April 15, 2015
The South Burnett Residents Action Group’s Nanango Branch has slammed the South Burnett Regional Council over claims it consulted widely with local businesses before the Nanango streetscaping project began.
S-BRAG spokesman Grant Newson – who stood for The Greens at the last Federal and State elections – was responding to a statement by Mayor Wayne Kratzmann to southburnett.com.au yesterday that:
“After the initial consultation undertaken with a static display of the plans in the CBD manned by Council staff and Cr Barry Green, all businesses in Drayton Street were invited to a meeting at the Cultural Centre in January which was well attended”.
“(There are) several points to raise on this reported quote from the mayor,” Mr Newson said.
“The initial static display bares (sic) absolutely no resemblance to this current plan. What does the Mayor classify as ‘well attended’?
“For those businesses owners who were in attendance, what was their opinion and were any concerns addressed by the Mayor or Cr Green way back then?
“If so much consultation has been conducted, then why is the Mayor currently going around changing the plan on the spot to appease business activities? For example, two-way traffic in lane ways.
“The Mayor seems to have forgotten that the residents of Nanango are also affected by this streetscape debacle and since his alleged initial consultation, none has been properly conducted to reach this current plan.
“The businesses are directly affected by the continual disruption to the main street lately and this of course is a result from the inability of Nanango residents to be able to get to a local shop.
“The continual wasting of ratepayers’ money, either by recently installing concrete medium (sic) strips or now ripping them back up, laying pavers and then ripping them up or installing 16 unessential flag poles. Will this latest round of destruction and construction be deemed ineffective and have to be changed again shortly?
“If the Mayor believes that Nanango residents are all able and willing to park in Scott St car park or further away from the main street, he is mistaken. Many have the inability or missing the luxury of good health and mobility to carry goods such a distance.
“This absolute shambles and disgrace from the Council on the handling of the Nanango streetscape could easily have been avoided.
“It should have been an award-winning, brownie point-gaining, full community involvement exercise for all Councillors and the Mayor.
“Sadly, it has had the complete opposite effect on our local township.
“Business confidence has been continually eroded, businesses and residents totally fed up and having talked to some tourists about the issue, they are unhappy also.
“The Mayor has only one acceptable course of action he should take presently. Halt all destruction of the Nanango CBD until full public consultation has been conducted and get this project 100 per cent right before any further progress.
“How many public meetings has the mayor called in Blackbutt over a single shopping centre compared to an entire Nanango CBD facelift?”
Related articles:
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- Fruit Shop Termites Upset The Applecart
- Upgrade For Fitzroy St Crossings
- Drayton Street Upgrade Starts Soon
- Bus Stop On The Move
- Henry Street Ready By Christmas
- Drayton Street Redesign Planned
- New Angle On Nanango Parking Woes
- Nanango Lights The Way
- Nanango Streetscaping Finished By Year’s End
- Nanango’s New Trees ‘Doing Fine’
- Plum Job Ahead For Highway
- Petition Launched To Save Trees
- Meet The Future Face Of Nanango
After travelling widely through out the South Burnett conversing with residents on many a subject related to council activities the depth of dissatisfaction indeed anger in many cases became apparent. I found it most difficult to confine any conversation privately to a single topic, whilst in public passers by regularly adding comment to and participating in these impromptu gatherings.
The Nanango street development is but one extravagant project seen as an expensive indulgence thrust upon struggling communities. Conciliation has never been a strong point of this council with heed giving only to appropriately classed citizens whilst adamant that the vast majority of rate payers conform to this long established form of soft despotism. This system of governance now being challenged in every town village and rural district, questioning this social authoritarianism’s commitment to open governance and financial clarity of purpose to rate payers.
Soft despotism gives people the illusion that they are in control, when in fact they have very little influence over their government. Soft despotism breeds fear, uncertainty, and doubt in the general populace. This system of governance inequality has long been prevalent with in the South Burnett.
I find it sad that we have a mayor who believes that the only people who live in Nanango are the business people. What about the people who keep the business people afloat,ie their customers? When is this mayor going to consult with these people who are the residents of Nanango and make up the population of this town.
To say that we have gained parking spaces is incredible. The extra parking that the mayor refers to is so far away from the most frequented shops that it is absolutely outrageous to even think that people will walk from there.
It is about time that this project is stopped until such time as public consultation takes place and issues our residents have are taken into consideration and resolved.
Why are people so short sighted? Nanango has been looking like it did in the 1950s for the last 30 years. Why would anyone want to ever relocate to a town that was looking so tired and depressed? I would imagine that the people complaining here all live in houses that have never been renovated or upgraded. There is bound to be issues when work is being done but the finished product will be what Nanango needs.