The 2020 Children’s Week will be celebrated a little differently this year. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the annual Teddy Bears Picnic will be going virtual!

Forbes Shire Council has partnered with the Forbes Business Chamber for an amazing Teddy Bear Hunt, taking place in the Forbes CBD from Saturday, 24 October until Friday, 1 November. Find the bears hidden in shop windows throughout the CBD, then upload your photos to Instagram with the @forbesyouthactionteam and @forbesbc tag for your chance to win a $50 Why Leave Town card. Alternatively, post your photo to the Virtual Teddy Bears Picnic event page on Facebook for the chance to win. Council is also supporting Forbes preschools and day-care centres to carry out their in-centre celebrations and is looking forward to sharing all the fun and photos from these events. Parents and carers are encouraged to follow @ForbesYouthActionTeam on Instagram and Facebook and to like the Virtual Teddy Bears Picnic event to stay in the loop.

The Youth Action Team will also be sharing ways parents and carers can celebrate Children’s Week at home throughout the week, including recipes, DIYs, and fun activities.

Forbes Shire Council has been awarded the winner of Division A: Behaviour Change in Waste for their Waste Wednesday social media campaign.

“Through this campaign we engage with the community and spread awareness about the ongoing resource recovery facilities available in the Forbes Shire, as well as innovations and additions to the existing resource recovery programs,” says Forbes Shire Council Mayor Phyllis Miller OAM.

“It is our commitment to continue this campaign on a weekly basis for the foreseeable future, providing high quality and valuable information to the community about improving resource recovery and waste issues.”

Council also received a Highly Commended in Division A: Sustainable Infrastructure for the solar lights around Lake Forbes walkway.

Forbes Shire Council installed five kilometres of solar lighting along the ten kilometres of walking track surrounding Lake Forbes.

“This is actually believed to be the longest installation of solar lighting in the world,” Phyllis continued, “The work so far has been undertaken by farmers and farm labourers affected by the 2018/19 drought in a special employment program created by Council to help support the local farming community during the drought.”

“The installation of the solar lights next to the walking tracks surrounding the Lake has proven to be highly popular with residents and visitors alike. We continued to use these lights in lower Templar Street as well due to their efficiency and the ambient light they project.”

Forbes Shire Council has also been nominated as one of three Councils within NSW by NSW EPA to be involved in a pilot education campaign in relation to Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO) as a means to reduce the amount of organic waste going into landfill.

Another bin audit will take place in November to identify if waste behaviours have in fact changed due to the education program.

Forbes Shire Council is partnering with the Forbes Business Chamber to promote and engage with the Forbes business community this October for NSW Small Business Month.

The festival will have several events during the month-long celebration and includes a breakfast with guest speaker, Kristy Withers, founder and owner of Incy Interiors on Thursday, 29 October.

Kristy is a remarkable business woman and has built a business of her own out of a need for something she couldn’t find in the market.

This year’s Tradie Networking Night will also launch the new Forbes Mitre 10 franchise on Thursday, 22 October. Previously Acheson’s Home Hardware, the business has moved to a new franchise model, Mitre 10. This year’s theme is Future Proof Your Business, and it will be held on site at 1 Oxford Street. Aaron and Jacinda Acheson will introduce the new platform Tradies Online. This platform will be launched in November and will enable tradesmen to have access to many different services, facilities, and information.

Join this event by booking at Mitre 10 on 6851 1111. The event will run from 4pm to 6pm and attendance is free. A maximum of 25 people can attend this event so bookings are essential.

Regional Australia will have a vital role in building a road to our national economic recovery, Riverina MP and Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack says.

This message was reinforced with Michael announcing that Forbes Shire Council will receive an extra $1,075,441 under an extension of the well-received Local Roads and Community Infrastructure (LRCI) Program as part of the 2020 Budget, bringing the total funding to more than $2.29 million.

The Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development said the nation’s economic recovery would be led on a local level through procurement, jobs and supporting small businesses.

“The further investment into the Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program, to the tune of an additional $1 billion nationwide, will stimulate local economies and create more local jobs,” Michael said.

The now $1.5 billion program will continue to support local jobs and businesses and will boost local economies struggling under the effects of COVID-19 and will enable councils to deliver priority projects with a focus on local road and community infrastructure upgrades and maintenance.

Michael explained that, “Local councils understand the immediate needs in their communities which is why this money is so important to support local jobs and local businesses in Forbes and the wider region. This is part of a $110 billion 10-year infrastructure investment which will drive our economic recovery for years to come.”

Supporting councils to improve local roads and community infrastructure will have lasting economic and social benefits for regional communities.

“Projects which could be undertaken under this program could include constructing or improvement of bridges, street lighting and heavy vehicle facilities,” Michael said.

The Templar Street revitalisation is well underway with new drainage installed on the southern side of the street and the northern side work nearing completion.

“The streetscape is really coming together and with teams working weekends to ensure the disturbance is lessened through the week, and everyone is very happy,” says Forbes Shire Council Mayor Phyllis Miller OAM. “The street is due to be completed by December and this gives businesses the security to know the Christmas shopping period will not be disrupted.”

Twenty-four parking spaces will remain, and the 24 new planter boxes have now been completed by Cowan’s Engineering. The boxes will be planted with short and tall seasonal plants and trees. By arranging the boxes alternatively, the sight lines into shops will not be interrupted.

“When the road resurfacing occurs, the entire street will be closed to traffic for two days,” Phyllis explained, “This will be carried out during a weekend to ensure traffic disturbance is less likely to cause too much disruption. The current pavers on the roadway will be crushed and re-used as road base for other projects, ensuring no waste will be incurred due to works in Templar Street.”

Weather permitting the Templar Street revitalisation will be completed by December 2020.