Economic benefits of the Inland Rail project are starting to roll in for the production and transport sectors.

Twenty new jobs were created at Rocla’s Braemar concrete sleeper plant in Mittagong in the Southern Highlands after the company was awarded a $20 million contract to produce 200,000 sleepers for the first stage of the project in NSW.

“The 200,000 concrete sleepers required for the Parkes to Narromine section of Inland Rail is the first of 1.5 million that will be required to build the full 1,700km length of the Inland Rail from Brisbane to Melbourne, opening a pipeline of further opportunities for Australian suppliers,” said Inland Rail Program Delivery Director Simon Thomas.

“The track between Parkes and Narromine will have Whyalla steel rail, Mittagong concrete sleepers and other material contracts from all over Australia.”

Rail company, Pacific National is also benefiting by making the first delivery of sleepers to Peak Hill last month. Over the next six months, Pacific National will run a train once a week from Mittagong to Peak Hill carrying around 9,000 concrete sleepers each trip. “When it comes to hauling bulk freight, rail is the safest, most efficient and environmentally-friendly mode of transport,” said Pacific National President of Freight Andrew Adam.

How To Get Your Dream Honeymoon

Wouldn’t you rather go on a perfect honeymoon than receive a 4-slice toaster or a rubber-backed tartan travel rug? With the Helloworld Travel Bridal Registry, your family and friends can contribute towards the cost of your honeymoon, as their wedding gift to you.

Helloworld Travel will help you choose your dream location and take care of all your travel needs. Your wedding guests then make contributions in your honour towards your honeymoon. We even supply cards to go out with your wedding invitations. It is this easy to turn your honeymoon dream into a reality.

Wedding Away is another great service that Helloworld Travel Forbes offers. The friendly staff at Helloworld Travel Forbes can organise your wedding in a special location and take care of all the travel and accommodation for your entire wedding party and guests. Talk to one of the professional consultants and start planning today.

A Special Day With A Civil Celebrant

Why not use a civil marriage celebrant to make your day special? Narelle Page Civil Celebrant is based in Parkes. Narelle specialises in all weddings, commitment ceremonies, renewal of vows and baby naming ceremonies. Narelle brings a strong sense of individualism to your special day to create a comfortable, interpersonal and memorable occasion for yourself and your guests. Why not choose to start your perfect day with a special ceremony by Narelle Page, Authorised Celebrant. For Bookings or any enquiries, contact Narelle on 0429 177 747 or email narellepagecelebrant@gmail.com

Unique And Contemporary Reception

The Parkes Services Club is proud to offer a unique and contemporary wedding reception venue for couples in the Central West of NSW. The club’s wedding packages are designed to make each wedding a memorable one and can be tailored to suit the bride and groom. A dedicated team is on hand to ensure everything runs to plan, not only on the day but in the lead up to the event. It is incredibly important for the bride and groom to feel confident knowing their wedding reception is in excellent hands. Call the club today to discuss your options.

For The Love Of Flowers

Are you looking for the perfect Florist? Alice and her team at the Pink Orchid in Parkes happily service the entire Central West of NSW. The Pink Orchid team loves creating original and personalised arrangements for every occasion, including weddings!

Vintage Inspired Mobile Bar

Vintage and rustic are definitely on trend for weddings and events and what better addition to your event could there be than Joan, the 1950’s inspired vintage mobile bar! AuRevoir Vintage Van adds an extra special element to your wedding or event. For the ultimate bar service, visit www.aurevoirvintagevan.com.au.

Specialising In All Things Flowers

Organising your wedding flowers should be a wonderful and exciting experience. The flowers chosen show your style and personality.

This could be anything from a classic floral design of round crisp roses, to a natural loose organic design of natives. Or why not make a statement and choose something outside the box with bright colourful flowers.

At Roses are Red Florists, you are bound to find your perfect floral arrangement to make your special day even more unforgettable. There are numerous options to choose from. Visit Roses are Red Florists located at 66 Rankin Street.

Three Tips For The Best Wedding Ever

1. Use a Wedding App or Hashtag: There are many great wedding apps to choose from for your big day. Some interactive apps allow guests to upload wedding photos into one curated place, while others keep your friends and family up on any wedding-related news. Why not create a clever hashtag and ask guests to tag all of their photos using it.

2. Give Out-of-Town Guests a Welcome Basket: Whether you’re hosting a destination wedding or a hometown bash, to show your appreciation, give welcome bags for guests staying at hotels. Include a few snacks, bottles of water, and a list of local resources, restaurants and cafes, plus any nearby attractions. If you’re able to splurge, throw in a bottle of wine, tasty local treats like an artisan cheese or chocolate and a guidebook.

3. Create a Well-Planned Seating Chart: A smart seating chart is vital to ensuring your guests have a good time. Why not name each table with something to do with the bride and groom for fun!

Bogan Gate CWA members were overwhelmed by the response from locals to our Orange Male Voice Choir concert held at the Bogan Gate Hall on Sunday.

Our president, Marion McIntyre warmly welcomed 127 visitors who had travelled from Parkes, Forbes, Trundle, Tullamore, Tottenham, Orange, Condobolin, Bogan Gate and the 32 members of the choir. A special welcome was extended to Barbara Newton, the Deputy Mayor of Parkes Shire and to Shirley Edwards, group president of Oxley Group of CWA.

Everyone thoroughly enjoyed listening to the choir of which the members varied in age. The choir sang a great variety of songs and they even sang a bracket of Beatles songs. The choir celebrated its 90th year in 2016. They have performed all over the world and around Australia and we were very proud to have them sing in Bogan Gate for the third time.

We are very appreciative of the Northparkes Community Investment Program Grant we received from Northparkes Mine, which will help greatly towards our advertising costs.

Our visitors were able to catch up with friends and meet the very friendly choir members and enjoy a delicious afternoon tea that was provided by our very capable CWA members. It was great to see so many happy people who had the best afternoon of entertainment and food at Bogan Gate.

By Gail McKay

With it being the June long weekend, residents are reminded that this can be a trying time for dogs who may have an aversion to fireworks.

Director of Planning and Growth with Forbes Shire Council, Paul Bennett said that though it can be stressful for some pets there are a number of things that you can do as an owner to minimise the impact.

“Number one action to take would be to ensure that your pet is registered and the details are up to date. You can do this at council and the process is quick and easy and will help to identify your dog quickly if he or she escapes,” said Paul.

“Keeping an eye on them is also important but avoid fussing over your pet too much and try to engage them in normal inside activities.”

“Your local vet may also be able to recommend some new treatment options for managing noise phobias.”

For more information, contact council’s Environment Services and Planning department on (02) 6850 2344 or your local veterinarian.

The Nationals’ Member for Riverina and Deputy Prime Minister, Michael McCormack, will open an electorate office in Parkes on Monday, 4th June.

“The northern part of the Riverina electorate, which includes Parkes, Forbes, Peak Hill, Trundle, Tullamore and Cowra, is a vibrant region and deserves an accessible office to provide the best representation possible,” Michael said.

“I am in this part of the electorate frequently and the office will allow me to meet constituents in a private and comfortable environment.

“Having an office with a full-time staff member in the region will also provide a face-to-face service for constituents.”

The Parkes office will be located at 207A Clarinda Street and will have one full-time staff member. The office telephone number will be 6862 4560. “I am really delighted to have created a full-time job in Parkes and to have supported local trades in the outfitting of the building,” Michael said.

An official opening of the office will be held today at 5pm.

“From about 4.30pm I will take a walk through the central business district and would love to catch up with as many people as possible for a quick hello.”

Parkes Mayor, Councillor Ken Keith, welcomed the decision to open the new office. “We are delighted the Federal Member has decided to locate his office in Parkes in the northern part of the electorate to make it easier and more convenient for his constituents to meet with him and to discuss their issues,” the Mayor said.

The Tara Kelly Real Estate agency proudly opened its doors in Forbes on 7th May 2018, with an experienced team of three professional women, all passionate about real estate and dedicated to providing outstanding customer service to the local communities of Forbes and Eugowra.

Together, the three women manage a substantial investment property portfolio as well as conducting residential, commercial and small rural property sales.

Their vision is to grow their business organically by doing great work and developing a great reputation, thereby retaining existing clients and gaining new referral business. Their goal is to be an extremely progressive, modern real estate agency, yet always mindful that people are theirmost valuable asset.

Tara Kelly, Director/Principal, began working in the real estate industry in 1997 starting as Property Manager in Dubbo. In 2007 Tara settled in Forbes and took on an administration role at a local Forbes agency.

Over the last decade Tara’s passion for real estate has given her the drive to climb the ladder of success, from being a nationally awarded real estate sales assistant before becoming a well respected local residential sales agent. The opportunity arose to purchase her own real estate business in 2017 and Tara now has her own agency consisting of a substantial rent roll portfolio and also focusing on property sales.

Tara thoroughly enjoys helping people buy and sell and is willing to provide advice, hints and tips on everything real estate! Including, how to get the best price for your property, property sale presentation tips, pricing and method of sale advice, plus helping buyers negotiate their property purchase and navigate through the process.

Janelle Hopkins is a dedicated Property Manager and has worked with Tara Kelly since December 2017. Janelle brings a wealth of management experience and practical life skills to the Property Management department.

The skills required in her previous role as Medical Practice Manager have come in very handy when liaising with tenants, landlords and tradesmen. Janelle is very thorough and has excellent attention to detail, plus she is well organised, and enjoys the diversity, challenges and satisfaction of doing a great job in property management! Janelle is responsible for all day to day property management activities including sourcing tenants, conducting ingoing and outgoing property inspections, three monthly routine inspections, repairs and maintenance organisation, implementing a zero tolerance arrears policy, on-boarding all new landlords, and constantly communicating with all property management clients to ensure that everyone is on the same page when it comes to the management of each property.

Rebecca “Bec” Eppelstun is a local Eugowra girl and has worked in Real Estate/ Property Management in Forbes for approximately 10 years. Bec and Tara have been working together for the last four years.

During this time Bec has developed great relationships with many of the long term landlords, tenants and local trades. She has done an amazing job building the rent portfolio and has implemented many systems and procedures to keep everything organised and on track.

You can rely on Bec to get any job done quickly, efficiently and with attention to detail. Bec now helps out with the admin side of Property Management, by taking care of tradesman invoices, assisting with processing new rental applications, booking routine inspections, scheduling rental Open Homes, ensuring rental property advertising is up to date and many, many more jobs that get thrown her way!

Councillor John Medcalf looks forward to a bright new future working collaboratively with the State in the interests of our communities. “Central NSW Joint Organisation is the first to meet in the State. It was such a good opportunity to meet here in Parliament House today so we have pulled out all the stops as a demonstration of how we can get things done!” said John.

“We welcome the opportunity to work with all levels of government and other key stakeholders like Regional Development Australia to get better results for our communities.”

“In Central NSW we have a long and proud history of collaboration and see this opportunity as the next step.”

Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional NSW John Barilaro and Local Government Minister Gabrielle Upton addressed member councils at Parliament House last week and congratulated Central NSW for being the first Joint Organisation in the State to hold its inaugural board meeting.

“Central NSW councils are passionate advocates for their local communities and the new Joint Organisation will give them an even greater voice to win funding and support to deliver important regional initiatives,” John said.

“Joint Organisations are the foundation of the Government taking a new approach to doing business in regional NSW.”

Gabrielle said the Government is pleased to support the establishment of the Central NSW Joint Organisation with $300,000 in seed funding and ongoing advice and guidance from the office of Local Government.

“Central NSW Joint Organisation is already moving ahead in leaps and bounds to become fully operational and deliver the full benefits these new regional bodies will bring to the local community,” said Gabrielle.

 

Small businesses looking for support to grow their presence are encouraged to come along to an information evening hosted by Forbes Shire Council on Tuesday, 5th June. Here CenWest Innovate will be introduced to the business community.

CenWest Innovate mainly aims to develop small business in the Central West NSW area, support business innovation and jobs growth in the region.

Forbes Shire Council, Mayor Graeme Miller encourages all Forbes business owners and managers to attend. “CenWest Innovate offer a variety of support programs for small to medium sized enterprises,” said Graeme.

“This is an exciting opportunity for our business community to hear directly the variety of support programs on offer. The session is a must for all our business owners,” he said.

CenWest Innovate will get you working on your business, not just in it. The information evening will be held at the Forbes Town Hall on Tuesday, 5th June from 5.30pm to 7pm. It is a free event but please register your attendance at www.eventbrite.com.au.

The Lachlan Valley Caravan Club has been on the move as usual with a bush camp at Kiacatoo Hall which also included hosting a Biggest Morning Tea event last Friday.

Twenty three caravans and 42 members attended the week-long bush camp at Kiacatoo. Approximately 30 day visitors from Forbes and the surrounding district attended the Biggest Morning Tea.

We may not be the biggest caravan club, however members and guests sure dug deep to make it one of the most successful Biggest Morning Tea events ever, raising over $1,600 for cancer research.

The day commenced with a welcoming by club president John Apps, followed by the Master of Ceremonies explaining the day’s activities.

There were quizzes, jokes, skits and raffles taking place during the day. We were, also serenaded by our club musicians, The Lachlan Valley Very Little Big Band, with vocals by local Bill Dolle.

Thank you to everyone that attended and contributed to this worthwhile cause.

By Pat Barnes

Treat your guests to an unforgettable occasion by visiting Parkes Wedding & Function Hire for all your event requirements. Parkes Wedding & Function Hire is a newly opened business in Parkes, also servicing Forbes and surrounding areas.

Offering a large range of unique products to suit any theme or style, find select items or have your event set up or arranged for you hassle free. From chair covers and chair sashes, table linen, drapes and backdrops to red carpets, wishing wells, bunting and fairy lights. Parkes Wedding & Function Hire has anything and everything you need!

Wanting to light up the sky? Parkes Wedding & Function Hire can arrange fireworks for your special occasion leaving guests wondering how you managed it all. For those with a sweet tooth, candy bars are also available.

Pop in to the Parkes Wedding & Function display at the Forbes Bridal Expo on Sunday and meet owner Michelle Melhuish to discuss all your needs for that next special occasion or contact her on 0427 623 585.