June 19, 2025
Individual water connections at the free 48-hour camping area in Murgon will remain, after a debate in the South Burnett Regional Council on Wednesday.
The 21 taps throughout the site are a hangover from when the area in Krebs Street was formerly a caravan park.
Cr Heath Sander, who has been pressing for the water connections to be disconnected, said it was costing Council about $60,000 a year to maintain the area with mowing, cleaning and water usage.
However, tourists were avoiding the free camp because other people were staying there permanently.
“If we disconnected the water, that may urge the permanent people who are staying there … to move on to another location,” Cr Sander said.
“And it might entice the people who are coming through the region to stay there and actually spend money at the local shops.”
Deputy Mayor Jane Erkens said there was nowhere near enough housing available for the homeless.
“The water from those taps actually costs $9 a day,” Cr Erkens said.
“I’m sure there a lot of people in this room who spend more than $9 a day on their daily coffees.
“For us to think $9 a day is too expensive for us to help people who are homeless, is pretty upsetting.”
Cr Erkens said she had stayed overnight in the park recently and had spoken to people there who were just passing through as well as a man who was living there and had been mowing the area until he was told to stop doing it by Council staff.
She said there were concerns about a tent which had been set up; people were coming to the tent during the early hours “to party” but were not living there.
“Maybe that is a mistake on our behalf that our compliance officers haven’t gone down there and removed the tent,” Cr Erkens said.
The Deputy Mayor said she sure none of the people who were living there permanently were doing so through choice … some had jobs but could not find rentals.
Cr Ros Heit said it was a minimal cost to ratepayers and although she would not support individual taps being installed in other free parks in the region, the Murgon ones were already there and she felt it would be “a little bit vindictive” to remove them.
The motion to remove the taps was lost 6-1 with only Cr Sander voting in favour of it.
However, councillors then voted unanimously to install signs at all the free camps across the region to remind people of the rules and conditions.
Australia has plenty of land & water. Let’s share, and be kind to everyone.
If it is true a person staying at the free camp is doing some “work” for their site and council told them to stop, then I am gobsmacked. Can we please have the whole story?
The travelling public do stop there. Everyone needs somewhere safe to live and the permanents there are spending their money in the town and don’t do any harm.
Did the lawn mower man have insurance to cover damage he may have caused to council property or other people’s property? It’s an absolute minefield, council has no choice but to stop him. It is not his land nor does he pay rent to have the right or responsibility to maintain it.
The housing shortage is one crisis. People living permanently in free camps is not the answer. Unfortunately, I don’t know what is.
Hi Andrew, isn’t it sad that society has put these minefields in place and I hear your message.
My point is I don’t have an answer to the housing crisis, either. But I don’t think we will ever have one if we don’t encourage those who are trying to help themselves and be a lesser burden on society.
Perhaps the council might ask this person if they would like to volunteer a few hours per week in some form of community work. Society can’t kick those who are trying.
As I said I would like to know the whole story.
Yes, we have stayed at Murgon Camp. We were very grateful and spent our dollars here and there.
Thank you for leaving the water on, we will be back.
A good idea would be to have the permanent stayers help out by maintaining the park in lieu of their free stay. Leaving them a lawn mower and cleaning tools they could access would help.
It costs $9 a day for the water. 365 days equals $3285 per annum.
Where does $60,000 come from Heath Sander?
As the news report suggests, we believe Cr Sander was also including the cost of maintenance and mowing in his larger figure.
Ridiculous that taps were even being removed in the first place. What, you think that the homeless don’t spend money in the town for food? Have a brain people, the homeless spend more money in a township than a visitor.
It is good to see that there are good people out there with kind heart. 6 to one, great outcome for the right side.