Items of Interest – Ordinary Council Meeting, 18 December 2024

The following items were addressed at the Ordinary Meeting of Mareeba Shire Council on Wednesday, 18 December 2024.

Amended Local Laws Adopted

The proposed amendments to seven existing Local Laws and Subordinate Local Laws have been adopted at today’s Council Meeting, after careful consideration of the submissions during public consultation and feedback from relevant State Departments.

“In October, Council sought feedback on minor amendments to Local Laws. In many cases, the amendments were to relax current regulations,” said Mareeba Mayor Angela Toppin.

During the consultation period between 18 October and 4 December 2024, Council received 105 formal responses and four petitions, the latter resulting in an extension of the original submission period by an additional two weeks.

Each submission was considered, however most of the comments received were in relation to matters that have been regulated under Council’s Local Laws since at least 2018 and did not relate to the current proposed amendments.

Following on from the community feedback that was applicable, two changes will be made to the proposed amendments:

It was decided not to adopt the proposed amendment regarding public place activities but rather to keep the existing provision under subsection (b) in Schedule 6 of Subordinate Local Law No. 1 (Administration) 2018. This means that events in public places with fewer than fifty people do not require a permit. It was decided not to adopt the proposed amendment regarding the requirement to desex an animal but rather keep the original provision in Schedule 3 of Subordinate Local Law No. 2 (Animal Management) 2019 which will not require animals to be desexed.

The final versions of the amended Local Laws will be published on Council’s website in the new year.

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Constance Street Carpark and Footpath Construction Tender Awarded

At today’s ordinary Council meeting, a contract was awarded for the Constance Street Carpark and Footpath Construction project.

“A missing pedestrian link at the Lloyd Street end of Constance Street was identified as a priority under the Mareeba Walking Network Plan,” said Mareeba Mayor Angela Toppin.

“This project will see the installation of a shared pedestrian and cycle pathway, linking Mareeba State Primary School on Constance Street to Lloyd Street. Additional on-street parking will be constructed on Constance Street, opposite the school,” explained Mayor Toppin.

The tender was awarded to Ikin Civil for $246,876 (excluding GST). The project is supported by the Queensland Government through the School Transport Infrastructure Program (STIP) and Mareeba Shire Council.

“With the support from the Queensland Government, we are looking forward to delivering this project to improve the safety for students accessing the school and providing additional parking for the community,” concluded Mayor Toppin.

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Next Stage of Water Network Upgrades Announced

At today’s ordinary Council meeting, a contract was awarded for the 2024/25 Water Main Replacement Project – Stage 2 in Mareeba.

The project will include the supply and installation of a new water main on sections of Byrnes Street, Lloyd Street, Walsh Street, Middlemiss Street and Hort Street.

Some of the water infrastructure in Mareeba is over 60 years old and Council has been strategically replacing and upgrading the water network to ensure essential services are maintained as part of Council’s Water Strategy.

“The Water Strategy identified approximately 90km of water mains across the Shire that need to be replaced over the next 30 years and could cost up to $100 million, potentially more with inflation.

We are currently six years into the plan to renew the water network in Mareeba, with approximately 22km of water mains replaced throughout Mareeba Shire since 2019 at a cost of approximately $7 million,” said Mareeba Shire Mayor Angela Toppin.

The tender was awarded to A&B Civil for $1,386,174 (excluding GST). The project is supported by the Australian Government under the National Water Grid Fund’s Water Infrastructure Sustainable and Efficient Regions (WISER) initiative, in with Mareeba Shire Council.

In recent weeks, Mareeba has experienced several water main breaks which temporarily impacted water supply for residents and businesses in the town.

“Stage 2 of the Water Main Replacement Project will provide greater water security for residents, and we thank the community in advance for their patience when these works begin in the new year,” said Mayor Toppin.

The project will be completed by 30 June 2025.

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Ray Road Mareeba Drainage Study

At today’s ordinary Council meeting, the Ray Road Mareeba Drainage Study was presented after residents raised concerns about flooding following the Cyclone Jasper weather event in December 2023.

“The Ray Road Drainage Study reviewed the extent of the contributing stormwater catchments, the capacity of the existing drainage and identified possible opportunities to minimise impacts of flooding issues in the area,” explained Mareeba Mayor Angela Toppin.

The study highlighted that the Ray Road area is generally very flat and many existing houses on Ray Road, between George Fabris Road and Chinaman Creek, are located within a broad floodplain.

All impacted buildings and dwellings in the drainage area were constructed before 2004, with the exception of one banana farm packing shed, and the existing drainage infrastructure was designed and implemented to meet the required service standards at the time of development.

The study found that while several potential mitigation options exist, they would not necessarily prevent flooding entirely. This is due to the significant constraints caused by the size of the stormwater catchment, the nature of the arriving overland flows and the flat topography of the land.

“Following a recommendation from the study, Council will formalise a Ray Road Drainage Management Plan to investigate, assess and cost drainage infrastructure upgrade options which may reduce the impacts of drainage and flooding issues. However, it must be noted that some flooding will always occur irrespective of what we do,” said Mayor Toppin.

Once complete, the Plan would inform Council’s future Capital Works program considerations, which prioritises projects that have the most benefit to the Shire and can be completed within available budgets.

The Ray Road Drainage Study can be found on Council’s website here: Ray Road Drainage Study 2024

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Capital Works Highlights for November 2024

At today’s ordinary Council meeting, the Capital Works Report was presented.

“It was great to see the progression of capital works across different projects during November,” said Mareeba Mayor Angela Toppin.

Mareeba Shire Council received funding from the Australian Government from the Investment Road and Rail Program to undertake widening and sealing works on Ootann Road.

The two unsealed sections of Ootann Road that were a part of this project had earthworks to subgrade level, drainage structures and rock protection completed in November. The crew will return to the site after the 2024-25 wet season.

Works are continuing for the retaining wall at the Kuranda Heights Cemetery to protect the exposed rock face at the site during wet weather events. The Kuranda Heights Cemetery became available for internments from August 2024 and stage 1 of the project will have capacity for the next 10 years.

In Mareeba, the Byrnes Street Median Upgrades are progressing well, with the goal to enhance visibility for road users and create safer working conditions for Council’s Parks and Gardens team.

The concrete kerbs have been installed and planted on the eastern side of Byrnes Street between Railway Avenue and Granite Creek, the corner of Railway Avenue and Rotary Park, and near the BP Station. This project is fully funded by the Australian Government’s Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program.

The works are now complete to replace the 190m road base near the Salihe Avenue intersection at James Street in Mareeba to improve the quality of the road.

Another highlight in the capital update for November was the replacement of the water mains in Keeble Street and Adams Street in Mareeba.

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