Items of Interest: Council Meeting – Tuesday 23 October 2018

Council today adopted its Annual Report for the last financial year with an unqualified audit.

Chief Executive Officer Peter Franks said there were only positive comments following the last audit and Council was in a stable financial position. “This year has seen Council further consolidate its financial position. The targets, set in the long-term financial plan, have been met yet once again and are within all Departments of Local Government, Racing and Multicultural Affairs sustainability ratio ranges,” Mr Franks said.

Mayor Tom Gilmore said it was pleasing to once again report to the community on a positive and successful year. “This report says to me that both Councillors and staff are as one in the development of this organisation and effectively the community,” Cr Gilmore said.

“Council has demonstrated the effective and efficient management of our assets while planning for the future and delivering high-quality services for the community.”

Cr Gilmore thanked fellow Councillors and staff for their continued dedication, skill and commitment to the betterment of the Shire. “I cannot overstate the value of the staff with whom I have the great pleasure and privilege of working with on a day to day basis,” Cr Gilmore said.

“I thank them all on behalf of the community at large and commend the Council for their work ethic, understanding of the complex matters which challenge them daily and their capacity to take difficult decisions from time to time because they must.”

The Annual Report can be found on the Council’s website.

The Tourism Kuranda body is hoping to raise the profile of the Village in the Rainforest and target the local visitor market through new, creative and innovative ideas.

Council approved the allocation of surplus funding for the development of a new Tourism Kuranda website and new promotional material including lifestyle articles, visual and video content as recommended by Tourism Kuranda Advisory Committee.

Chair of the Tourism Kuranda Cr Lenore Wyatt said these initiatives were wonderful opportunities to promote the region. “These are great ideas, finding smarter and better ways to showcase the Village as an exciting destination, with a unique shopping experience and an appealing proposition for upcoming holidays,” Cr Wyatt said.

“We are really excited about the new website and can’t wait to see the end result. We have engaged an experienced web developer to refresh the design and appearance of the site into a more modern, destination tourism website.”

Council has revisited its enterprise risk managing processes to ensure any potential threats to the organisation are mitigated. Enterprise risk management is a structured, coordinated approach of aligning strategy, processes, people, technology and knowledge to manage risk. The enterprise risk management framework, policy, and process were adopted by Council last year and following a recent risk identification and assessment implementation, it was acknowledged that some minor adjustments were necessary for the previously adopted risk management process to better align with Council’s practices.

The amenities building at Centenary Park in Kuranda will undergo an upgrade with Council awarding the $274,164.00 contract to Osborne Constructions today.

Mayor Tom Gilmore said the amenities building within Centenary Park, Kuranda was constructed over 20 years ago and had received very little maintenance. “The facility as I understand was constructed circa 1996 and has received only one major refurbishment, being a re-tile of the walls of both the male and female facilities ten years ago,” Cr Gilmore said.

Inspections of the facility by Council officers have identified the need to undertake the refurbishment of the facility while providing for all abilities access.

“As such, a project proposal for the refurbishment was developed and a preliminary budget listed within the Kuranda Township Infrastructure Master Plan 2010-2020,” Cr Gilmore said.

“The project has been approved and funded under the provisions of the Kuranda Infrastructure Plan, which provides a funding stream for the provision of tourism-related infrastructure in the village.”

The refurbishments will include new floor tiles, cubical partitions, toilet fixtures, basins, upgraded lighting and painting.

Works will commence as soon as practicable and a temporary amenities building will be available until completion of works. Council is committed to retaining equal access to the amenities during the construction phase.

“It’s our duty as a Council to maintain these types of facilities, and I am excited to see this long overdue project refurbishment take place,” Cr Gilmore said.

The Mareeba Industrial Park is vastly becoming the largest agricultural and transport hub in the region.  Works commenced in September 2018 on the Effley Street extension at the Industrial Park. The project scope includes the extension and asphalt sealing of Effley Street, the extension of existing earth drains, the installation of subsoil drains and kerb and channel and the construction of an earth berm. Mayor Tom Gilmore said the Industrial Park is exceeding expectations and is excited to see the next stage completed by the end of the year.