Election Day - what a debacle

I refer to the Electoral Commission on its inability to host a simple Council election comprising of two ballot papers and in my Division 8 only two Council candidates and two candidates for Mayor. 
Sounds easy enough and I thought it would be a quick exercise to cast my vote, boy was I wrong.

I arrived at The Baptist Church to vote around 2pm to find a queue of about 80 people and having a bad back wasn’t prepared to stand (there is no seating) so went home, came back at 3.45pm same thing so sat in the car for a half hour assuming it will get better, it didn't so went home again, came back at 5.25pm now about 50 people so had no choice as the polls close at 6pm and joined the queue. 

There were people with walking sticks, frames, crutches and carers trying to get in but having to wait 30 plus minutes to get in the door. I did get to the door at around 5.50pm where the Electoral Official told us the doors will close at 6pm on the dot to which some people at the end of the queue just left and the rest of us waiting fearful of a fine for not voting.

I finally got in and presented my Electoral Commission card to be scanned, no it’s not working so was manually logged (no wonder it was all taking so long) finally I cast my votes and couldn’t see the ballot boxes as the room was now packed with people as the doors were closed. 

Upon finding the boxes, one for Councillor, one for Mayor, I had to unfold my papers to see which paper was which as there was no colour coding on the boxes ie. yellow & white but more importantly there was no Official guarding the boxes.

There were a lot of very justified angry people at this polling booth and I suggest anyone else with the same gripe send a clear message to the Electoral Commission, just imagine if they had to manage a Federal Election!

Brenton Rodda – Urraween

Voting Queues Horrendou

Dear Editor,

I live in Hervey Bay with my husband, we tried voting around the middle of the day at the high school on Old Maryborough Road, but the queue was enormous, and in the sun and by the comments didn’t seem to be moving along.

We waited until 4pm thinking queues would have shortened, and went to the nearest voting station in Yarralee High School.

We are 80 years old and were made to wait for one whole hour in the full sun and nowhere to sit, only to find as we finally got inside the building that they had run out of voting papers!

To add insult to injury we watched Division 5 voters steadily move forward and be processed while we waited and waited.

There was only one person checking our names and issuing voting papers for our queue!

The queue was almost as long when we left at 5pm.

I am disgusted with the inability of AEC to adjust the voting staff and capabilities to accommodate the fast growing population in Hervey Bay.

Please note my disgust at my husband and I being treated in such a shabby manner.

Sincerely,

Jean Bowen – Eli Waters

Twin Towers

Dear Sir,

So we have hit the national news with the Sheraton releasing the big plan for the proposed new high rise resort.

It seems that the developers of the resort are trying to influence councillors and the public by promising huge employment opportunities.

Has there been any thought or planning into the problem of housing these employees? 

I imagine there will be workmen’s dongas during the construction but once completed where are the employees going to live?

At present, the rental opportunities are non existent and any available rentals are exorbitantly expensive. Will the caravan parks become permanent workers’ accommodation? 

Not good for the loyal family and caravan fraternity or is the focus only on high end tourism.

What is the plan for the major disruptions such as noise and dust to the whole of Torquay, the Esplanade and existing businesses/post office once the construction starts?

Has there been any soil testing done? The site is all sand so the foundations will have to be enormous especially factor in underground car parks.

Also, the area has a lot of groundwater and springs, the street behind the Esplanade is Freshwater Street, a no brainer for why it was given this name. Indigenous Butchulla would know this. Maybe the car park might end up being the swimming pool.

What is the timeframe for completion once started? Given the fact that builders have huge problems with supply of materials, this could stretch out way beyond the completion date.

Carol Seeger

Library Wildlife Talk for April

 It’s something we do every day yet barely ever think about when we turn on our taps - the logistics of our water supply.

Some of us know our water comes from Lenthalls Dam, located off the Bruce Highway north-west of Maryborough, but how clean, fresh water arrives at our houses, remains a mystery, shrouded in fog, The April Library Wildlife Talk will enlighten the community on the mechanics of our urban water supply. 

The Fraser Coast Branch of Wildlife Queensland has invited an expert in this field, Annie Newbery, from the Fraser Coast Regional Council’s Water and Waste Services team to clarify each step of an involved procedure producing clean water, essential to a community’s health.

Annie is an environmental scientist with 20 years of experience in water and waste utilities and has a passion for conservation and sustainability. With increasing temperatures, our need for water will increase significantly, and this truism is what Annie is concerned with. 

Her talk will be held at the Hervey Bay Library on April 19. The talk will run from 1pm to 2pm. For bookings, phone the Library on 4197 4220 or book on the Council’s website on Eventbrite.

Unwanted development

21 stories. Why are the developers advertising in newspapers and on Channel 7 such stories when Council have not disclosed when the behind doors meeting will resolve this unwanted matter?

Council have not changed height limits as far as the public is aware. 

We need to be wary of unwanted developers in the Bay. Let’s hope sense prevails. 

Tony Cox - Scarness