Your voice
Welcome to the Your Voice page of the Marg Hogan Team website.
This is your chance to be heard… please keep the comments constructive.
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If you were mayor of Bathurst what would you do to make Bathurst and the villages even better?
* Plant more trees in Bathurst and villages. I’m happy to go on a committee to plant trees in the easement behind our house.
* Create more walking paths/tracks.
* Create more recreational, health and wellbeing activities for people on NDIS funding and people with mental illnesses.
* Brochure to go to households on bee friendly plants.
* More recycling outlets.
* More drop off places for soft plastic waste other than Coles and Woolies.
* Incentives for regular and green waste recycling.
* Stop rubbish from the showground going into the river eg: baling twine from horse feed.
* Council to subsidise painting house numbers on street kerbs.
* Establishment of stronger links between early childhood centres and senior communities.
* Adopt a grandparent program.
* The community seniors assigned to run tutor groups to get children off screens eg. How to play euchre, how to knit/crochet/sew, how to catch a fish, how to keep indoor plants etc.
* More community awareness on domestic violence.
* More churches/buildings used to house the homeless.
* Incentives for paediatric occupational therapists, psychologists, physiotherapists, and speech pathologists to come to Bathurst.
* Safer parking in summer for touch football.
* Fast-food outlets to use biodegradable packaging.
* Pay more people to collect roadside rubbish on a regular basis.
* Check that the recycling trucks are secure and don’t drop glass onto the roads!!!
* Promote up-cycling.
* More community gardens.
* Have Wiradjuri elders attend council meetings on a regular basis or submit a report.
* Repaint the Mt Panorama sign on the hill to include Wahluu in large font and Mt Panorama in a smaller font with indigenous art.
* Ongoing maintenance of significant indigenous sites in and around Bathurst.
* More signage to including the Wiradjuri language.
* Digital platform to swap/share garden produce etc. other than the co-op.
* Music/bands at the farmers markets.
* Maintain the beautiful gardens in our parks.
* Maintain our sporting grounds and clubhouses.
* Create an equivalent to the Men’s shed… The women’s shed.
Kind regards,
Deb
Wow!! Just wow!
Thank you Deb for 1. Being the first person to contribute to this page and 2. Putting together such a thoughtful response. There are so many fabulous ideas in here. So good! We’re listening!!
Just love what you are doing here team. I am hoping to share the results of my survey once it is completed.
I am sure there are aspects that you have captured that I haven’t and vice versa 🙂
Anyway, go team! You are nailing it on social media, and I really hope we do get a strong female representation in our upcoming council, even if I don’t make it in, I’m rooting for you Marg and co!
Thanks for the support Catherine. That’s really lovely to know. I’ll be very interested to see the results of your survey.
I would have First Nation elders to have their say at every meeting and every project. They have a right to have a seat. Let’s not have McPhillamy Park a repeat ever again.
I would allow the citizens of Australia that live in Bathurst speak up without discrimination or threat of incarceration. Everyone deserves to have their say and be heard. Don’t have to agree but listen.
Be open and transparent on all projects with community announcements and regular feature in the Village Voice and Western Advocate so everyone has the opportunity to have their say.
This is a town with great foundations however some foundations need to be shifted for growth and expansion.
Marg Hogan and team are you up for the challenge? We the people are your employers and it’s time for each candidate to Stand Up or Step Down. I will make no excuses, we live in the Commonwealth of Australia and the Australian citizens live local so we start a change locally.
Hear hear! Wonderful insightful visionary suggestions for nurturing our community capital – with respect for all – people living together in harmony with nature and culture has to be our top priority. Thank you Deb!
My son went to mental health today and was hoping to self admit to panorama. He has a 38 pg report from a psychologist with diagnosis of type 1 bi polar and other associated personality disorders which need some clarrification by a psychiatrist which we are still on a waiting list for. He has previous diagnosis of approx 10 mental illnesses and is running around unmedicated as we have to wait for the psychiatrist. He is near homless in fact he is handing in his flat to housing tomorrow as he is in bonnor st flats and he believes they all want to kill him. In fact last friday the police were called due to people in his home and he hasnt been back hes in a motel. He has an issue with pot an alcohol so mental health simply referred him there and said it was great he went to seek help but failed him. He is explosive, paranoid, at severe risk and is being ignored. He threatens self harm. He has lost his home, children, partner and is on a disability payment due to his issues and has been since age 16, hes 23 now. He is on a wait list for rehab but hes screaming for help and he goes with his support co ordinator (he has an ndis package) to mental health and gets fobbed off. What is wrong here Mr Toole?? We have called panorama who said take him to ED when hes raging, yep sure if i want to be hurt no problem. We called the mental health line who said go to mental health who said go to intake we did who fobbed us off. Update… Sept 2021. He is still untreated, unmedicated and homeless. I sent this on 22nd July and whilst it had been seen i have received no reply.
Those ideas are quite unique, but fabulous & need to be addressed. There is something for everyone. But for car racing & football what is Bathurst known for, Once upon a time it used to be our ///heritage. The concept is superlative….. Well done Deb.
Trees, trees and more trees!
The CBD of Bathurst urgently needs tree planting, it is a hot box in summer and only getting worse. Council staff need to find ways to incorporate trees instead of finding reasons why they can’t be planted, and yes it can be done without losing street parking, we just need to be a bit clever about it.
There are many small areas of Council land around the district that would accommodate trees and enhance the beauty and liveability of Bathurst.
Our water catchment will be vastly improved by trees and make the region less prone to floods and drought. Healthy soils that are full of life and deep rooted vegetation soak up water like a giant sponge and release it when needed. Nature is amazing like that.
Beautiful avenues of trees are a great tourist attraction and will enhance the city and make it more attractive to visitors, bringing more revenue to our businesses.
Trees keep us cool, create oxygen and draw water into the ground to maximise the productivity of our farmlands, parks and gardens.
What about a Bathurst Tree Festival?
You’re right Susan, there are so many areas around the city and villages where we could be planting. Part of it comes down to language I think. Progressive cities talk about creating an urban forest, a green canopy. In many European cities it’s a given. In Australia, they are the sorts of areas we love to congregate and visit. Maybe we could have a Bathurst Tree Planting Festival where we set a target each year of planting xxx number of trees to help future proof and beautify the city and villages.
Ultimately there are two metrics we need to measure and I need to find out from Council where they’re up to with this … We need to measure Urban Heat and Canopy Cover.
Ashley provided me with some data that was put together as part of a local discussion paper …
Canopy Cover
UTS Institute of Sustainable Futures in 2015 measured the percentage of urban tree canopy cover in 139 council areas across Australia representing 68% of the population. The UTS institute, Office of Environment & Heritage (OE&H) and Local Government Association (LGA 2003) recommend:
– 15% canopy cover for CBD areas.
– 25% cover in medium and high-density residential areas.
– 50% cover in low-density residential areas.
These are Bathurst’s figures measured during 2015 both manually and from a recent Lands Department map:
– Less than 2% street tree canopy cover over the extended CBD area.
– An estimated 11% overall tree canopy cover for the 94 blocks of the Bathurst heritage area.
Urban Heat
I’m in the process of trying to track down more information on heat mapping.
Hi Marg, I live in Peel and we need the surface of our local roads repaired. Particularly on Rivelet Rd as the surface constantly breaks apart after rain. We don’t need much else as we love living in a quiet rural village.
Thanks Deborah. Good feedback and glad to hear life is great in Peel! It’s a beautiful part of the region.
My suggestions are:
Ensure councilors are required to attend, arranged by the GM, 12-18 hours of CPD per annum re the laws governing their work, compliance training, and policy and procedures training. The Social Media policy adopted by the Council was an exercise in sheer ignorance of State, Federal, and International laws governing freedom of speech, discrimination, and bullying and harassment. Councilors, including current female councilors do not understand what is required to support women in the community and require education in relation to current social mores in this regard.
Ensure, coupled with Federal and State funding that the old TAFE Building is restored in accordance with the Performance Arts Centre of Excellence (PACE) Group’s submission/plan as provided to council (Architect Henry Bialowas and team)
Stop the need for people to refer to Bathurst as Penrith west of the divide and balance the cultural ecology of this city from a sports-only focus to one that embraces the arts in all of its forms and the maintenance of Bathurst’s architectural heritage and built environment. Council has approved unsympathetic to the maintenance of our heritage DAs including the use of faux “wrought iron” on facades and other inappropriate architectural features in heritage areas.
Reinstate and upgrade Council’s International Women’s Day Committee (disbanded) and annual program and make Bathurst a world leader in IWD events establishing an International Women’s Day 2 yearly conference here that will attract many from far and wide and bring wealth to Bathurst. Vitally this conference must include learned men as well as women, and have its purpose the education of all, men and boys, women and men about the criticality of gender equity and the facilitation of opportunities for women and girls.
Make Bathurst safe for women and children and Australia’s Number 1 Say No to Family Violence city placing signage coming into Bathurst and within the township stating:
Bathurst has Zero Tolerance for Family Violence
Bathurst a Family Violence-Free Zone
Foster communication and education programs for men enabling better communication without recourse to violence against women and children
Have Wiradjuri elders attend council meetings on a regular basis or submit a report.
Increase the number of cycling and walking paths along the Macquarie River in particular from the bottom of Esrom Street through to the Bicentennial Macquarie River-Parkland.
Increase facilities for adolescents to mitigate crimes of boredom.
Best of luck and go Marg Hogan and team!
Marie thanks for contributing. There are some great ideas here and I know they come from a real world perspective. I imagine your legal work exposes you to the realities of local family violence.
It’s interesting your last point…I was speaking to my young optometrist who grew up here, moved away for uni and has since returned. I asked her about her Bathurst experience and she said “The one thing I’d change is to try and provide more for the mid to late teens because we spent most of our last two years of school loitering without intent around the CBD.” 😉 It’s an area we need to keep in sharp focus and build on what’s already in place. Any fresh ideas welcome!!
We also need to be very mindful that if Covid continues to be a part of our lives for the foreseeable future, our young ones may find it difficult to travel elsewhere to study so what does that mean for us locally and with CSU? That’s a really important conversation we will need to have.
When was Council’s International Women’s Day Committee disbanded?
Maybe something for an extension of the Adventure playground…that way it could also be utilised for community things like Party in the Park at New Years Eve…etc…add to a large shaded area for the older kids to play as well as the younger kids.
My husband Steve has always thought it’d be fantastic to have a giant toboggan course above the Adventure Playground but I do love the idea of having big undercover areas where people could play basketball etc.
Hello Margo! My 15 yr old has Cerebral Palsy. Her brother can do almost anything he chooses in the way of recreation and sport. Everything is available to him in life. My lass?… not so. For years now( and it is almost too late ) we have travelled to Orange and Blayney to access the Wheelchair swings. There is nothing… absolutely nothing in our city for those with a disability and I feel as a ratepayer and parent, it is shameful. There is more to Bathurst than sport and the mountain! Please know that you have inspired me and I wish you well in the upcoming election.
Maureen thankyou! Thankyou for drawing our attention to that and I’m so sorry that Bathurst has let you down on this one. Have you had conversations with Council about this over the years? Thank you also for the good thoughts about the election. It’s been a big decision (the biggest actually) but win or lose, connecting with the community and hearing first hand about what we can do better has inspired me to become more involved in whatever capacity moving forward. Please know that you’ve been heard – at least by us – on this one. Warm regards, Marg
I’m with Maureen and have voiced this for so long – along with a rail and steps for the uphill climb on the slide at adventure playground. Its very steep when pushing a child up who has mobility issues.
Thanks for letting us know Sharyn. Important info.
We need something to curb bullying in our schools, i don’t know what can be done but it is so rampant, every other day, sometimes every day i hear stories from my kids and others that either they were bullied or their friends were. Not sure what can be done at a local level but something needs to be done. Please help our kids if you win.
Our kids also need something to do, theres only so many times that you can go to the movies or bowling before getting bored, don’t get me wrong the movies and bowling are great but we need more variety like a water park or a sensory park either at the adventure playground or centennial park would be great. Elderslie in south west sydney has one and it is amazing and as far as i know uses recycled water which is even better. An arcade i think would go far too. None of my kids are into sport, we are more of a creative family but options are limited and most things are very expensive for low income earners or people on income support or pensions so something that is free or low in cost would be perfect.
I second a disability swing at playgrounds, its not fair that anyone is excluded because of disability in our city, we need to be better than that. Have also spoken to a lady who is in a wheelchair who has found it difficult to get around town, she once had to go around the back of a restaurant and through their kitchen to access a table because of the step at the entrance, not only is that dangerous it is also degrading. We could give miniature ramps to business owners to be used when needed to allow people in wheelchairs access, as for narrow doors though there is not much that can be done about that unfortunately.
More advertising around our hidden gems like bushwalking tracks would be great too.
Liza just out of interest is the bullying happening face to face or online?
I totally agree about providing more activities for our kids. I was speaking to a woman last week who was saying the Masters site (now Harvey Norman) would have been the perfect site. A section for under 2s, 3-5s, and so on right up to potentially an electric indoor go kart track. My son has moved to Wollongong and has got right into indoor rock climbing down there – did you catch it on the Olympics? So cool. I also hear what you’re saying about the cost and the mum I was speaking to was of the same opinion – access needs to affordable for all. It’s a difficult balancing act but if we can create a clear idea of what’s required at least it gives us something to aim for.
My nephew is in a wheelchair and my sister-in-law was telling me there are only two hairdressers she can go to that have wheelchair access. I was oblivious to that. They’re all important conversations. Thanks for raising them.
Unfortunately the bullying seems to be accross the board. At school, online and even out in the community. I know parents who are having to replace equipment after it being broken by other kids. I also know of parents who have spoken to police to try and get some help and again nothing was done, kids mental health is very diminished in these circumstances to the point i know a mum who is trying to help her daughter who is under 10 who is suicidal due to the bullying she has endured at school, another mother last weekend had a spray paint can lit on fire and thrown at her son outside of their house, luckily they were ok. My kids are also facing mental health issues, my two youngest dont even want to go to high school for fear of bullying. Just yesterday my youngest was yelled at by an older boy and my son who is on the autism spectrum was kicked repeatedly by a boy in the playground. Parents are at their wits end and we are losing hope…our kids do the right thing but are made to suffer because the kids who do the wrong thing do not get any consequences for their bad behaviour.
Liza I’m going to email you directly. Marg
No unfortunately i did not get to see as much of the olympics as i would have liked but indoor rock climbing and things like that would be amazing, even a roller skating rink. There are so many possibilities.
Thanks for your time
I live in one of the villages and would really love to see a mechanism that enables easy recycling. Many people pay for the Rural bin service to collect their rubbish but the don’t have a recycling service for this area.
I am sure it would stop a lot of recyclable waste going to landfill .
Thanks for thinking about the villages in your consultation.
Thanks Deb. I would never have even thought of that. And I also note the comment on Instagram about the width of the road on the way to Tarana – that you’d like it made compliant with the minimum two lane width of 8 metres. Great feedback! Thx. Marg
I have lived in Eglinton for the past 21 years since returning to Bathurst to live. In Eglinton I would like council to: fix up the causeway on eleven mile drive so that it does not flood each time there is some rain. Also, for council to plant more trees, return Eglinton to its village feel by prohibiting builders building two dwellings on a house block. Also, a toilet block in the vicinity of the bridge as I have seen many children going to the toilet under the bridge. These are just a few ideas. Also lighting along Eglinton road from All saints college and a dual lane road on this road. Also a small shopping centre.
Deanne thanks so much for contributing to our Villages week. These would be GREAT topics to kick start a face to face Community Chat in Eglinton once the lockdown is over! Thankyou. Marg
PERTHVILLE VILLAGE
– Widen Prince Street up the top close to Lagoon Road. Fix the loose gravel and put in proper drainage; curb and guttering.
– Regular maintenance of side walks and nature strips. The grass is often left to get extremely high close to and around the creek and other walkways.
– Commencement on the Perthville village square and an idea of completion date
– Toilet block and BBQ area for Perthville village square if not already included
– Need to keep fighting for SOME clearing of the creek.
– Prevention of block on the corner of Prince and Bathurst Streets being turned into a development of 6+ blocks. Need to work hard to keep the village feel of our villages across the entire LGA.
– Pedestrian crossing outside the school
– A community garden
BATHURST
– Beautifying and maintaining the Boundary Road Reserve.
– A First Nations walking track; perhaps through Boundary Road Reserve or at the top of the mount with sign posts in Wiradjuri identifying flora/fauna/landmarks/cultural significance.
– More trees planted
– Increased provision of accessible play and recreational equipment for individuals with disability.
– Support or funding to build a recreational centre that can be utilised by all ages for things like; indoor rock climbing, indoor play centre for kids, indoor obstacle course. Our city is really lacking in indoor options for the colder months.
Thanks for contributing Jemma and flying the flag for Perthville. Raglan is apparently having the same issue with long grass in summer and concerns about snakes. These are all great suggestions and I heartily agree with an all age recreational centre. It keeps coming up and coming up in so many conversations. My husband and I have been talking about the need for hospital parking and whether one side of it could be combined with an indoor/glass fronted rock climbing facility. I know it doesn’t cost anything to dream but if we don’t set great goals to aim for we’ll never get there. It’s an idea anyway. Dave Rankine has also been talking about a pump track near the skate park as you enter Bathurst much like Lithgow has just put in.
I am a Bathurst village resident of some twenty years and enjoy the peace and tranquility of life on the edge! Less than 15 minutes from me is a vibrant, growing Regional Centre which provides pretty much everything I need on a daily basis.
There is one glaring omission! All across Australia cities are developing Performing Arts Centres which encourage opportunities for people of all ages and abilities to engage in cultural activities; music! dancing! theatre!; they all create a sense of shared community and add great value to the city.
I have watched year after year as the local council has pumped our money into sporting facilities at the expense of the arts. It’s time now, surely, to balance that equation. People deserve to be recognised for their talents and contribution to society just as much on a stage as on a football pitch! The annual success of the local Eisteddfodd week, for example, points up just how popular and important the performing arts sector is to the community.
The PACE proposal to re-adapt the old TAFE buildings as a Centre for the Performing Arts ticks so many boxes. As an historic CBD building reborn to grow the city’s art culture it is a wonderful initiative from Henry Bialowas and his group. I sing with a community choir and know only too well how limited affordable rehearsal space with good acoustic is in Bathurst. The old TAFE building has a Great Hall with wonderful acoustic which lends itself to being a recital venue for an audience of 200; perfect for music and drama and dance! It’s a no brainer really and I am so looking forward to a change of guard at the forthcoming local election with fresh and stimulating ideas and parity for the performing arts at last!
Judith thank you for your comment about the proposed Performing Arts Centre of Excellence. I’ve read the document and I think it could be a wonderful addition to Bathurst and yet another piece of the puzzle to help reignite and activate the CBD and Town Square precinct. I just need to have further conversations about the financials. Regards, Marg
How to improve health
Completing walks and cycle paths, Mudgee and Dubbo have done this well.
Bicycle lane and bikepark in tow. That connects to university – potentially across to Kelso.
Urban planning and learning from past town planners to use grids. They encourage walking and a community setting. Having trees, like Piper St between Rankin and Stewart is an example.
Attract medical and mental health specialists to operate from Sydney here by providing offices. Develop local support packs for partners and families of specialists. Advocate Council to make Bathurst trauma hospital allowing for more training opportunities.
Support vege gardens by providing houses/families with annual seeds that grow locally and seasonally
Fabulous ideas Daniel. Many thanks for kick starting our week of community conversations about Health.
Hi, lots of candidates, trying to decide who I should vote for. Read with interest this comments page and would like to ask some questions.
3 times people have asked about local aboriginal issues but Marg has not answered any one of them? Why? and could she? I have a couple also but no point if Marg is not going to answer them, and they might be best answered by Jim anyway.
What enquiries did you make as to Jim’s claim regarding being the first Aboriginal man to run for council? If you can’t be sure, why make the statement?
How can I ask your other ticket members questions? All of these answers are from Marg.
Hi Jenny,
Can you please point me to the three times I haven’t responded to, I’m not sure if I’ve missed something.
Kalmadyne is not on social media. I’ve passed on any things that have been raised with me privately to him. If you want to get in touch please send me your details privately and I’ll pass them on to him.
The other team members are available on facebook. If you’re not on facebook, again I can pass your details on to them if you want to speak to them directly.
Regards,
Marg
Hi Marg,
I asked ‘What enquiries did you make as to Jim’s claim regarding being the first Aboriginal man to run for council? If you can’t be sure, why make the Statement?’ You do not answer the questions. Deb on July 29 asked ‘Have Wiradjuri elders attend(ed) council meetings on a regular basis or submit(ed) a report.’ You did not answer the question in your response. While not so much as a question she also raised signage in Wiradjuri language and you do not provide a view – what is it?. Marie Sullivan on July 30 asks the same question….’Have Wiradjuri elders attend(ed) council meetings on a regular basis or submit(ed) a report. In constructing this response I now note that Marie identically duplicates Deb’s poor grammar – but again you do not provide a response. Jemma on Aug 21 suggests signs in Wiradjuri – ‘with sign posts in Wiradjuri identifying flora/fauna/landmarks/cultural significance.’ but again you do not comment as to your support or otherwise. I guess what I am wanting is your views to these and what role has Jim played in representing issues at Bathurst Regional Council level in recent years? and If he is keen to represent Aboriginal issues at Council why does he not stand alone, or as a lead candidate?
Yes, please provide facebook links to the other candidates
Hi Jenny,
I read Deb’s comment on July 29 as a suggestion, not a question (There is no past tense (ed) in any of the comments you’ve highlighted). Deb is ‘suggesting’ that that happen just as she is suggesting a whole raft of other things for Bathurst. I think it’s definitely something Council should consider and forgive me if I’m not responding to every single suggestion that people are offering up on all subjects. What I’m hoping at the end of this process is that we have a lot of great suggestions and are able to collate them and if elected they will give us starting points to work with the various stakeholders.
Marie’s comment on July 30 I also read as a suggestion, not a question. Same with Jemma’s comment about the walking track.
To be honest, at this point in time or indeed into the future, I don’t see it as my place to be taking up these ideas unless they have support of the local First Nations community.
5.4% of the population in Bathurst identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander. I saw a need for representation on council. Circumstance brought Kalmadyne and myself together in recent months. Since 1976 he has contributed in his own way to Bathurst and for those efforts was recognised as one of Bathurst’s first Living Legends. Just as I thought it would be remiss to run a team in 2021 without an environmental expert I also thought it would be remiss to run a team without a First Nations representative.
If you wish to provide your phone number privately and speak to any of the team I’m happy to pass it on from here.
Marg, I would like to see our Public Art policy activated. It needs budget, and it needs partnerships with businesses who are willing to participate. e.g. Imagine if the new medical centre people committed to a major work?
There is a steering committee, but we are yet to see movement.
It can be serious, it can be fun, it can be historical, it can be contemporary.
Thanks for drawing my attention to this Sandy. You’re talking about this one yes? Adopted in April 2019.
https://www.bathurstart.com.au/public-art/208-public-art/public-art-information/574-public-art-policy-and-framework
Yes Marg, this was put in place after the Bathurst Cultural Plan was adopted. I took place in the crafting of both plans, including attending workshop sessions.
Just for fun I have been posting what people do with public art all round the world – look at Imagine Bathurst facebook page.
There are some great possibilities in Bathurst, and we have adopted only a few – e.g. Monica Morse said it took her years to get the Conversations sculpture up – but that was before we had the policy framework. Sarah Gurich at the Art Gallery has management of the plans, but is starved for resources. Perhaps you might have a chat with her.
I have seen and heard so many candidates mention buidings, blocks of land, all kids of projects that will bring the dollars or tourists to town. I do have a question about our own. Where can our homeless go? Is there a building that can be utilised to provide a roof for our most vunerable?
Sharyn thank you for raising this. In truth I can’t answer that but I will do my best to find out what the current situation is and come back to you with some thoughts. I’ve just finished watching an interview between two of my old friends from Mitchell days, Andrew Denton and Kinley Dorji from Bhutan. They talk about the question of homelessness in the interview at 1.11.46 https://www.facebook.com/sydney.ideas/videos/525078225001253/
I’m hoping to have a conversation with Kinley in the lead up to the election. Bhutan has led the way with its Gross National Happiness model and all our team members are interested to explore the idea of a Well Being Framework that would better tap into things like rates of homelessness etc. As Jean Fell said in our interview together a week or two, its Council’s responsibility to look after not only the ratepayers, but everyone in our community, especially those that are invisible. I’ll do some research and come back to you. Marg
Re Tourism, we hope you know some of us put an enormous effort into promoting tourism to Bathurst, setting up and running events, helping the visitors centre etc. etc. The Destination Management Plan is a must read for you and anyone interested in the sector, and reflects a lot of community effort and input from us and others. As does the Bathurst Region website, which we and others helped with. Ditto the Step Beyond App which we heritage groups put $20k into and a huge effort re content, and more on the way. You might also like to look at the facebook page Experience Heritage Bathurst.
Please talk to Dan Cove at BVIC who are doing a great job with limited resources. . The visitors centre and the tourism effort is much maligned by those who think putting up a few corflute posters makes them tourism gurus.
The Tourism Reference group was disbanded by Council.
We in the heritage sector do not appreciate being bagged, and having BVIC bagged by other people who haven’t the faintest clue and are using tourism as a political football – We are not referring to you, but to Johnny come latelys and political wannabees who have made a lot of noise and minimal effort. This is an incredibly important subject and vital to the economic growth of Bathurst.
It’s a very important part of our economy and I hope that as the lockdown lifts, those that have been so badly effected experience a much needed rebound.
I will definitely have a talk to Dan when the time is right but as candidates we are asked to confine our conversations to the GM and directors. I’m still very interested though to use this week to hear from people in the tourism sector. Thanks for the background information and I will be revisiting the Destination Management Plan during the week once more.
Was the Tourism Reference Group’s job seen as complete? Just curious why it was disbanded.
Thank you for contributing.
Marg, you need to understand the major threat to Bathurst’s water supply from pumped hydro. The Yetholme project is just the tip of the problem looming – water will be locked away in very large quantities, water that should be available to communities, farmers and the environment. I can email you details if you like