As you all know from my column last week, I was in Alice Springs for the 2018 National Local Roads and Transport Congress.

While we were there we had a drought meeting early Thursday morning, which most rural councils attended and was facilitated by the President of the Australian Local Government Association, David O’Loughlin. There has been so much frustration amongst councils and the farming community with drought declarations and assistance. It is complicated, reactive and certainly not organised. I have written to the Prime Minister this week to request a process be put in place that is well thought out prior to the next drought.

Good news this week with the Federal Government saying they will deliver a surplus budget in 2019. I do hope Local Government gets its one percent Financial Assistance Grant.

It was a pleasure to be a part of the Forbes Amateur Swimming Club Inc celebrations on the weekend, for their 80th anniversary.

Phil Donato was also there to open the newclubhouse and present the awards.

God Bless.

Your Mayor,

Phyllis Miller

I travelled to Alice Springs this week with Deputy Mayor Jenny Webb, Councillor Chris Roylance, General Manager Steve Loane and Director of Engineering John Zannes for the 2018 National Local Roads and Transport Congress. This is a major event for Local Government nationally.

We received our Road to Recovery grant funds, a $1.8 million, through this forum and we continue to keep advocating for these monies to continue.

You may have noticed work happening near the Wiradjuri Dreaming Centre this week. New sculptures are being installed and they will be unveiled next Friday, 30th November, at the opening of the Dreaming Centre expansion. This project has been driven by our local art society and I would like to say a big thank you to everyone involved, especially Keith Mullette and Kim Muffet.

Local Government, Australia wide, is advocating for the Federal Government to reinstate our Financial Assistance grants to 1% of tax revenue. When this grant was introduced in the 1980’s it was 1% and now it sits at 0.55%. This has eroded away over time and is part of the reason for our backlog in asset renewal. If you are speaking to our local member Michael McCormack, ask him to reinstate it to 1% again.

I will be marching in the Forbes White Ribbon Day community march this Friday, something I am honoured to be a part of.

God Bless.

Your Mayor, Phyllis Miller

It has been a busy time in Council this week. Most of you would be aware of the sheep transport truck that rolled at the entrance road to the Central West Livestock Exchange this week. I must congratulate our saleyards manager, Cassi Walmsley, the many Council staff and General Manager, Steve Loane for their contribution to the clean-up of this unfortunate mishap.

Council met this week Thursday and that also made for a busy day. On the agenda there was a grants update, the 2017-2018 Annual Report and the suspension of the Alcohol Free Zone in Templar Street.

For those people that have not paid a visit to our Community Garden in Reymond Street, I would recommend you do so, it truly is amazing. The garden is open to new members joining and they are a really friendly bunch. They also sell plants and herbs.

Propertyology reported this week that property values in Forbes have increased in the last 12 months by 15.9%. We have had the highest gain in NSW, with Orange gaining 11.1%, Bathurst 6%, Parkes -1.3% and Sydney -7.4%. This is great news for our future residential subdivisions.

Have a great week and God Bless.

Your Mayor,

Phyllis Miller

Your prayers worked, we did get rain!

Last week I attended the Country Mayors Conference in Sydney. Some of the key issues we discussed at the conference was what government, at all levels, are doing about the drought situation and regional water in general. Another key issue was the employment and skills shortage in the country. The NSW Government’s 100,000 free apprenticeships program was discussed. This great initiative is on offer over the next four years and includes all courses currently funded under the Smart and Skilled program.

This week I will be attending the Mining Related Councils Meeting in Crookwell. Both Lake Cowal and Northparkes Mines are preparing for an extension, which I am sure you realise will have an effect on our Shire.

Coming up on 29th November is the Fraud Forum. The seminar is brought to you by the Police and it is important for everyone to attend, to find out ways to avoid being caught out by people wanting to gain your private information and use it in an inappropriate way or without your consent.

I had a sneak peak at the new Men’s Shed this week. It is amazing, and I am so excited for them that it is nearing completion. They are however a little short of money to totally complete the job. I do hope they find the money soon as it will definitely be put to good use.

Have a great week and God Bless.

Your Mayor,

Phyllis Mil

Another dry hot week has passed with no sign of rain. Keep the prayers up and let’s hope we get some soon. The Local Government (LG) NSW Conference last week was excellent and we were very pleased to have the Premier Gladys Berejiklian and NSW Local Government Minister Gabrielle Upton in attendance. They were excellent in taking questions… and I might add there were some really curly ones.

Work has commenced on the saleyards extension. This grant funded project will enhance the selling capacity of the cattleyards and of course create more jobs in Forbes.

Forbes is alive with roses at the moment. I drove around on the weekend and the town looks great. Thank goodness they are drought resistant.

The Baby Boomers weekend at the Services Memorial Club was a hoot and with more local support it could grow to a huge event. There were people from all over Australia in attendance. As locals we really need to support the entertainment that comes to Forbes.

Have a great week and God Bless.

Your Mayor,

Phyllis Miller

Last Friday Mayor Phyllis Miller, Deputy Mayor Jenny Webb and I attended the Samuel Johnson Gala Dinner. It was an extremely well supported evening organised by the Forbes Business Chamber.

Samuel’s presentation had the audience both hysterically laughing and in tears in seconds. His greatest career challenge so far, is raising money for a cure for cancer. #loveyoursister

This week most of the councillors, the General Manager, Director of Engineering and I attended the Local Government NSW Conference in Albury.

We listened to inspirational speakers of the highest calibre including The Honorable Gabrielle Upton MP (Local Government), Stephen Jones MP (Federal Shadow Minister for Local Government), Sarah Garnett (The footpath library), Robyn Hobbs (NSW Business Commissioner), The Hon Peter Primrose MLC, Shadow Minister for Local Government, Craig Reucassel (War on Waste) and Steven Bradbury (former Olympian).

It was very interesting to learn about “Smart Cities” which are technology driven and potentially assist in helping the city to function effectively. I found it a professional privilege to witness the motions being debated, amended and voted on in the business sessions. Our Mayor, Phyllis Miller debated a few motions and it was fabulous to watch her perform with expertise in a large forum.

I am thankful for the opportunity to have attended the Local Government conference and will embed the skills I have learnt in my own practice. “In a world where you can be anything, be kind.”

Michele Herbert

I would like to start this week by saying how absolutely amazing the Mega Farm Rescue is for Forbes! Kim Lowe needs a big pat on the back for having the vision and drive to help make this happen. Fourteen farms are having various renovations done by between 180 to 200 volunteers with all sorts of trade and labouring backgrounds.

The Mega Farm Rescue is the baby of Tracy and Charles Alder. They co-ordinate what work is to be done, raise funds and generally put the plan together. Whilst some items are brought in, the majority of materials needed will be purchased locally and will boost the local business trade. On Wednesday night they had dinner in town to help support the local restaurants. If you see them around say “hi”.

Last weekend I attended the Forbes Race Meeting. It was great to be there to re-open the refurbished grandstand with Phil Donato. There was a great field of horses on the day as well as great outfits, good food, nice wine and a wonderful day out. Thank you to the Forbes Jockey Club committee for all the hard work you put in The expansion of the Central West Livestock Exchange is getting closer to fruition with tenders going out for the work. These will need a resolution of Council which will most probably be at the November meeting.

Have a great week and God Bless.

Your Mayor, Phyllis Miller

Back in the Mayoral chair after a busy week away. You will see that work will commence at the Homemakers Centre in the coming week. We have a Western Regional Planning Panel meeting on Thursday and then it will be full steam ahead constructing the various roads and infrastructure needed for the area.

Forbes Mega Farm Rescue by Rural Aid will commence in Forbes this Sunday, 14th October. They will be staying at the showground and working with 14 local farms that have registered for work to be done on their properties.

Local Government NSW had our board meeting in Sydney last Friday. Member Councils across the state have submitted motions that will form a policy platform for the sector over the next 12 months.

We appear to be getting some traction with the National Heavy Vehicle regulator regarding Chain of Responsibility legislation. The General Manager, Steve Loane will be meeting with them on Monday.

I had a catch up with Northparkes Mines this week. Over the next couple of years there will be another expansion to the mine.

This will be great for Parkes and Forbes leading to many opportunities for both towns.

For all those people that have made contact regarding the new admission rules to the Forbes Olympic Pool, we are investigating a solution and will discuss at next week’s meeting. Rest assured common sense will prevail.

On that note, have a great week and God Bless.

Your Mayor

Phyllis Miller

Firstly, I would like to express how thankful I am to remain as your Deputy Mayor and look forward to working alongside Mayor Phyllis Miller.

I was privileged to be invited to the Northparkes White Ribbon Day event. Rosie Batty, an Australian domestic violence campaigner and 2015 Australian of the Year, held an interactive session with our emergency services, health workers and schools. Throughout the discussion “respect” was key. It impressed upon me the significance of old school values, treating your partner, family, co-workers and fellow man in a kind, gentle and forgiving manner.

On Friday, I attended the Forbes High School ‘Farewell’ assembly. The principal’s address by Safija Breistina also highlighted the importance of respect. She acknowledged the warm welcome she received from the Year 12 students after moving here and the positive attitude these students display toward one another and the wider community.

Congratulations to all Year 12 students at Red Bend and Forbes High School. I wish you all happiness and success with the upcoming HSC exams and your future endeavours.

It is pleasing to see that in the midst of this drought wonderful generosity is still on display. From our own Anglican “Farmer’s Feast” to the Western Australia ”Great Southern Hearts” convoy of hay that provided relief to many Forbes farmers this week.

Please enjoy the school holidays and check out our Forbes Shire Council Facebook page for the school holiday programs we have in place and the Gone Fishing Day on 14th October.

Cheers,

Deputy Mayor

Jenny Webb

I am so excited to be back as Mayor for the next two years and I look forward to working closely with the Councillors and the community.

It has been a very busy but amazing week in Forbes, with lots of people visiting our beautiful town for Grazing Down the Lachlan and other events. Forbes was abuzz with activity on Saturday with the Farmer’s Markets on in Victoria Park and the Grazing buses leaving from this area out to the site along the Lachlan River. Over 850 people enjoyed local produce and wine from a menu curated by renowned chef, Mark Olive.

Following Amazing Grazing was the community breakfast in Templar Street which was fantastic with Em Pavey entertaining the crowd.

On Sunday we also welcomed the National Veteran Cars Rally with a reception at our Town Hall. It was a pleasure to see them line the streets on Wednesday to show everyone their cars and do a gaslight parade through town in conjunction with the Forbes Business Chamber, Forbes Veteran Car Gaslight Parade and Carnival.

Also on Monday, Council was joined by Senator Wacka Williams for an informal meeting to discuss various matters including the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator and improvement notice at the Central West Livestock Exchange as well as the $1 million dollars of drought relief funding we are to receive. We are still waiting on the guidelines on how we can spend the money.

Have a great week! God Bless.

Mayor Phyllis Miller