Summary: Council meeting 22 March 2023

Published on 22 March 2023

What happens at a Council meeting?

Elected representatives of the community, Councillors, come together to represent the views of the community and make strategic decisions on behalf of the community.

They are responsible for ensuring the Council operates in accordance with legislation, is financially responsible and delivering to the needs of the community within the means of the budget.

They meet regularly to make determinations on matters that impact on you and your community.

Following each meeting we provide a snapshot of the decisions that are made and the information that is tabled.

For a full outline of the meeting and the discussion points, please refer to the agenda and business papers, or listen to a recording of the meeting – that can be found here.

Items of interest - 22 March 2023 Council meeting

Items of interest	Summary
Mayoral minute to express condolences	A mayoral minute was presented by Mayor Pontin to recognise the contributions of the late Stephen Bromhead MP, Member of Myall Lakes, to his community. The minute endorsed Council writing to Mr Bromhead’s family to express sincere condolences on his passing and to recognise his contribution to the community, both as a former Councillor of Greater Taree City Council and as the Member for Myall Lakes. A second Mayoral Minute was presented to endorse MidCoast Council becoming a member of the Country Mayors Association of NSW.
Food and garden organic service	In preparation for the delivery of a food and garden organic service to the MidCoast community, Councillors endorsed the identification of the Tuncurry landfill expansion site as the preferred location for the food organic and garden organic (FOGO) facility that will be required to process food waste once it is collected. The meeting also resolved to engage an experienced consultant to run the marketing, engagement and behaviour change strategy and that the tender for the construction of the facility be released with two options. The first is for the successful tenderer to design, construct and operate the facility and the other was for the successful tenderer to design and construct the facility and for council to operate it. Several funding options were identified for the delivery of the project. It is expected that FOGO services will be introduced towards the end of 2026.
Community consultation on draft Cemetery Strategy and Policy	A community consultation plan for the development of documents to guide the strategic direction and future management of the 34 cemeteries under our management was approved. The Cemetery Strategy and related policy and guidelines will renew our approach to maintaining these cemeteries and improving related services over the short, medium and long-term. To help develop the strategy, we have commissioned specialist consultants to assist. The aim of the project is to ensure our cemeteries can cater for future demands in response to a growing and aging population. The project will also review our operations in the face of changing regulatory requirements and establish consistency across the Manning, Gloucester and Great Lakes regions.
2021 storm and flood damage update	Council has received confirmation of $7,916,249 worth of funding from the State Government, under the Community Local Infrastructure Recovery Program, to repair community assets damaged during the March 2021 flood. This will fund repairs and replacement of aquatic infrastructure including: repairs and replacement of pontoons in Taree, Bohnock, Croki, Tinonee, Manning Point, Old Bar, Pampoolah, Wallis Lake and Wingham. Boat ramps in Taree, Bohnock, Croki, Tinonee, Bulahdelah, Manning Point, Manning Waters, Wingham Repairs to parks landscaping, gardens, shelters, barbecues, fences and playgrounds at Gloucester, Wingham and Taree Repairs and reconstruction of the riverside reserve and tennis courts at Wingham. Council has recently awarded contracts for the delivery of the projects.
Capital works projects	A report on the major capital works underway in the transport, water and wastewater area provided updates on the major projects underway, including: Bruce Street, Forster additional footpath and concrete works will be completed mid-March Harrington Road – completed February 2023 Lansdowne Road – reconstruction of 600 metres of rural road, expected to be completed in May 2023 Waitui Road, Hannam Vale – completed in March 2023 The Branch Lane – work is underway on a 1.3 kilometre extension of the sealed road to be completed in March 2023. Work is underway on seven sections of The Bucketts Way, and two sections of the Lakes Way. Wingham Road – work underway on several sections of Wingham Road, work at the intersection with Youngs Road has started with work on the roundabouts at intersections with Hargreaves and Potoroo Drive expected to be complete by May 2023. Work is underway on numerous projects to upgrade water and wastewater infrastructure across the local government area Sewer and water mains renewal projects are also underway at several sites in Harrington, Smiths Lake, Hallidays Point, Hawks Nest, Forster, Manning Point, Taree South, Tuncurry, Stroud, Old Bar, Pacific Palms and more.
Contract to drill five bores for Nabiac borefield expansion	The contract for the supply of water drilling services to drill five raw water extraction bores for the Nabiac borefield expansion project has been awarded to Water Resources Drilling Pty Ltd. The project is partly funded by Council, State and Federal Governments. The project includes the construction of five additional raw water extraction (production) bores to increase volume of water that Council can extract from the Nabiac Water Supply Aquifer. These bores will increase extraction and ‘spread the load’ across the borefield allowing all bores to rest for longer periods of time. This will help the borefield operation to be more sustainable by rotating pumping from each bore, as well as increasing the overall volume of raw water available to the Nabiac water treatment plant.

For full details of all reports please see the agenda for the meeting which can be found here.