores? Aslan Shand Byron Shire Mayor, Simon Richardson, has resigned effective 30 April, 2021 following 13 years as a councillor, the last nine as mayor. He made his announcement on his social media page on Thursday, 22 April reflecting on the ‘tough personal journey for me during Byron Shire Mayor Simon Richardson this term’ dealing with both acute anxiety and the death announced his resignation on Thursday, 22 April, 2021. Photo Jeff Dawson of his wife Jane, which left him as the sole parent to his process and the impact on the wettwo young daughters. land and the critically endangered Referring to the Council he joined, and later became mayor of, Mitchell’s rainforest snail has left both the Greens and the commuhe stated that it was an ‘organisanity divided. tion that was at war with itself, The internal division of the broke and with no staff appetite Greens became clear during preseto take risks in fear of being shot down and very low morale. We also lection for mayoral and councillor had councillors at war, where it was positions for the upcoming Council elections. The failure of the two seen as natural to attack and bully sitting Greens Councillors, Michael each other. And lastly, we had a Lyon and Sarah Ndiaye, that Simon community that largely took sides, supported, to gain preselection to dug trenches and attacked each run for mayor demonstrated the [other,] where civil discourse was deep divides that have been crelargely absent and only the loud ated under Simon’s watch. Cr Lyon voices were heard. To my regret, in my first term when solely a council- came second last in the Council preselection so left The Greens to lor, I was a willing participant pursue his Council re-election as an within these conditions.’ independent. While he sees himself as having built bridges as mayor ‘between Commitment praised councillors, between councillors and staff and between Council and Leadership is always a challenge the community’ it is clear that there and particularly so in an active and have also been divisions created. passionate community like Byron Shire. Many have praised Mayor Byron bypass Richardson’s commitment over The Byron byass created both the years he has served, admiring success and failure for the mayor. his integrity and support for a wide While the impact on traffic congesrange of projects, from music and tion has been recognised as a spirit festivals, to his accessibility. ▶ Continued on page 2 success, the perceived failure of
Byron Baes is making us cray cray ▶ p8
DA for tourist facilities at Linneaus Estate ▶ p9
M OT H E R S DAY
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A window on the world of Ocean Shores gave children at Bayside Brunswick’s, Lilli Pilli preschool a glimpse of life in Rajah Street when local author, and preschool parent, Myo Him read her story and showed illustrations from her most recent book Rajah Street. It sees the world through her three your old son’s eyes as he experiences the delights of clouds flying though the sky, kookaburras laughing and the most exciting of all – the day the garbage truck comes. Photo Jeff Dawson
Shareholders question ‘direction’ of Mullum Rural Co-op Aslan Shand The board’s management of the Mullumbimby Rural Co-op has been called into question by shareholders, who have called a public meeting for this Wednesday, 28 April, at the Mullumbimby Ex-Services Club at 6pm to seek explanations from the board over the running and management of the Co-op. Dissatisfaction from shareholders and
employees has been building since the change of chair of the board in July 2020 from Maurie Maher to Ross Tucker, which changed the focus of the business according to some shareholders. Stock not being available, failure to send out or accept payment of invoices, differences between the advertised board prices for fuel and the price on the bowser, accreditation of workers for sale of some products,
May 9 is Mothers Day, great ideas to spoil her ▶ p16
and low morale are some of the key issues that the board has been asked to address at the meeting. Madeline Holmes had worked in the office at the Co-op for 15 years but decided to resign after the board brought in a general manager to deal with regulatory and compliance issues. ‘I used to basically run the office by myself. We [with Tony who was the Co-op manager for over 30 years] weren’t informed of
Make your spaces beautiful ▶ p22
the “regulatory and compliance issues”; we were just left in the dark and they brought in a general manager,’ Ms Holmes told The Echo. ‘The issues that have been raised with me are that there is no stock, that management are now inaccessible. There are always going to be some rough patches when they implement something new. But personally I think they ▶ Continued on page 5
Check out Byron’s Arts & Industry Estate ▶ p24
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