A standard chess set has how many pieces?

Public consultation on Wattle Range Council’s draft Annual Business Plan 2022/23 is underway.

A draft budget that focuses on continuing the community’s COVID recovery, stimulating the local economy and developing strategies that capitalise on attracting residents and tourists to the Council area, has been developed by Wattle Range Council for the upcoming financial year.

The council’s Annual Business Plan for 2022/23 is currently out for consultation and Mayor Des Noll encourages residents and ratepayers to look over the Plan which outlines the services, programs and strategic projects that the Council plans to deliver to the community over the year.

“Staff and elected members have put a considerable amount of time into developing a budget that we think best meets the needs of our community,” Mayor Noll said.

Key focuses and projects include:

• Increased investment in council’s road network. In total $2.5M has been allocated out of a capital budget of $8.8M for various road renewals and upgrades across the district. • Increased service delivery across council’s road maintenance and parks and gardens network through employment of additional staff and purchase of $1.57M in new plant & equipment. • Commencement of planning code amendments to address zoning issues across the district. These works were highlighted as priorities as part of the Strategic Planning Review, once the works are completed this will activate potential development opportunities in our townships. • Continuing focus on events that will draw tourists and locals to our region. This includes assisting in the delivery and providing support for existing and new community events within the district. • Commencement of the installation of signage in both Penola and Millicent main street precincts as part of the recently developed wayfinding signage strategy. The new wayfinding signage will be an introductory phase in the Penola and Millicent Streetscaping projects. • Allocation of $100,000 to fund major infrastructure projects by local community groups in the continuation of Council’s new Community Infrastructure Grants program. • $270,000 allocated for upgrades to both the Arthur Street and Greenrise Lake toilets in Penola. • A budget of $50,000 to carry out initiatives included in the Council’s Climate Change Action Plan.

“In developing this $31 million dollar budget, as with all years, council has had a finite amount of funds to deliver as many of the various projects requested as possible,” Mayor Noll said.

“It is a balancing act to deliver a budget that meets current and future community expectations, whilst limiting any rate increases and minimising the impact to ratepayers under the current circumstances. In consideration of this, it is proposed to increase council rates by current Consumer Price Index (CPI) 5.1%, with rate revenue also supplemented by growth from new rateable assessments of 0.26%.

“Now is the time for our community to review the financial plans of Council for the upcoming year and provide any feedback they may have.”

Written submissions from the public in relation to the Annual Business Plan are welcomed and can be forwarded to council via email council@wattlerange.sa.gov.au, or alternatively they can be mailed or returned to a Council office.

Verbal submissions can also be made on the Plan at a Special Council Meeting to be held on July 5 at 5pm in the Millicent Civic & Arts Centre Supper Room.

Public consultation on the Wattle Range Council 2022/23 Annual Business Plan concludes at 5pm on Friday, 1 July 2022. Copies are available from Council’s website at www.wattlerange.sa.gov.au/ haveyoursay or at any of council’s offices.

Wattle Range Council one step closer to construction of new administration centre in Millicent

In a significant step toward the provision of improved customer services for the local community, Wattle Range Council has resolved to proceed with the detailed design phase for its proposed new administration centre in Millicent to replace the existing ageing Century-old premises.

The 1655 square metre proposed development, on the corner of Williams Road and North Terrace, will provide a contemporary, collaborative, and safe working environment for nearly 70 council staff who will be co-located under the one roof for the first time.

Wattle Range Council Mayor Des Noll said the proposed project followed community and staff consultation, over the past four years and it represented a sound financial investment with minimal impact on ratepayers.

“This is a responsible, timely and necessary strategic investment that will not only ensure the council can continue to meet the growing needs of our local community, but also provide a contemporary, safe and collaborative working environment for our valued staff into the future,” Mayor Noll said.

“The reality is we have severely outgrown our existing premises, which is beyond renovation – it doesn’t even meet current building code standards - and it is, quite simply, no longer fit for purpose.

“This exciting proposed new development represents a sound financial investment and a once-

“...we hope this proposed project will be a source of great community pride and we also expect it to create a positive local economic uplift...” Des Noll (Wattle Range Mayor)

in-a-lifetime opportunity to ensure council is adequately prepared for the projected future growth of the community.”

An independent quantity surveyor has estimated the development would cost $9.2 million. This would be funded by a low-interest loan over 15 years through the Local Government Finance Authority.

“We hope this proposed project will be a source of great community pride and we also expect it to create a positive local economic uplift, with a firm requirement for the build to use local timber and stone, and local suppliers and trades, where possible,” Mayor Noll said.

Council’s procurement policy is underpinned by principles considering local employment and purchasing whilst also providing value for money for the community.

Among the development’s key design features, a collaboration between architects Chapman Herbert Architects, councillors, and staff, to date are: • Enhanced customer service area with improved disability access, one-on-one meeting rooms and inclusive amenities with direct access to the foyer • Co-locates all staff and elected members under the one roof for the first time (almost 70 people) and provides for the projected future growth of the community over the next 50 years • Council chamber with greater public gallery space to promote community attendance and ability to face Elected Members • Meets current statutory requirements (National Construction Code and Australian Standards) • A requirement to source local timber and stone and, where possible, local suppliers and trades.

Currently, council’s almost 70 administration staff are spread across three separate buildings (two of which are temporary rentals), which creates inherent challenges and lack of collaboration and cohesiveness.

Mayor Noll said the detailed design phase was expected to take approximately four months and, when complete, would be presented to council for consideration. Council will hold a community information session regarding the project by the end of July and will make details available on its website.

Pest control program gets the job done

Limestone Coast Landscape Board continues its work in the feral deer space

The latest autumn shooting program removed more than 1160 feral deer from the Limestone Coast landscape as part of a coordinated effort to reduce the pest’s impact on the region’s agriculture, native habitats and public safety.

The culling operation was conducted in April and May across 51 private properties, seven Forestry SA reserves and 24 Department for Environment & Water reserves throughout the Limestone Coast. The April aerial shooting operation is one of three planned for 2022 by the Limestone Coast Landscape Board (LC Landscape Board). LC Landscape Board Landscape Operations Manager Mike Stevens said the LC Landscape Board was committed to supporting landholders to eradicate feral deer with the autumn control operation conducted over 140,000ha.

“By working together we can implement intensive feral deer control at the largest possible scale and make a real difference to achieving eradication and protect our region from the impacts of feral deer,” Mr Stevens said. “We have over 80 landholders participating in our feral deer aerial and ground shooting control programs, demonstrating the commitment of the community to eradicate feral deer and protect agricultural productivity and biodiversity across the Limestone Coast region.

“Feral deer compete with livestock for pasture, damage infrastructure such as fences and have the potential to spread disease. Not only do feral deer impact the agricultural bottom line and environment, they also attract illegal hunting and create public safety hazards on our roads.

“Just one red stag can reduce a farms grazing capacity by 3.6 sheep, the recent autumn feral deer operation removed 1166 feral deer from the Landscape, which is equivalent to removing 50,000 rabbits or running an extra 4190 sheep.”

The LC Landscape Board uses a variety of control tools to achieve eradication such as aerial shooting, professional ground shooting contractors, commercial harvesting and supporting partnerships to trial new approaches such as deer traps and thermal-assisted ground and aerial shooting techniques. The latest feral deer control operation adopted a ‘hybrid thermal’ approach, where marksmen utilised thermal devices to spot feral deer in thick vegetation. The flexibility of this new approach enabled larger areas to be covered than in previous operations.

“Any landholders that have feral deer on their property are urged to contact us today,” he said. “We are here to help landholders to eradicate feral deer on their properties. We need more enthusiastic landholders to participate in our control programs and I encourage people to contact me.” The Limestone Coast Landscape Board autumn feral deer control program is funded by the South Australian Government’s Landscape Priorities Fund and funds collected through the landscape levy. Under the Landscape South Australia Act 2019 (the Act) feral deer are a declared pest, and landholders are responsible for the eradication of feral deer on their properties.