Around 400 members of the Braidwood Community staged a protest march from the Recreation Ground to the Braidwood Memorial Swimming Pool on Saturday to rally against the Palerang Council Draft Management Plan and Budget proposal not to open the swimming pools.
Carrying placards, chanting and singing, the crowd showed how strong community opposition is to this move.
Rally organiser Danny King addressed the crowd. "We are here today to pass on a very important message to Palerang Council and the NSW State Government," he said. "Following Palerang Council's announcement that it was proposed to close the swimming pools next summer, most people were left in absolute disbelief. It has been especially distressing to the children in our community. The initial reactions were one of total dismay and anger and had us asking why must our kids pay?"
"Many would simply blame the council for this whole situation and could accuse them of being poor financial managers. Some may say there may have been questionable decisions made in the past and that there was not enough foresight of previous councils to take adequate measures to plan for the future so far as upgrading our infrastructure."
"The NSW State Government must take some responsibility for the situation we are now in. The amalgamation process imposed upon the former Tallaganda and Yarrowlumla Shires in 2004 has brought with it an unwelcome burden. It has brought together two seemingly happy councils and now created a monster. With it has come an ever-increasing debt, destabilization of our former councils and their employees, an element of community mistrust and bitterness and accusations of mismanagement. "
"The show of strength by this community since the pool closures issue began has been nothing short of overwhelming. A petition making specific requests of the NSW State Government, which has been in circulation in the Braidwood area since only Monday of this week, now has in excess of 900 signatures and growing."
Other speakers at the demonstration included Mayor Jim Mclachlan, Cr Les Hart, Dawn Jonas representing those who had helped raise the funds for the pool's construction, Cory Pont from BCS representing local youth, Local Member Steve Whan, Cr Raynolds, and National Candidate David Madew.
Mr Whan had not expected to be able to attend due to prior commitments but turned up just as his prepared speech was being read out.
"There is a need for more funding for councils however councils also have a responsibility to manage their assets and while the former Tallaganda shire was telling people it was balancing its books it was doing this by not putting aside funds for depreciation and failing to make provision for adequate maintenance of roads and other infrastructure," he said. (See Whan's statement page 2)
Whan announced that he had arranged for the Mayor and General Manager "to meet senior staff and with Minister's senior adviser and I am working on further ways to help Palerang with some of its capital costs."
Cr Raynolds replied to Mr Whan's speech by saying that Whan had been a "very good local member" and has "got us money when he can", but he was disappointed that he had criticised the former Tallaganda Council.
Les Hart noted that the "marriage of Tallaganda and Yarrowlumla had a lot of baggage."
Councillors and staff still have another public meeting to front in Wamboin tonight and then the Draft Management Plan and Budget will come before Council at a special meeting on Thursday 29th June. Last Wednesday's Public Meeting in Bungendore attracted around 200 people, but public angst was directed more at rates than the pool.
However Cr Terry Bransdon has brought a motion for tomorrow night's regular Council meeting in Bungendore that offers one way to open the pools.
"Given the disquiet in the community about the safety relating to kids learning to swim and the recreational needs of Palerang children, MOVED that this Council reduce the depreciation proposed in the 2006-07 budget by the amount required to allow the opening and operation of the three shire swimming pools next summer."
Whether this motion gets up or not, Council' Draft Management Plan and Budget are predicated on the Special Variation in rates being accepted by the Minister for Local Government. Council has applied for a rate rise of 6.3% on top of the permitted rate cap increase of 3.6 %, for each of five years from 2006/07.
Council's survey on the application for a special variation in rate are due in on 27 June.
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