Council meeting update - 8 November 2022

Tuesday 8 November, 2022

Here is an overview of outcomes from tonight’s Ordinary Meeting:

 Council has reaffirmed its commitment to a program which helps to improve literacy of local children with funding allocations for the Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library for the next three years. They agreed to allocate an additional d $100,000 from the General Fund to fund the program in the current financial year and to allocate $200,000 from the General Fund to fund it in 2022-23 and 2023-24. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has been running in the Tamworth Region since January 2019 and about 2,500 children under the age of five take part. Each child is mailed a free age appropriate book every month. The cost of providing the books - $9 per child per month - is funded by Council along with sponsorship from community groups and local business. United Way Australia which administers the Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in Australia recently announced a significant financial contribution to the project. Mayor Russell Webb said it was a very important program which “makes a real positive difference to the early literacy skills of the youngest members of our community”. Council will also undertake a donation and sponsorship campaign to increase community, corporate and government support for the project.

 The green light has been given to a 12-month trial of a new fee-based and bookable waste collection service to start early next year. Councillors supported a recommendation for the Waste Wagon trial to launch on 1 February 2023 and allocated funding for it. They also decided to set a uniform cost across the region of $25 for each service with a 50 per cent discount applicable for those on a Government-issued pension or disability card. They agreed that after the trial is complete, the results will be reported to Council to inform the future direction of a Waste Wagon-style service. The service offers residents a way to dispose of waste items which are too big for kerbside bins. A report tabled tonight said during a recent community consultation about the proposed trial there were 169 responses received with 83 supporting it, 28 against and 58 responses which did not indicate a position.

 A total of $61,913.45 will be shared among 32 organisations and 71 schools across the region through Council’s 2022-2023 Annual Donations Program. Councillors at tonight’s meeting endorsed the recommendations made by the assessment panel comprising Councillors Helen Tickle, Judy Coates and Brooke Southwell. A total of 25 applications were received seeking amounts ranging from $500 up to $18,000. Under the program, recurrent funding is also provided to Barraba Shire Band, City of Tamworth Eisteddfod Society, Manilla Pipe Band, St Peter’s Anglican Church Committee, Tamworth and District Highland Society Pipe Band, Tamworth Homeless Connect, Tamworth Regional Conservatorium of Music, Tamworth RSL sub-branch and Tamworth RSL Brass Band. There is also $4,440 shared among the 71 schools and pre-schools in the Tamworth Region for the purchase of academic prizes or library resources.

 New strategies to guide how the Tamworth Region will continue to grow its tourism industry and attract future investment have been formally adopted by Councillors. The Tamworth Regional Council Visitor Economy Plan 2022-2027, through extensive consultation and research, has identified opportunities in the tourism sector and actions to overcome challenges. Tourism contributes almost $300 million each year to the region’s economy. The Tamworth Tomorrow Economic Development and Investment Strategy and Tamworth Investment Prospectus identifies eight economic priorities to focus economic policies and actions over the next four years. They include: Water Security, Housing Affordability and Availability; Educations Skills and Training, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders Economic Priorities; Infrastructure and Transport Connection; Technology and Digital Connectivity; Innovations and Future Industries and, the Renewable Economy. Both plans align with Council’s Blueprint 100, the roadmap to take the Tamworth region towards its vision of a prosperous economy and high living standards driven by sustainable population growth.

 A total of $81,023 from the Regional Development Restricted Asset Reserve has been approved to fund a revised business case and detailed design for the proposed Tamworth Performing Arts Centre but work will not start until the site of the facility is confirmed. A report to Councillors detailed how a revised scope of works has been suggested to deliver the facility at a reduced cost while preserving the overall aim of providing improved performance and cultural spaces. The project originally represented an investment of $128 million while the revised proposal has been costed at $79.8 million. Tamworth Region Mayor Russell Webb said the revised proposal is “more financially achievable”. He said Council is continuing to actively seek grant opportunities to deliver the much-anticipated cultural and arts facility. “How we afford this project - either through grants, Council funding or a combination - will be discussed openly by your elected officials as part of future decision making,” he said.

 Councillors have tonight supported a recommendation to renew alcohol free zones in Kootingal, Robert Street, Bridge Street, Coledale and the central business districts of Tamworth, Manilla and Barraba for a further four years until 29 December 2026. Council is seeking community feedback about the proposal until 7 December 2022. The zones, established in 1994, have been effective in discouraging the consumption of alcohol on public roads, footpaths and car parks within the CBD, and creating safer public spaces around our region, the report said. For more information and to give feedback, visit https://haveyoursay.tamworth.nsw.gov.au/alcohol-free-zones