Richmond Valley Council’s performance has been given the tick of approval by residents canvassed in two Community Attitudes and Perceptions Surveys. The telephone surveys of 700 residents – 300 in the first instance and 400 the second - were compiled by Central Coast-based company Micromex Research.

Council’s General Manager John Walker said the random telephone surveys were commissioned as part of Council’s review of its Community Strategic Plan.

Mr Walker said the survey results would provide Council with an understanding of the perceptions and needs of the local community with respect to services and facilities and to customer service.

He said the information would be used to develop new strategies, actions and indicators.

“Both documents are very detailed, with much information to analyse,” Mr Walker said.

Mr Walker said the key outcome of this research was that the community was generally supportive of Council exploring opportunities for the region which would grow the local economy and increase the local population.

He said overall, the research found a generally positive result for Council services and facilities, with 29 of the 32 criteria rated as being of “moderate satisfaction” to “very high satisfaction”.

He said residents indicated the thing they valued most about living in the area was the friendly community and peaceful and quiet lifestyle.

“The outputs of this engagement and research surveys address a range of resident behaviours and attitudes towards living in the Richmond Valley,” Mr Walker said.

In completing the two surveys, Micromex interviewers made a total of 4968 calls.

The sample size of residents, age and geographically profiled accurately, provides a maximum sampling error of plus or minus 4.9 per cent at 95 per cent confidence.

Other results include:

• 93 per cent of residents support Council’s Casino saleyards upgrade project.
• 89 per cent of residents are supportive of Council owning and developing industrial, commercial and residential land in the local area so as to promote and facilitate progress and expansion.
• 89 per cent of residents feel there are benefits in living in a diverse community.
• 87 per cent of residents supported Council developing a master plan for an aviation precinct at and around the Casino aerodrome.
• 80 per cent perceived the new executive management team to be effective in making changes over the past 12 months.
• 56 per cent of residents feel there are sufficient opportunities for residents of the LGA to participate in artistic and cultural activities.
• 55 per cent of residents felt they had an opportunity to speak out about key issues affecting the Richmond Valley.
  

Media release: 19 April 2013

Richmond Valley Council has welcomed the Federal Government's decision to support a September referendum to include local government in the Constitution. In a Mayoral Minute tabled at last night’s Council meeting, Richmond Valley Mayor Cr Ernie Bennett said constitutional recognition remove the legal uncertainty about the Federal Government's ability to fund local communities directly through their councils.

Cr Bennett said councils and their communities needed financial certainty for their funding base, with formal recognition as legitimate recipients of direct Federal funding and it was easily fixed with this referendum.

He said without it, important funding for programs such as Roads to Recovery were at risk of High Court challenge and so was Council’s funding base.

“The referendum seeks to continue what we already thought was the case - that the Federal Government should be able to provide funding for vital local community services and infrastructure directly through councils,” Cr Bennett said.

“What is being proposed is a simple pragmatic change to address a problem which has arisen over the past few years.

“It won't change the status of local government, or its powers, or its relationship with the State Government.

“It will, however, remove the legal uncertainty created by two High Court cases - the Pape and the Williams cases - in the past couple of years.”

Cr Bennett said he hoped to see strong bipartisan support expressed across the political spectrum for the referendum.

He said this matter was above politics because it was simply about giving certainty to direct local funding for local communities' needs.

“The Federal Government has been funding vital community services and infrastructure through programs like Roads to Recovery, the Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program and the Australian Regional Development Fund for more than a decade,” Cr Bennett said.

“Billions of dollars have been invested in tens of thousands of local community projects covering roads, footpaths and bridges, community halls, ovals, childcare centres and swimming pools.

“Local communities deserve this support and that is what this referendum is all about.”

Cr Bennett said urged the Council and councillors and other interested parties to strongly advocate the case for a “yes” vote among the residents and voters of the Richmond Valley.

He said local government people across Australia had worked hard to get to this point of agreement and a successful “yes” vote would signal the start of a new era for funding certainty for local governments and their local communities.

Media Release 22 May 2013

Richmond Valley residents are being offered an opportunity to have their say on the region’s future at two public meetings to be held in Casino and Evans Head. Richmond Valley Council’s General Manager John Walker said Council was putting its draft Community Strategic Plan on public display to gain valuable input.

Mr Walker said the plan was Council's primary forward planning document, aligning the community's vision with a clear strategic direction for Richmond Valley's long-term future.

The plan includes:

•    Strategic direction for the Richmond Valley 2013-2025;
•    Resourcing Strategy, including Financial Planning, Asset Management Planning, Workforce Planning and Risk Management;
•    Detailed four-year delivery programs for each service, including budgets; and
•    Operational budget.

Mr Walker said community meetings were one way to exchange ideas and information and would complement the exhaustive community engagement process already undertaken.

He said Council was looking for a cross-section of viewpoints and he encouraged all interested residents to attend one or both  meetings.

“We look forward to receiving the community’s comments regarding the review of our 10-year plan and the Council encourages all residents to get involved in the future planning of the Richmond Valley,” Mr Walker said.

Mr Walker said following the public consultation process, the plan would be fully considered by the Council at its 25 June ordinary meeting.

Meeting dates and times are:

Evans Head Public Forum:
Date: Tuesday 28 May
Location: Evans Head Surf Club
Time: 7pm

Casino public forum:
Date: Wednesday 29 May
Location: Casino Community and Cultural Centre, Rooms 1 & 2 down stairs
Time: 7pm

To encourage meaningful discussion, Mr Walker is inviting the community to make itself familiar with the draft Community Strategic Plan before attending the meetings.

He said all documents would be available on Council’s website from Friday 17 May.

Media Release 13 May 2013

Richmond Valley Council is encouraging mobility scooter riders to travel at the lowest speed possible to avoid accidents. Council's General Manager John Walker said mobility scooters, also known as gophers, must not travel at more than 10km per hour and urged riders to be cautious when travelling in a crowded area.

Mr Walker said under the law, people using mobility scooters were pedestrians and were expected, as far as possible, to stick to the footpaths.

However, he said riders were required to give way to anyone on foot and must ensure they do not cause any obstruction.

"Gophers give greater mobility to those with restricted movement and should be respected," Mr Walker said.

"It is the rider's responsibility to make sure other pedestrians and motorists can see them and they must make sure they are travelling at the right speed at all times."

Mr Walker said some examples of riding safely could include:

• Only use roads as a last resort when there are no footpaths.
• Follow the same rules as pedestrians if having to travel along the road, namely, keeping to the far left or far right and giving way to traffic as required.
• Crossing the road at pedestrian crossings. Choose open areas and avoid crossing from behind parked cars or other obstructions.
• Attaching a reflective safety flag to your scooter high enough for motorists and cyclists to see. You can get these from a bike shop.
• Wear brightly coloured clothes.
• Display a white light at the front, a red light at the back and reflectors for times when there is less daylight.
• Watch out for parked and parking cars and for drivers opening doors.
• Be patient. Slow down, stop and give way to faster, heavier vehicles - you cannot race a car or truck when you’re driving a motorised scooter.

Page MP Janelle Saffin has  announced Federal funding of more than $600,000 for a major upgrade to improve safety at the Casino Saleyards.

Ms Saffin said the funding, under the Federal Government’s Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program. will mean much safer facilities for saleyard workers and truck drivers who transport livestock.

“There is a total of $636,000 in Federal funding along with $159,000 from the Richmond Valley Council for the upgrade at the Casino Regional Livestock Exchange.

“The funding is for the installation of double-deck delivery ramps, non-slip concrete pens and race floor and includes all-weather roofing along the yards and gates and lighting.  We can all appreciate how important these improvements are given our recent weather conditions.

“The issue of safety for saleyard employees and truck drivers has been raised with me by local councils, beef producers and the trucking industry in recent years, so I welcome the new funding.

“I was among a number of MPs from rural electorates successfully lobbied for saleyards safety upgrades to be included in the Federal Governments Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program,” Ms Saffin said.

“I thank Federal Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Anthony Albanese for listening to the concerns from rural and regional Australia, and for responding to them by providing extra assistance.”

Richmond Valley Council is looking for community-minded people interested in making a difference to volunteer at the Casino Community and Cultural Centre or the Visitor Information Centre. Council’s General Manager John Walker said both centres played important roles in the community by providing a welcoming meeting place and a wealth of information.

Mr Walker said the call for volunteers followed an increase in demand for a range of services on offer at the Casino Community and Cultural Centre and a change to staffing arrangements at the Visitor Information Centre.

He said volunteers had the opportunity to learn valuable skills and meet new and interesting people.

“If volunteering interests you and you are a good conversationalist and would like to share your time, then we would love to hear from you,” Mr Walker said.

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer, please contact Rebecca Ryan on 6662 3566 or email tourism@richmondvalley.nsw.gov.au.

Media release: 19 April 2013