20th April 2023 Edition

Mayor and Councillor’s Loss of all Common Sense
John A Neve and my letter in Letters to the Editor is what most ratepayers are thinking.

I had phone calls after you printed my letter (complaining of the waste of the ratepayer’s money on the new library and council office) saying that they all felt the same way.

The original City Centre Master Plan had Main Street as a dining hub, and I believe a motel was also in the original plan. That plan and layout was extensive, and all that is left of that plan now is the new council offices and library that we don’t need in Main Street.

Glenn Winney’s Property Talk in your newspaper was an interesting reading.

He is all for the new library and council offices and stated it would stimulate the CBD revitalisation.

Main Street is not where tourists and locals who want to relax or want to be.

They want to be eating and shopping on the Esplanade, with the beach just across the road.

Tourists come to Hervey Bay for the lay-back atmosphere that it offers to just relax and unwind and for their children to have some fun on the beach or at the water park.

The caravan parks along the Esplanade are also why tourists come here and enjoy the beach right on their doorsteps of their caravans or tents.

Leave Main Street as it is, and let us retain some of our local history in Main Street.

Years ago, the Council and the RSL wanted the railway station building and the Memorial Hall moved to another location; we had to protest to keep them where they belonged in Main Street.

Delma Taylor

Voice my agreement
I just want to ‘voice’ my agreement with Val Spencer’s ‘Letter to the Editor’ (23/3/23) re the ‘Voice to Parliament’.

As she says, throughout history, the world’s human population has always been on the move...even our own Aboriginal people came here from somewhere else, albeit a long time ago!

Over so many years, so many have chosen to migrate and make their home here, bringing their own culture and customs with them and adding so much to our Australian society!

Of course, our own unique Aboriginal/TSI cultures should be at the top of that list and need to be kept alive, encouraged and taught! 

We are ALL Australians, equal under the law, but l feel that singling out one group for special consideration over everyone else is a recipe for division, dissent, disagreement and discontent!

There are already many extremely capable members in our Parliament who identify as Aboriginal or TSI and who have been properly elected by their constituent communities - surely, they are the Voices who should be allowed to speak and who we should be listening to!! Thanks!

Anne Bigelow - Point Vernon

Who will foot the bill?
The Publisher (in Publisher's Point) invited Advertiser readers to comment on the widespread opposition to the proposed council HQ and library in Pialba.

My suggestion is that many of the objectors are the ratepayers who will ultimately have to foot the bill for the project.

Like many other councils along the Queensland coast, the Fraser Coast Council is struggling to find the cash for its basic operations, so any reduction in future rates is unlikely.

Both residents and small business operators are finding the present rates a real burden.

Whatever the advertised cost of the project is at present, it is likely to be twice that figure by the time the building is complete.

Add to this the price of necessary changes to the surrounding road network and the ongoing costs of operating in a multi-storey building.

All-in-all it adds up to a cost that many ratepayers feel they can’t afford.

David Brandt - Urraween

Different location
In response to The Publisher’s Point (April 6,2023), I’d suggest most issues have already been covered.

However, I will revisit the main ones.

Why would you spend  $100,000,000 to build in a flood prone area, when there are flood free options?

The corner of Main St and Torquay Rd is traffic congested now, why make matters worse?

Does council really believe that the proposed “Council headquarters”, will improve trading in the area, when we have shopping centres with free parking north, south and west of the proposed site?

If the Fraser Coast Reginal Council wants/needs to puff out its chest, let’s build this edifice to power in the centre of our region, for all the world to see. Not in the back corner of Hervey Bay.

John A Neve - Torquay

Common sense on future development
Many thanks to the Advertiser and its editor for publishing my letter in its original form, no editing or censoring done.

I’ve experienced this with previous newspapers and it can be very frustrating.

The expression that described us anti Council Administration Centre development protesters as the Torch and Pitchfork Brigade was very funny; I loved it, much better than being called whingers haha.

There has to be an opposition to this development otherwise the council can do whatever they like whenever they want.

We need to remind them that we are paying some of the highest rates for homeowners in this state.

I know they have tried to keep rates steady with only little increases lately, but they are still very high.

I moved here in the 80s when Maryborough had a greater population than Hervey Bay, each year though the Bay grew at a phenomenal rate (leaps and bounds) and is still doing so.

We need to “SLOW” development, we don’t need to be another Gold Coast or Noosa, let’s slow the pace down (Baby Steps) lets calm the farm and concentrate on maintaining the beautiful city that we have now and keeping the rates to an acceptable level.

Robert Gibson - Torquay