Letters Five years ago… At midnight on December 13, 2018 a large erection occurred in Byron Bay. By morning’s glory, social media lit up in shock, outrage, admiration or just plain voyeurism, as images of this erection spread from Byron around the nation. The man responsible gained instant notoriety but, quite rightly, claimed it was just a natural occurrence and that he was misunderstood. One thing was for sure, his erection was so enormous that it could be viewed kilometres away and stood up so shiny and tall that anyone coming into Byron Bay couldn’t possibly miss it. Amazingly, it lasted for a whole nine months. When it was over, (eventually exploding into thousands of silvery fragments across the Northern Rivers), the world would never be the same again. Since its demise in September 2019, the world has moved on. Fires, pandemics, floods and wars. But for anyone who lived through it and happened to view it on a daily basis, we can never forget the legend of The Dong. Simon Alderton Murwillumbah
The parking problem From Suffolk Park to Brunswick Heads, from Bangalow to Mullumbimby, parking is a big issue for residents and visitors to the Byron Shire. One way to solve the problem would be to fit more cars in the space that there already is – some people just don’t know how to park and unless there are lines on the road, they can often take up two spaces. Why don’t we do a fundraiser for Byron Shire Council, maybe a vegan sausage sizzle, or a gluten-free lamington stall at the market to raise funds for some paint and solve some of our Christmas dilemma. Debra Widebrow Crabbes Creek
Beach driving Last week’s Ballina Shire Council (BSC) ordinary meeting (23 November) reviewed recreational four-wheel drive (4WD) access for Seven Mile Beach. There were two motions and two amended motions. The voting results are revealing. The most socially- and environmentally-responsible motion was to close the beach to recreational 4WDs, which was lost. Three brave councillors voted for that motion: Crs Kiri Dicker, Simon Chate and Phillip Meehan. www.echo.net.au
Everyone reads The Echo! The worst of the four motions was to remove short-term permits but with no plan to close the beach, also lost. This was the only motion that Crs Jeff Johnson and Nigel Buchanan supported. I thought that Cr Jeff Johnson was a bit of a greenie – apparently not. Equal worst was the motion for a seasonal closure, during peak usage and/ or turtle nesting periods, also lost. That option could be appealing to simpletons but is misguided in that it neglects that there is much more to sandy beach environments than sea turtles. This was the only motion that Crs Stephen McCarthy and Eva Ramsey supported. The second-best motion was to remove short-term permits and close the beach by 2028, which carried on the casting vote of the mayor. This decision has the potential to reduce 4WD numbers by 84 per cent (based on FY 2022/2023 statistics) and wipe out income earned from beach driving, removing the greed motive. There is an element of political expediency in this decision, however, in that it avoids conflict with local beach drivers today and five years is a long way off. This was the only motion that Mayor Sharon Cadwallader and Cr Rodney Bruem supported. In conclusion, it’s recommended to closely watch how our councillors vote on important matters such as beach driving (and conservation zones). Stephen Totterman Empire Vale
Can’t help myself Heard while passing a young couple anxiously looking east from top of the lighthouse walk: Where are they? There aren’t any. Says the passing ranger, helpfully pointing to Main Beach: Look over to your left; to the northwest. There’s plenty there. Me: What? Whales or sharks? With a somewhat truculent look in my direction, he replies: Probably both. Nothing like stoking a bit of fear to go with those 90-day caps I think, justifying my petulance. But no. I really must be nicer to our visitors. After all, despite efforts to diversify, we are still heavily dependent on them. Graham Bassett Suffolk Park
these things have warning devices of any kind on them and what was she doing on the footpath anyway? The original push-bike rule stated that a child, under age 13, I believe, may ride on the footpath but only when accompanied by an adult. As I understand it, adults when not supervising children were not permitted to ride on the footpath at any time. Now we have to contend with electric cycles on footpaths which are ridden by all-age people who follow no rules. Does this mean that the police are turning a blind eye? My husband spoke to the police about this incident and he was told that another similar case had recently been reported. Undisciplined cyclists on footpaths, whether busy or not, are clearly a common occurrence in Byron Bay and are not being curtailed or even discouraged by officialdom. Even when electric bicycles are ridden on cycletracks or the roads they are often ridden without pedalling, which I understand is a requirement, and in
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Bikes on footpaths Recently I was almost knocked over from behind by an electric bicycle on the footpath in Byron Bay CBD. There was no warning that it was so close to me when I decided to stop to look in a shop window. The female rider was shocked and apologetic that she had almost run me down. Don’t
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Praising idleness Yay to Richard Hil’s article Scratch your bum and give idleness a chance, especially the section on ‘Building a future’. Full of good ideas as antidotes to the wretched state of the world. Thanks Richard! Virginia White Goonellabah
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