Put the local community’s health first warns Mayor

Published on 01 July 2020

As the Byron Shire welcomes visitors back for school holidays, Mayor Simon Richardson is asking holiday-makers to be extra considerate of the local community and stick to the 1.5m social distancing rules to help keep everyone in the Byron Shire healthy.

“The rules around good hygiene, social distancing and restricted gatherings are as strong as ever and the onus is on our visitors to be responsible and help us keep the Byron Shire community safe from COVID-19,” the Mayor said.

“I get that there’s a strong temptation to let your hair down a bit, especially if you’re here for some relaxing and getting away from what has been a really stressful year, but I ask that we all put the safety of the whole community first.

“As we’ve seen in Victoria, there is no room for complacency, and we all have to do our bit.

“Our local police officers have expressed concerns to me, especially about some gatherings that have been happening in Byron Bay recently, and are warning visitors to stick to the rules or risk fines,” he said.

To discourage large gatherings, Council has also extended the suspension of Busking Permits until 31 July.

“Everyone knows we love our buskers in Byron Shire – they are part of the Byron experience, but Council has to be responsible as well and we will be holding off re-issuing busking permits until it is safe to have those larger gatherings again.

“We apologise to all our talented buskers but we know how good they are and the size of the crowds they naturally draw here means that we have to wait a bit longer to welcome them back,” the Mayor said.

For more information visit https://www.byron.nsw.gov.au/Community/Public-health-and-safety/Coronavirus-COVID-19