FROM THE MAYOR'S DESK: 2 DECEMBER 2017

New Molong library a step closer

Cabonne Council this week moved a further step closer to the provision of a new library at Molong.

The Council will seek another structural assessment of the Mitchell Room adjacent to the Molong Community Hall to confirm previous engineering advice that the building can be given a new lease of life, allowing it to be refurbished and reconfigured as a library.

There had been concerns the Mitchell Room may have to be demolished, but recent structural assessments have indicated that with some repairs and restoration, the decaying process can be greatly slowed and, with proper care and maintenance, the building could last well into the future.

The further structural assessment will help Council to determine a detailed estimate of the repair and restoration costs. If the assessment confirms the previous advice, we can start preparing plans for the library refurbishment.

Molong Library is currently located at the Molong Railway Station, but almost $1.3 million has been included in Council’s 2017-18 Budget to refurbish, establish or construct a new library in the town.

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THE ANIMALS ON BIKES TOURIST TRAIL between Molong and Dubbo will receive a facelift following Council’s decision to provide more than $6300 to repair and paint the unique sculptures, which have gained international and national attention since being installed in 2009.

Created by local farmers and community members, the award-winning sculpture trail has been successful in enticing visitors to take the tourist drive through Cumnock and Yeoval, providing much-needed tourism dollars to these villages.

Council’s contribution will also enable the Cumnock community to further promote the tourist trail to new markets and to place a new sculpture between Orange and Molong.

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COMMUNITY GROUPS ARE INVITED to submit projects that may be suitable for funding under the second round of the NSW Government’s Stronger Country Communities Fund grants program.

The Government is providing funding for projects to make communities more attractive places to live and work. New infrastructure, such as parks, playgrounds and cycle tracks, are being earmarked, along with refurbishments to existing facilities including community centres and libraries. Enhancing local parks and supporting facilities, such as kitchens and toilet blocks, will also be considered.

There is no cap on the cost of projects, but each must be worth at least $100,000. Projects must be submitted through Cabonne Council which will prioritise them and submit applications to the Government.

With applications expected to close in the first quarter of next year, projects should be submitted to Council before the end of January 2018.

The most important thing to keep in mind is that proposals which are “shovel ready” are likely to be given a high priority. Your project should be ready to commence immediately after any funding announcement and, in most cases, this means all planning requirements, such as development applications, should be completed or substantially under way.

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CANOWINDRA’S WHITE RIBBON DAY MARCH against domestic violence on November 24 was an outstanding success and I am certain it will continue to grow into one of the most significant events in Cabonne.

I would like to congratulate all involved in organising this event to raise awareness of one of the most pressing issues facing society in Australia today. Having recently retired after a 30-year career in the police force I, like most of the my colleagues, have seen first-hand the devastating effects domestic violence has on individuals, families and the wider community.

Sadly, the facts surrounding domestic violence are shocking. On average one woman every week is killed by a partner or former partner and one in four women in Australia has experienced domestic violence. That is simply unacceptable in any society.

It was great to see so many local school students taking part in the march because our younger generation will play a crucial role in eliminating this scourge. It is paramount we educate young people that there is no place for violence of any kind – either physical or psychological.

Hopefully they took great inspiration from guest speaker Kirrily Dear, who recently completed a 19-day 1300km ultra marathon run from Broken Hill to Sydney to raise aware of domestic violence. Kirrily’s passion for the cause was evident in her wonderful speech.

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COUNCIL’S DECEMBER MEETING has been brought forward by a fortnight to avoid a clash with the Christmas holiday period. The meeting will be held on Tuesday 12 December 2017, starting at 2pm.

The Council’s Ordinary Meetings are normally scheduled for the fourth Tuesday of each month however in December that falls on the Boxing Day public holiday. By moving the meeting forward by two weeks, the Council will be able to undertake business arising from the meeting before the Christmas-New Year holiday period begins.

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CABONNE COMMUNITY TRANSPORT VOLUNTEERS spent 4400 hours behind the wheel, driving 116,000 kilometres to help frail aged and transport-disadvantaged clients in the Shire during 2016-17. To put that into perspective, they made the equivalent of 32 trips from Cabonne to Perth. In all, our volunteer drivers made more than 8800 trips during the year.

Volunteers are the backbone of our Cabonne communities and community transport receives amazing support from its volunteer drivers.

In addition to these trips, Cabonne Community Transport coordinated bus services from Manildra, Cudal, Yeoval and Cumnock to Orange each fortnight and buses from Eugowra, Canowindra and Cargo every month.

The service also provided taxi vouchers for clients in Canowindra and organised a number of social trips for senior residents, including an 11-day trek to Longreach in Queensland and trips to Sydney and the Hunter Valley.

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CABONNE COUNCIL WILL SPONSOR a $50 prize for annual presentation ceremonies at each primary and secondary school in the Shire to thank them for their support.

Council has made the donation to recognise the outstanding efforts of students and teachers. Cabonne is blessed to have 19 schools within its area, with Molong and Yeoval Central Schools having both primary and secondary students.

We value the relationship we have all of these schools and hope to work closely with them in 2018.

Based on media release issued by Cabonne Council.