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Services & Organisation Committee Meeting - 10 August 2021 Transcript

Tuesday 10 August 2021 · 1 hour 53 minutes of recording · 1,996 lines · 16 voices, 4 named

This is a machine transcript of council's recording, produced by automatic speech recognition and not checked line by line against the video. Councillor and place names are corrected where a human has approved the correction; everything else is what the model heard. Quote the recording, not this page — every timestamp below opens council's own video at that second. Recording © Noosa Shire Council; the transcript is ours, made from it so the meeting can be searched and read.

Speakers: the machine separated 16 voices and names 4 of them — only where the recording itself establishes who it is (they introduced themselves, were called on by name, or their voice matches meetings where they were). The others stay “Speaker N”. Hover a name to see why it is there.

Start of recording

00:00:00

00:00:00 Councillor Jurisevic: Good afternoon everybody and welcome to the Services and Organisations Committee for August. My respects to the traditional owners of the land upon which we stand, the Kabi Kabi owners of the land upon which we stand. Acknowledge their elders past, present and emerged. Acknowledge their elders past, present and emerged. I have a confirmation of my previous meeting. Thank you Councillor Wilkie. I have a confirmation of my previous meeting. Thank you Councillor Wilkie. Speaker 6: No presentation or deputation today Mr CEO. No none today. Councillor Jurisevic: No presentation or deputation. No straight on to the reports and considerations by the committee. Item 1 News and Orshaugh Ferry update repo or police extension. News and Orshaugh Ferry update repo or police extension. Speaker 6: There has been a request for this one today. Yeah there was a question. Yes there was a question. The FP conversation here on stage with any queries. Any questions?

00:01:00 Speaker 3: I see there's an option one and option two. Is there a third option? Buy out, that is, we buy out and offer that operation. Buy the ferries, take over the entire operation. Speaker 4: Through the Chair, Tom, look, on page 5 of the report, what I'm proposing is that there's a review that needs to occur here. Now that's one of the business models that we may well look at, and you'll see under those dot points under section 5. We're talking about a full outsourced model, a hybrid model. Now, there may well be other models that we're not aware of, but I'll roughly group them under those three. Now, what I'm proposing to do then is once we've got that information, I will bring a

00:02:00 further report back to Council to consider all of that. I think it's probably too early, ahead of that analysis to actually, it could well be an option. All that we're used to at the moment in a business sense is the full outsourced model. There are other models, but we have to see how that stacks up financially and operationally and what the impact is before I could answer that question confidently. So I'd like to undertake the analysis first and then talk back. What sort of flow frame do you think that analysis would take? Speaker 5: What sort of flow frame do you think that analysis would take? Speaker 4: What sort of flow frame do you think that analysis would take? I think it would be an option in the early new year. So I would expect in in the early new year- Councillor Jurisevic: Given that we haven't been able to digitize the process in the last three years, is there an option to wait 12 months rather than two years? Is there an option to wait 12 months rather than two years?

00:03:00 Speed it up. Speed up the process? Speed it up. Speed up the process. There's a lot to do in- Speaker 4: Well, there's a lot to do in 2022 Joe. The review is in late 2021. We've got to develop tender docs. I've got to do that report back that I just mentioned to Tom. We've got to go out to tender and appoint a new... Well, it's possible. That would be part of a negotiation or a conversation, Tom, that would happen down the track. It certainly is possible, but speaking in advance of the actual models, before we've got the information on the models, would be a bit precarious for me to do that. So it certainly could be an option. I'm not in a position to take that up at the moment. I'm not in a position to take that up in advance of that information.

00:04:00 Councillor Lorentson: Have we, and could we also explore the option of looking at just idle ferries that are sitting around, I'm thinking up at Fraser Island, and throw that in as an option where we could use, hire out a ferry or barge operator as an interim sort of policy, as an interim response while we're putting tender documents together? Speaker 4: I don't know what the point, to be honest. I'm not sure what that would get at, with how that would advance our situation. Councillor Lorentson: I think I'm probably looking at sort of contingency plans. In the report, it's mentioned that the current ferry operator, there's a risk that he may not even want to continue or take us up on the option to renew. Yep. So as a contingency plan, I make reference...

00:05:00 And if you want to explain that, that we've actually got some protection under clause 22, I think, of the lease, but looking at options like hiring a barge operator, can that be also part of the conversation? Speaker 4: Possibly, but in simple terms, and this is the situation with any lease, if the operator or the business owner doesn't want to continue, that's a risk in any lease. In this particular lease, we do have the ability to be able to have the operator stay there and continue the operation until we've undertaken our tender and procurement process and the ferries have been commissioned. So in other words, until we've got a new operator up and going. So we have... That lease does factor in risk of an operator wanting to leave. And it counterbalances that by saying that... Yeah.

00:06:00 There's a risk of service continuity breaking, so the operator stays in place until we're in a position to appoint a new business owner, a business operator. Speaker 3: Yes, Tom. I just have a real problem with the concept of getting a new business operator, signing a lease with them, and then turning around and saying, oh, we're going to limit people going to the North Shore. And the two of them are going to have to leave. And the ferry operator is going to say, well, what are you talking about? That's my business. You owe me. Are we standing ourselves up for liability if we stop people going out to the North Shore, stop the traffic to the North Shore, and the ferry operator all of a sudden is empty? And he's going to turn to us and say, hey. Or we're just never going to get an operator to sign a lease. Speaker 4: Well, Tom, there is... I have mentioned this in part four.

00:07:00 In part four of this report, in the second paragraph, regarding Council's ability to be able to use the ferry service to control visitors. Now, and that talks about via a booking platform, or permit regime, or whatever else, or constraining vehicles onto the ferry. Now, that can't happen in this current contract. That can't happen. Now, any future proposals of Council's looking to end the ferry service to control visitors, to prevent the ferry from entering into that space, that needs to be very clear at the outset. So, we would, as a matter of course, get the appropriate legal advice and make appropriate provision in a future contract to try and take into account those scenarios. And that's why I'm talking about as well. I think the next stage gate for this really is the AEC review. And I bring the report back, and we're able then to think more about these scenarios because Because we do have some time, we have some leading time here to be able to establish a new arrangement and what we want to see in that new lease about how we manage vehicle access and visitors and whatever else if you want to extend that far.

00:08:00 Councillor Jurisevic: I'd certainly want to see some legal advice on that as to whether council has the capacity to limit traffic on what is essentially a public road. Speaker 4: Well, the advice that I had received was that you can't do that without having an appropriate alternative road and that appropriate alternative road is up through Rainbow Beach and that does not service the residents appropriately. So we do, there are very distinct limitations on what we can and can't do around reducing custom and by using the road as a way of doing that is fraught with danger. Speaker 6: So, probably just add to that, I guess to go back to Councillor Thom's question, council's probably going to do a bit more work about what it wants to achieve in terms of that and that's one of the arguments that if we want to have that determined before we want to have the tender next time, because you've got to get the terms and conditions about which you're going to have to attend a certain, which is probably one of the arguments about why the option that will remain in two years, if I was Councillor Thom, we'd be able to get that right before we go out for tender.

00:09:00 Councillor Jurisevic: Well, it would certainly make a big difference to this. Speaker 4: Well, I mean, I think in following on Brett's point, we've got to be very clear about what we want philosophically and about what the future is over there and there's more discussion that we have to have as a council before we start getting into contracts and tenders and whatever else. Because I do agree with Thom, the worst scenario that you could get into there would be offering a service at a certain capacity and the operator has an expectation. That they're going to be doing business at a certain level and then that is pulled away from them and there are legal ramifications of doing that as well to go to your point, so I think it needs careful consideration.

00:10:00 Councillor Lorentson: The Noosa North Shore Association's a key stakeholder. Yes. Were they consulted in this report? Speaker 4: Yes, well, in the lead up, I've had at least three meetings with the president of the association and they've also sent me in a submission on their thoughts around the future of the service, so I have committed to the future consultation at least with that association to feed into a new tender arrangement, contractual arrangement or whatever. So that dialogue is there. It's open at the moment and that will continue. Councillor Jurisevic: Clearly that service is an essential service for anyone who's living on the North Shore. Speaker 4: Will their case die cold? Yes, we will. Councillor Jurisevic: Do we have any further questions, councillors? Speaker 3: There is a road, an inland road. There's two ways to get to Tewantin.

00:11:00 There's the inland road, which is the fire road, and then there's the beach road. So there are two roads and part of our climate change adaptation plan, we probably should be looking at that inside road as well. So that coffee rock gets exposed. You're not getting to Tewantin by the way of the beach. The coffee rock is right there. Councillor Jurisevic: I'm not sure the relevance of that to the lease of the ferry, Tom. Speaker 3: Once you're over there, that's... We were saying that they have a legal obligation to make sure that there's a road to Tewantin, and there is a road to Tewantin on the inland through the brush. So that's relevant, I think. Speaker 10: Okay. I have a question. Go on, Karen. Through the Chair to Clint, have you had any conversation or dialogue with emergency services with regards to the service and accessing the island in emergencies, like ambulance and service like that?

00:12:00 Speaker 4: In terms of the contract or efficiencies in the service? Speaker 10: Yes, in terms of the feedback around how that service is provided currently and we're moving into the future. Right. Thank you. Thank you. Speaker 4: Karen, I haven't specifically, but I'm more than happy to go through the disaster management committee or whatever else and seek feedback. I'm not seeking to limit feedback and if different agencies have got relevant feedback that can help inform, I'm open to it. So, yeah. Speaker 10: Thank you. Councillor Jurisevic: I'm unaware through the LDMG of anyone having specific issues there. I believe that there are contact numbers and that, and through access after hours and the like. Speaker 4: Yeah, sure. But, I mean, I'm happy to check, I guess. Councillor Jurisevic: Thank you. Nothing further? We'll move it. Councillor Wilkie, you said you'd move it. Councillor Stewart, seconded. All in favour? Thank you. They'll be referred to the General Committee Monday's meeting, technically. Item two, 2021-22, fees and charge amendments.

00:13:00 Trent. Councillor Wilkie: Question, Mr. Chair. Go right away. Hello. Hello, Trent. Judging by this report, the changes to these fees and charges seem to be mostly omissions, deletions, omissions, deletions or typos. Duplication. Duplication. Are there any nasty surprises in there that's going to shock anyone? I couldn't detect any, but please, I want to ask you that question. Speaker 12: No. Most of them are just typographical tidy ups and a bit of rounding in CPI on statutory fees. The big one, which was omitted from the published report, which was obviously discussed through the budget deliberation processes, was on page 11 in the development applications, is the fee multiplier for non-compliant applications. Obviously, as I said, we talked about that through the process, but it wasn't in the published fees.

00:14:00 So that was a system process issue for us. We've adopted the new fees and charges system this year. And when it was published, it just didn't pick up all the latest information, so. Councillor Jurisevic: And the reason behind that multiplier is just the amount of additional time required. Additional time required. Correct. It says something with time required. Speaker 6: Thank you. Councillor Jurisevic: Anything further, councillor? No, we're over. Councillor Wilkie. Seconded by Councillor Stewart. All in favour? Thanks, Trent. Thank you. Thank you, sir. Item 3, Noosat Holiday Park Update Report. Speaker 1: Good afternoon. Councillor Wilkie: Hello, Robin. I have a question, Mr. Chair, by the way. Just curious, Robin, the figures for the North Shore occupancy rate, it's a very strong figure for 2021 compared to previous years. What do you put that down to? The refurbishment? Or what other factors do you? What's going on there? Why is there such strong figures on the North Shore? Speaker 1: I would correlate that directly to the operating model that the new managers have in place.

15 minutes in

00:15:00

00:15:00 So from 1 October last year we've had 1-8 in place managing the site and they have an operating model with a centralised call centre so they're just able to capture bookings at a much higher rate whereas previously the operating model with limited numbers of people on the ground, you're away from phones, away from the computers, attending to cleaning and operational items so you just catch less. Councillor Wilkie: What do you attribute the slightly lower occupancy rates at the most popular camping ground, the Noosa River, compared to pre-COVID levels? Speaker 1: The annual travellers from New South Wales and Victoria being limited by COVID border closures. Of course, thank you. So they've picked up a lot of that occupancy within the Queensland market and the Brisbane market. And worked actively to fill those gaps. But the final shortfall is just due to those annuals not being able to get into Queensland.

00:16:00 Speaker 6: And the other thing, of course, in the Meso-North Shore, it was shut for part of 19-20 as well. So that's part of the reason. Mayor Stewart: Robin, in our other accommodation providers, we're hearing that it was 90% capacity prior to New South Wales lockdown, 60% once Queensland, before Queensland got locked down, and then 10%. I know it's too early. I know these figures are June 30. Do you have anything in the last sort of, I guess, six or eight weeks that you could tell us of how it's tracking and whether or not the campground or the holiday parks are sort of tracking along those similar lines, that you have seen a huge, I guess, decrease in vacancies because of the Queensland lockdown for the last eight days? I'm not sure if that data is available to you at the moment. Speaker 1: So are you looking to see where the current financial year is starting to line up with the last financial year? Mayor Stewart: Yeah, or just to see what the occupancy has been or how it's been impacted? Speaker 1: Sure. So what we're seeing is that a lot of the annual travellers and the older generations

00:17:00 that pack up for the winter months, they took the opportunity to get out of New South Wales and Victoria. So there are already quite a lot of them here. For example, last week with the lockdown, we shut down to all bookings that are due to arrive in that period. So that's a direct revenue hit and a direct occupancy hit. But then it picks up again because with New South Wales and Victoria being shut off, we have a captive market, really, and they're looking for something to do. So whilst we might be losing some of the southerners, we've got a captive market here that is looking to holiday. And with the right marketing and the right messaging out and maintaining a high level of guest experience and all those things, we're getting those travellers coming through. So we're optimistic for a strong year, but everything's subject to COVID. Yeah. All right. Thank you. Speaker 6: Thank you. So that's the experience with some of the Western Councils. I've talked to a couple of CEOs out there the other day. They've got records breaking out there in terms of caravan and accommodation places. Yeah. Because people are just going on, at the City of Melbourne, they got out before and

00:18:00 they're just not going back. Yeah. Some have just been in the Northern Territory, caravan parks, they're not taking bookings. And if you're there after 10 past 10 in the morning, you're not getting in. Wow. They're full by 10 past 10. Wow. Okay. Councillor Wilkie: One more question. Like the North Shore, not that part, but unlike Noosa River, Boreen Point has seen a surge greater than pre-COVID levels. Correct. What's happening in Boreen Point? What are they doing right? Speaker 1: Similar again, 1-8 has both Boreen and North Shore. So they stepped into Boreen Point in 2019, April 2019, and sort of started to get some traction. So probably the three main factors are just the upswing from COVID border closures and having that captive market. They fine-tuned their call centre and looked for ways to maximise getting bookings and then filling the site.

00:19:00 We've had the refurbishment done so having a brand new toilet block and the guest experience that that provides has definitely provided a nutswing also. Councillor Wilkie: Do you think there's anything the Noosa River management could do better to capitalize on you know the interest state travelers to like they seem to be Speaker 1: going backwards? It's really just that southern market and what we've lost also is the internationals market. So there was a section of the campground that we would get the vans through the wicked vans and they'd stop in for one or two nights and we had a really strong market presence with that. We don't have those currently and that's probably that percentage in occupancy that you're dropping now because everything else that was the southerners has been filled with Queenslanders or people that have already come here. So what we're looking at doing is reconfiguring some of that. We're looking at getting some of those sites potentially and you know if there's four small ones

00:20:00 that took a van we might cut them into three. But we really wanted to see how the year panned out. The COVID environment was very fluid so it was a bit of a wait and see. But they're still performing. I mean that occupancy level is exceptional within Councillor Lorentson: the camping and caravan industry. Robin, with the North Shore campground wastewater treatment system, can you give us an update as to what's happening? Has the discharge to the National Park, all those issues, been Speaker 1: rectified? And was the system warped? So we're in an active situation there, managing things on a contractual and a compliance front. So from a system performance issue we've undertaken a number of measures both by Council and by the contractor to rectify some of the system performance defects issues that we had. So those have largely or majority been completed now. Contractually we're looking

00:21:00 into, you know, whether there's any opportunity for recourse there and contracted an independent consultant to look into that for us. But current status is that the risk of discharge is being managed and largely prevented through precautionary pump outs and access to data. And then we're just playing out the other factors. Councillor Jurisevic: I believe we're also tracking the data. So the additional costs of the pump out from that, that's been attributed through a budget review at some stage for the North Shore campground? Speaker 1: That was absorbed within the 2021 operational budget. Councillor Jurisevic: Not through a budget review? Through, from the beginning of the project? Speaker 1: We did a budget review at VI3, so a lot of the additional costs was taken up then. Councillor Jurisevic: Well, I was trying to see the difference in the current budget versus the original budget review. And then the actual, significantly beyond that, I'm assuming that's attributed to the pump

00:22:00 outs, the ongoing pump outs? Speaker 1: Yes, the budget change at VI3 in cost is partially attributed to the pump outs. It's also due to the other variable costs, such as the commission basis for the manager's fees. Obviously the revenue is much higher than expected, so the portion- Councillor Jurisevic: That would be some across all three campgrounds? Correct. Or all three holiday parks? Yes. But there's a significant difference in the North Shore campground as opposed to the others, and I'm assuming that's attributed to the cost of the pump outs. Speaker 1: Again, it's partially, but also we had a brand new set of infrastructure, and the O&M costs, or the operating and maintenance costs of those, we were going into them, we didn't know what they would be. So the first year of brand new infrastructure is always a little bit of a wait and see of what it costs to operate and maintain. But yes, a portion of it is the pump outs. Councillor Jurisevic: Without being brand new, there'd be no maintenance costs, no operating or no maintenance costs,

00:23:00 because all of it would be covered under an element of warranty with regard to anything that's been constructed? Speaker 1: Repairs that are required are covered under warranty, but things like chemicals or monthly maintenance activities that you need to undertake to maintain your warranty and maintain- Councillor Jurisevic: That's to do with the new system? Speaker 1: They're always required, yes, on a groundwater or wastewater treatment system. Okay. Councillor Jurisevic: Any further questions? We have a mover. Councillor Wilkie. Secondly, Councillor Orreston. All in favour? Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you, Robin. Thank you, Robin. Speaker 6: Item four. Michael's online. Excuse me? Yep. Oh, there he is. Councillor Jurisevic: Hello, Michael. Can you hear us? Sure can. Item four. Corporate services. A department update for 2020-21. Questions for my council? Councillor Lorentson: Michael, I've got a question. Shop 8, Sunrise Shopping Centre.

00:24:00 Can you give us an update with whether the shop's been tenanted or not? And when can we expect the shop open? Speaker 8: Yeah. I can give a quick update on that. The report that went to council a few months ago regarding the construction of Shop 8, Sunrise Shopping Centre, we've got a report that went to council that said that the potential tenanting of Shop 8, quite tangled with that, negotiation has effectively ended. So they withdrew their offer. However, council's actively still pursuing a couple of other options for Shop 8 at the moment Speaker 8: through Colliers who are our agent. And we're hoping of having a report to the council, September council round, with a potential solution there. Which is encouraging. Councillor Lorentson: Great. Thank you. Councillor Wilkie: Anyone else? Frank? Michael, what is Pelican Pete tenure renewal?

00:25:00 Great question. Frank, I think it's the Pelican, the giant Pelican site on the river. It's that space of land along the river that we obviously need to, you know, provide for Councillor Jurisevic: the, for the Pelican. Where the Pelican actually sits, Michael? Yes. Councillor Wilkie: And who maintains that? Who maintains the Pelican? Just out of interest. Speaker 6: I would, unless Clint can answer that, I would suggest not us. Yeah. Yeah, Clint's just made it Michael, so. Speaker 8: Yeah, Frank, it would be the lessee who would maintain the Pelican. And I think it's had a bit of a paint job recently too. Yeah. Councillor Wilkie: So it's the boat hire place perhaps? I think so. Yeah. Speaker 8: Yes, I think it is, yeah. Councillor Wilkie: Thank you. And Michael, can you give us an update on the Kin Kin Recreation Centre?

00:26:00 There's a lot of interest out in that community about the future of that building and rectification works are on the way. Can you, what can you tell us about the timeframe there and what has to be done there? Speaker 8: Yes, so I can. So look, $100,000 was allocated through the SEQ Community Stimulus Package to that project. We've engaged Attila through our infrastructure services project delivery area. Attila's helping coordinate the scope of works there. So we had a meeting last week with Attila, myself, property, and also Ian, Ian Williams, Speaker 8: who's our conduit through the community there. So look, at the moment, we're, there'll be a lot of work to be done there. We'll be arranging further inspections. There's a, there's some issues at the moment with some items that are still within the building, and it's working with the community to recover what we can. I mean, but maintain, obviously, being mindful of the health risks out there for the building

00:27:00 and the VAT contamination, the VAT food being technical. And however, the scope of works is currently also being determined through that process and then, you know, moving forward. And as soon as we can, we'll define that scope. And then, you know, look at getting some works on the ground to the building to get it back to a good state for occupancy. Thank you. Councillor Jurisevic: Any other questions? No. Nothing further? Can I have a mover? No. Councillor Lorentson? A seconder? Councillor Stewart? All in favour? Thank you. Thank you, Michael. Thanks, Michael. We'll move on to item five, Capital Programme Delivery Status. Alex? Alex and Craig. Thanks, Craig. I'm seeing some pretty pictures of the hinterland playground coming through. Mayor Stewart: Craig, I think the question we always have is, how are we going with service delivery and staff? And it's such a bold word of the day.

00:28:00 Such a bold infrastructure. Speaker 5: How are we looking? So, we're talking about 21, 22 here. Mayor Stewart: Yep. Speaker 5: Yeah. Yeah. So, your question is, how are we looking for 21, 22? Mayor Stewart: Yep. How's your department looking right now? Yeah. Speaker 5: Heading forward? Yep. So, we're actively recruiting a graduate engineer. We've got interviews. We had them organised this week, but due to COVID, we've had to push them out next week. We're actively recruiting a designer and we've got interviews next week. So, that's two resources that are coming. Great. We have two, three external project managers on board at the moment on major projects, which are Rupert Street, Beckmans Road and Garth Proud and Noosa Parade. So, that's three additional resources. What we're working on at the moment is we're putting together a presentation to take to ET. That will ultimately come to Council. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And that will have data backing up what resources we do, we need.

00:29:00 Mm-hmm. And I've already presented that to ET and I have support for that. Okay. So, we're in a process of bringing up a report about what resources we need, because obviously, at the moment, we're currently resourced to deliver 24 million, which this report presents. Yep. And that's what we've generally been delivering. Yep. So, to achieve our target, we obviously need to resource up. And we're in that process of resourcing, actively interviewing. Yep. Plus, we're bringing a presentation up. Councillor Lorentson: Yep. Speaker 5: We have a panel of external project managers to complement those projects. Once we've done that assessment, we'll go, okay, we need two more external project managers, two more internal project managers, and that's what we'll bring. Councillor Lorentson: Yep. Thank you. Can I ask a question? Sure. So, we've just come out of a lockdown. And this is possibly the future.

30 minutes in

00:30:00

00:30:00 How do recurrent shutdowns impact on delivery? And has that been factored into the program? Speaker 5: So, we've been fortunate with this lockdown that we've just experienced. Construction is still allowed to continue. And our contracts are underway and supply chains were secure. So, it hasn't impacted current programs. It'll be different in the future. It'll be what the future holds. And nobody knows what the future holds at this stage. But we can manage that risk and try and mitigate it through contracts. So, that's good. We'll try and mitigate the risk. The operators or the contractors will have their own procedures and processes to work through COVID. But that's outside of the control of the state government and federal government health requirements. Speaker 6: There's two other probably potential future impacts. One relates to future supply chain. Definitely. And the second is pricing.

00:31:00 Because every council in Australia is getting swamped with infrastructure funding. And we're all going out to tenders at the same time. And prices are going through the roof. Because there are limited contractors who can do the council work. Still run for our own backs. So, yeah. So, it's a consequence that the program that governments, the state and federal, wanted to do was to stimulate the economy and stimulate construction. They've done it. And it's gone ballistic. So, it's an issue in terms of availability and pricing, which all councils are facing at the moment. Okay. Speaker 5: And I think just feeding back into Claire's question, what I'm finding now is the recruitment process. I'm booking interviews. And as we're booking interviews, people are getting jobs. So, there's a lot of movement in that area as well. And the consultants are getting busy. So, it's that. Councillor Jurisevic: The indication of the volume of work out there. That's right. Yeah. Speaker 5: And I mean, with the Olympics, I see a busy period. Councillor Jurisevic: Yes. It'll be a busy 11 years. It's been 11 years ago. Great. Just with regard to anybody looking at the figures from out there, there's a number

00:32:00 of columns here with the percentage of annual budget exceeding 100%. But yet, remaining commitments there. Yeah. That's an indication that more work has been achieved in this financial year than was expected to be undertaken, because work were able to be brought forward. Speaker 5: Correct. And there was a decision made at BR3 not to adjust the budget too much, because that was going to have a flow-on effect at BR1. So, we sort of knew that we were going to overspend on certain projects, but we didn't adjust those budgets at BR. Councillor Jurisevic: But it's not an overspend because of... Correct. It's an overspend because work were clearly able to be brought forward. Correct. Yeah. That's all I wanted to clarify. Correct. Councillor Wilkie: We touched on something there before about supply chain issues, availability of materials, and availability of contractors. And we don't want to underestimate the impact that's having, or give anyone the impression

00:33:00 that it's just something that can... That is a minor thing. Can you tell us the length of time this is adding to projects? For completion? Or just give us some examples of... Sure. About the time it's added to waiting for the... Sure. Supply of materials, for example. Speaker 5: Sure. Sure. So... And costs. Yeah. With one particular project, we went out to the market for supply of a very normal sort of product, reinforced concrete pipes. And what happened was we were told initially 26 weeks, and then that blew out to 40 weeks. Yeah. We went back and repriced, and went to other suppliers, and we managed to receive a certain amount of pipes within a certain timeframe, within a budget. And then we went to another supplier, and we were able to supply... Secure supply of another supplier pipe. So what we've had to do is actually do two tender processes, and it depends what pipes

00:34:00 they had available. As to how... What price they are. Does that make sense? Like, if you have a lot of products sitting on your shelf, you can freely make those pipes available at a cheaper price. Yeah. But if you need to manufacture those pipes, and you've already got a very large backlog of pipes... Yeah. In that manufacturing process. So it is difficult. You may be able to get that product quickly and cheaply, or you might be able to get that product quickly. And so then you need to shop around it. It's just a process. Councillor Wilkie: But you said 26 weeks for the initial acquirers, and it blew out to 40 weeks. Yes. What's the waiting period in a normal market? Speaker 5: Well, we've had a few plants close. So Humes were in Nambour previously, and I suppose they're reducing costs by scaling down and having bigger plants. But maybe... I don't know. Yeah.

00:35:00 I'm not sure. It'd probably be... Speaker 2: 10 tops, wouldn't it? Speaker 5: Yeah. And I mean... 10? What's happened also... 10 to 12 weeks. Yeah. What's happened also is the larger projects, TMR projects, have bought up all the pipes. Yeah. Of course. And then they've got them stored on their sites just sitting there. Yeah. So that's been an impact as well. Councillor Jurisevic: So I guess where possible, we're trying to do the same thing. Acquire the equipment required and have it sitting there and... Yeah. Get it while you can. If we can get hold of it. Speaker 5: And yeah. That's a good point. It's not only products. It's now actually being machinery. So a lot of the chips are coming from overseas to go into the vehicles, and that's the next flow-on effect. We're actually seeing contractors being able to get the machinery to carry out the construction. Councillor Lorentson: Yeah. So given that we're all having a discussion about increased costs, reduced availability of materials, et cetera, what happens in a situation where a builder's quoted and hasn't factored into all these delays and increased costs, and he's running at a loss?

00:36:00 Do we afford any flexibility or... Yeah. Allowance? So... Speaker 5: Sorry. Councillor Lorentson: Yeah. Sorry. Speaker 5: Normally, what you'd do is you'd secure your supply chain, you'd secure your pricing, and you'd fix that as a builder. You'd go to the plumber and you'd engage them and have a fixed firm quote. So that shouldn't impact current projects, because they already have those supply chains secured. Yeah. But what we're finding is, with the tender process, we've had some procurement issues recently where we've allowed tenders to expire, the 90-day period, and then we've gone back to the contractors to reprice. We've found within that 90 days, steel and concrete have increased. So that's probably where we're seeing it, with the new contracts, and then we're not engaging those contractors within that 90-day period, and we reprice. We're seeing that cost increase. Okay. Councillor Jurisevic: So any delay creates further delay in first-cost blow-ups?

00:37:00 Yeah. Speaker 5: It's just a changing market. Speaker 6: The other thing that we've been talking about with the exec team with CRADE is that while we're in a heated, what I call a heated market, it's okay to spend someone else's money. There's a lot of grant money from the state. But we've got to sit back and think about whether or not we've got rate-paid projects. We'd be better off not pushing those back a little while to get both the markets become unheated and back to normal pricing, so we can get better value for money. So we're just having a little bit of that meeting as well. Councillor Jurisevic: Well, that's the first question as to whether they will come back to pre-COVID pricing, or this becomes the new norm. Councillor Wilkie: The other question that comes from that is, how do you prioritise your projects? Speaker 2: So basically, we do run a priority program based on ... So each working group sort of runs through their projects that are bought and sold. And we do sit down and we prioritise based on ... I think it's a five-part criteria of the Noosa values. So they're all assessed against that.

00:38:00 Speaker 5: And I think what we're also doing currently is we're looking at the projects that have a grant funding. The projects have a grant deadline. And we're just trying to see which projects ... And obviously timing. Like I say, critical projects like Noosa Parade, Doonella, Beckmans Road, they all have critical time frames locked. So this is a part of the work that we're doing now with Larry and Tina, our planning officer. And then seeing what projects can actually shift. And then it's a matter of going back and talking to the grants people and actively procuring those projects, but perhaps not delivering them quite within the timeframe. Councillor Wilkie: And then without any correspondence with those authorities that they're understanding what's going on. 100%. Yes. Speaker 6: Yes. Very much so. Yeah. Yeah. Some of those projects are locked in. You can't have a new program in for example. So you've got to move all those times around those. Yeah. Speaker 5: And some of the projects, the grants people are saying, no, these time frames are firm. They might give you a few weeks, but obviously they've been sitting in there for a while.

00:39:00 Yeah. Speaker 10: Yeah. Mayor Stewart: And we're currently talking to the federal government if you can potentially move some money from one to the other or shuffle and seeing if they're open to that. So that's helpful. Speaker 6: And both levels of government have been pretty good. Councillor Jurisevic: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. What about the other infrastructure supplies like community water and and those, and those, I mean, obviously this is impacting them and their capacity to be a part of the projects that they're involved in. Are we having any delays with them? Speaker 5: Energex generally have a huge amount of funding. So we're not seeing a flow on effect there yet and we went out for a water main on the Beckmans Road project and that came in okay. Councillor Jurisevic: But that came through a contractor, not through Unity Water? Speaker 5: Yeah, correct, correct. No, we're not seeing delays from the service authorities at this stage.

00:40:00 Good, good. Good to hear. Councillor Wilkie: Could I compliment you on some of the projects that you have completed to a very high standard? The Your Peregian Beach Beach Boardwalk, the Sunrise Beach, Ariella Bridge renewal and what you're able to do with funds left over from that for the beautification and the creation of Tingera Park, which is serving as like an entry statement to that estate now is beautiful work and much appreciated. Speaker 2: Thank you. We'll pass that on to the project staff as well. Councillor Jurisevic: Yeah, absolutely. Fred's up there with the challenges they've been working under to deliver these projects and they've delivered some quality projects. Councillor Wilkie: Your commitment to quality is really noted and appreciated. Councillor Jurisevic: And all our suppliers and contractors as well. Speaker 6: Do you have a favourite project of the ones that we've been working on? What's your favourite? Speaker 5: I think for me, and I'll let Alex speak, but for me I think it's actually underway, it's the Hinterland Playground.

00:41:00 I think that one, that's an exciting project and that's been in the pipeline for probably four years. Councillor Jurisevic: I would have thought so. This parade would have been one that you've been chopping at the teeth for years to try and get those safety upgrades. Speaker 5: We haven't turned dirt yet on that one, no. Mayor Stewart: Sorry, I was going to say, Craig, every time we go past the Hinterland Playground, my daughter's excited about just the dirt. So she's excited about what's already being done. So can't wait to see that. We'll just get our hot tips, we'll be right. Councillor Wilkie: I just also have to ask, I'm on the boardwalk for the National Park quite frequently and always appreciating it and seeing people appreciating it and people comment on it all the time. Has that, in a sense, set a new benchmark in terms of the quality that you aspire to, the creativity that you aspire to in your work? Speaker 5: Yeah, we were fortunate with that project where we had support internally and externally.

00:42:00 And budget-wise, we had support for the budget. And this is probably something we probably need to talk about into the future about with the cost increases. You know, there's only limited options. Do you reduce scope? Or do you increase budget? And this is probably something that, you know, Larry, myself and Alex need to bring back to the group. Do you reduce quality? Do you reduce scope? Or do you increase budget? So yeah, that's something we're going to grapple with, I think, over the next three years. Speaker 6: And in the short term, the temptation always is to look at the budget, and that's a natural thing. But now when people look at that boardwalk, no one can remember what it cost. All they look at is what quality is. Councillor Jurisevic: Yeah, I can't wait till we rip up the first half and bring it all up to the newsstand. I am laughing. Yeah, you're laughing inside.

00:43:00 Councillor Wilkie: Yeah, you're laughing inside. Councillor Jurisevic: No further questions? Councillor Stewart moving it. Councillor Wilkie seconded. All in favour? Thank you. Thank you, guys. Thank you all. Thank you. Great work. Yeah, thanks, guys. Speaker 6: I'm six page 35, councillors. Come on down. Councillor Jurisevic: Fire up the grill. We've got a new one. A new director put on it. A few tears and a bit of emotion the other night there. Speaker 7: Oh, yeah, absolutely. It was good. Good to see. Got the monkey up there back. That's for sure. Councillor, any questions? Councillor Wilkie: I just have a question about the shoreline erosion management plan, Larry. What are we waiting for to happen? I understand the council has put money in the budget this year for work to be done.

00:44:00 Mm-hmm. What are you all awaiting for to commence the work and what work will take place? When it does commence? Speaker 7: You're throwing your curly ones already, but I'm not really pulling you across, I've got to say. That's okay. Councillor Wilkie: Sorry, I can find a chance. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Speaker 7: I mean, I know we've got a small amount there for planning, so it's really just doing that during that initial scope. But I think it's part of the bigger picture. From what I can see, it's part of the bigger picture in terms of where we move the sand to and from. Yes, yes. In the river, in the mouth. Councillor Wilkie: Getting the necessary approvals to make that work. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Maybe you can refresh my memory, Mr. CEO. Have we seen drawings of what's intended to be done and to rectify? Speaker 6: I'd have to go back and check. I don't recall seeing any. There was a report, I can't recall if it was last year or the year before, that outlined the scope of what we're looking at and the risk profile and so on.

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00:45:00

00:45:00 Yeah. It's probably been a while. Councillor Wilkie: And if I remember the budget process, the councillors were keen, there was a suggestion that about $1.3 million be moved out to the next financial year. The councillors were keen to keep it this financial year to have the work done this financial year, if possible. Speaker 6: If Larry can take that on board, then we'll have a look and we'll get ready to, just before we talk about any work, let's get it back. Councillor Jurisevic: Well, not only for councillors, but I'm sure the public are curious to see what's next then. Mayor Stewart: Larry, this is your first, obviously this update is the first one. What do you see coming in with fresh eyes as, I guess, your biggest challenge for the infrastructure department? Speaker 7: Um. Look, I think it's just the, the, the quantum is to begin with. And then making sure that we've got the right resources to do it is that work that, that Craig was just talking about then is the work that we're going through right now is this whole pipeline exercise in identifying all the projects when they can be done.

00:46:00 Put a, put a two year period or three year period, whatever, whatever the, when the, when they're due to be done. Put them on that, on that continuum and then work out where they're best to be delivered and how. So we've, when you see it on the Gantt chart and that's the stuff that we're bringing back to you. So you can see where, where all the projects are and where the real pinch points or real heavy, heavy loads are and how we deliver that. And then working out how we deliver it, what, what resources we have got available, whether they're the right resources within our own group. And then what's available out externally. So whether we can recruit, recruit them or, or, you know, there are, there are groups out there, some, some, some young engineers who have set up their own consulting business that, you know, perfect for what we just got to identify the right projects and make sure that they, they work within our budgets.

00:47:00 And, and, you know, but even then, even though if you, if you externally say here's a, here's a project, go and do it, you've still got to manage it from internal. So there's still, there's still quite a bit of that. The other piece that I see at the moment, we've been going through a whole lot of realignment type work with it, with the, my whole division is where the, where the, the big projects sit, who owns them, what, you know, what are the new ones, even, even, and how we, how we manage them. You know, the, the, the transport plan, for example, the strategy and the delivery of that is just, it's just got so many facets to it. Where does it sit? It's not one of those ones you just pick up and here you go, here, go, go and deliver this. It's got, it's got a whole lot more in it. So I see that as being is where does that sit and how do we manage all of that? I'm guessing some projects have some wait time while works are undertaken before the next stage occurs. Councillor Jurisevic: Absolutely. A bit of, a bit of juggling there is, you know, what, what you can do in the meantime. Yeah. While that, that's going to swing into things. Yeah, absolutely. Speaker 7: And, you know, and so it's, it's, it's trying to identify those.

00:48:00 So we're almost creating a new, new group, you know, with major projects. So we're looking at those as being, you know, because they're ones that take a lot of planning. They're not ones that are just deliverable. You know, when, when, for example, the, the, as an example is the, the Junction Association comes to us and says, we want, you know, we want to, we want to do a plan. We want 500 grand. We'll raise it. We want, and then we want to do a whole, you know, streetscape revamp. Well, where does that sit? Yeah. Within our, you know, we've got 50 million bucks we're trying to deliver here. Where does that sit? So that's a piece that, that I'm now looking at and saying, well, that's, that's, that's a separate piece that we just, we've got to keep massaging and keep working and moving along. But, but we've really got to focus on this. Yeah. Delivery piece as well. So. Councillor Jurisevic: How can we deliver it within, within the scope of everything else that we've got on Speaker 7: here? Yeah. Yeah. And then they, and they all fit together. You know, the, the transport plan fits with the, with the, with the junction upgrades. Absolutely. Because of the, because of the, you know, the transit centre and everything else. So how do we, how do we make sure all those things fit together?

00:49:00 And, and again, that's part of the, the planning that we're doing is identifying those and then how do we do it? Because you asked, again, you asked a question of those guys before is how do we prioritise which projects we do? So there's a, there's a level of prioritising we can do from a asset management, so we can know that one's, that one's five years old, so it's due to be renewed because it's breaking down. That's a simple type thing. But then there's the, we've got all these big projects, we've got all this stuff. Who makes the decision on which one gets top of the list? Yeah. Councillor Jurisevic: But we have a lot of small projects in there as well. You don't want to, you don't want to necessarily disappoint anybody. Absolutely. Speaker 7: So we've got to prioritise all that. But then, so that's the stuff we've got to bring back to you as a, as a council. In my opinion, we've got to, we've got to, so here it is, you know, I'm not going to sit there and make a decision because myself, it's got to be a, it's got to be a group decision and it's got to be an elected member's decision in my opinion. So we'll be bringing all that back to you on a regular basis and just feeling we've already started doing it. You saw it in the CWE and things where we started to feed a lot more information.

00:50:00 So you've got more to base, base your, your, your decisions on because you understand what we've got. You understand the, the, the quantum that we're dealing with and all the other issues with supply chains and everything else that's, that's, that, that gives us grief or gives us challenges. Councillor Jurisevic: Well, of course, we'll be guided by the challenges that you face, the capacity for suppliers, contractors to deliver. Speaker 7: Absolutely. So all of those things. So, but if you're aware of them, then when we come back to you and say, well, good idea, but we can't do it right now, you understand that it's not just us going, we, you know, we don't want to do it. It's because of these reasons. So that's the, that's, they're all the things that are really on the table right now, but you know, I'm still really, really comfortable, confident that we've got great, great teams. We have great people with them. Everyone's committed to delivering and you know, we'll get, we'll get on with it. Councillor Jurisevic: The next two or three years is exciting as far as I can see. The five year, five year and 10 year capital work program is, is, you know, starting to look at delivering things that have been in the community for ages.

00:51:00 So it's fantastic to see. But yeah, we've got to, we've got to be able to realistically deliver at the end of the day. Yep. Speaker 7: And there's lots more, sorry, there's just lots more coming, you know, the Olympics we talked about. That's where we position ourselves in that. What's the, what's the spin offs? Councillor Lorentson: What do we want to get from it? Speaker 7: Well, I think you just got to get into the big regions and questions and you know, cause it's going to be, it's not just facilities, it's roads. You know, if you look at Sydney, you look at Melbourne when they have big events, it's the road infrastructure and all that trains and transport and everything else that comes with it. That's where the government's are happy to just spend money. So we've got those plans in place. We can, we can capitalise. Councillor Jurisevic: All that capacity for public transport to be delivered to the region so that people can get to and from the venues in the life of 2032. Speaker 7: Exactly. So we need to think about all those things. We've got all this stuff, big projects, we've got a whole lot of delivery,

00:52:00 and then we've got other things that are just coming our way. Great position to be in. Anything further, Councillor? Councillor Wilkie: Yeah, look, as councillors, we're council groaning over the weight of its ambitions and to deliver a big capital works program. In this quarterly report, there's often reference to placemaking. The question to the CEO, where are we with placemaking? Speaker 6: In a nutshell, we made a call a while ago that the organisation's not ready to be able to deliver. We're going to have to try to deliver something that's limited at the bar. So we need to be organisation ready. So we're doing some work in terms of our internal governance, training and stuff like that. We're coming back to council. And I don't have my diary in front of me, but I think there's a workshop in the next couple of weeks just to update the council on where we're at with that. Councillor Wilkie: Yeah. Thank you. Speaker 6: If we want to get it right before we start. Absolutely. We don't get off on the wrong foot. It's not going to be easy. Yeah. Councillor Jurisevic: There's one I was pleased to read in the civil office,

00:53:00 something I think we've been undertaking for a while now, the testing of blended recycled asphalt and clay to determine the best outcome. So some of the dust suppression work that our civil ops team are doing out there with gravel roads and recycled asphalt, I think that's exciting. So I'm interested to hear more about how they're progressing with that. And I was really pleased to hear this, that we're conducting testing of a blend of recycled asphalt and clay to determine the best outcome. So we're actually working hard in that sphere to try and create a better product. And I guess, a more viable outcome, something that doesn't erode as readily in rain is dust suppressive and all the rest of it for our rural community. Councillor Wilkie: One final question, Larry, you mentioned under risks and opportunities. Opportunities, the main opportunities the department is implementing include better upfront planning for project planning, design and delivery, the collection of asset data for improved asset management and improved planning for operational activity.

00:54:00 So how has this come about? Is it a shift in focus or? Speaker 7: It will be. Yeah, well, it is and it will be. So I think, you know, again, that's just part of everyone's been, or Craig's sitting there saying I've been banging on about this for years and planning and getting ahead of the game because it's difficult when you've got a big program to deliver, you know, you just get your head down and go for it. What we're trying to do now is actually free it up. And we're going to free Craig up to do more planning and take away some of the delivery, the immediate sort of direct report delivery so that we can get on with that. It still sits under him, but it frees his time up to do more planning. I think that I personally have been looking at the whole organization and Brett and I have been talking about this, is looking at how do we help the rest of the organization when there's community facilities, for example, come along and they want to build something, you know, Tewantin is the classic, the sports complex, is how do we help to do that initial

00:55:00 planning piece? So we don't sort of have them going off doing work that they're not necessarily the most expert at. We provide that support so we get the plan. So when we go and get the money, we've got the right amount of money to deliver it. And then we deliver it on behalf of the asset owner, which in this case would be the community. Councillor Jurisevic: The whole council, right? Infrastructure services. Absolutely. Building services, building and plumbing and certifiers. And of course, our individual teams, communities, organizations trying to get these facilities. Absolutely. Speaker 7: And how do we fund that? The way we're funded at the moment, whether we're structured budget-wise, is that somebody's got to have a budget to be able to do that planning, whereas if we can have a budget that we know that we can utilize for that planning, then we're happily able to help the rest of the organization. So they can come to us and go, well, I want to do this. And we can say, well, we can draw on this budget here to help you with that.

00:56:00 And it just means everything, instead of going, oh, look, sorry, I can't afford it or haven't got it. Here's a budget that we can actually do it. So we'll be coming back to you with some ideas on how we do that as well. Hopefully not more money, it's just redirecting money. Welcome to the channel. Councillor Jurisevic: Yeah, absolutely. And Craig, yeah, eight years we've been talking about getting ahead. We're getting there. Speaker 5: We're getting there. Councillor Jurisevic: I'm looking forward to it. Mayor Stewart: I've got one more question. Sure. Are you happy about the boomers getting bronze? Wasn't that fantastic? Speaker 7: Absolutely. It was a lot of love going amongst my old teammates. I bet. After that game, I can tell you. It was so good. Texts and emails and things like that. It's awesome. I've never seen Andrew Gay so emotional. Mayor Stewart: It was terrific. Speaker 7: Did you watch Luke Longley's show last night? Have you seen that? The Australian story? He was like this and just went proud.

00:57:00 That was his one word. Awesome. It was just fantastic. It was just terrific. It was a terrific thing because we've all been there, almost got there, never quite did. And then these guys did. So we're all sort of claiming victory. That's wonderful. Well, we look forward to you delivering gold with us. Mayor Stewart: Yeah. Councillor Jurisevic: Great for basketball. Councillor Wilkie: Good fun today. Councillor Jurisevic: Enough of that. Cheers. Thanks, Larry. Kerry. Item seven. Community Services Department update for fourth quarter 2020-21. And welcome our Director of Community Services, Kerry Pontini. Speaker 11: Afternoon. Hello, Kerry. Councillor Jurisevic: Another very busy department within the organisation, Kerry. You're delivering pages and pages and pages of projects and outcomes here. Speaker 6: It's a highlight to some extent. Kerry has done a great job. She's been doing her normal job. But on top of this, all the council's COVID response as well.

00:58:00 So the workload. Yeah. And what she's been doing over the last, well, I've got to say, weeks and months. It's been enormous on top of this. So COVID sort of gets one line in this, but it's probably been . Mayor Stewart: Yeah. You've done a tremendous job, Kerry, on the COVID response. Thank you. Speaker 11: Questions? Councillor Lorentson: Page 46, Kerry. Develop scope for non-motorised sports feasibility study. Can you explain that? Speaker 11: Yes. So this is the project that came out of the Noosa Foreshore Master Plan, looking at sports such as outriggers. So in the new initiatives, it came through as non-powered water sports. Now, understanding is that in the industry, they prefer it to be called non-motorised, because they're powered water sports. They're powered by feet and wind, et cetera. So you will have seen that in the new initiatives as non-powered, but it's the non-motorised. And it's to look at what are their needs?

00:59:00 How could those needs be best met? And then how does that fit in with other needs? So it's a piece of work that we've been wanting to do for several years now. Yeah. It is. And I was really happy to see that it got funding through Council's budget process, and staff will proceed with good, thorough consultation, and that work will be undertaken with some external support. Speaker 3: Mm-hmm. Councillor Jurisevic: I'm pleased to see there's some progress with regard to, or at least continued progress, detailed design of the Noosa District Sports Complex internal road, and work's starting to happen with that as well. So the fact that Cooroy is now getting to the point of the master plan being finalised and coming to fruition. Speaker 11: Yes. Obviously, Cooroy is a little bit more challenging because we've got the boundary issues there and tenure issues.

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01:00:00

01:00:00 And before we can make significant process there, those issues will need to be resolved. But there's funding there for both Noosa District and Cooroy this year, and we're particularly wanting to... Mm-hmm. ...take our time with the feasibility study for Noosa District, because there's opportunity there to meet a whole range of needs in one building. Mm-hmm. Councillor Lorentson: Mm. Talking about sport master plans, the Noosa Aquatic Centre, how's their master plan going? I know it's a conversation I've been having for 12 months. Mm-hmm. Is there any priority placed on getting that bit of work completed? Yeah. Speaker 11: Obviously, it's an important piece of work to review the business plan for the Aquatic Centre. And it's a key piece of work there. Unfortunately for the Aquatic Centre, every time we have a shutdown, that's a huge piece

01:01:00 of work for them to do and to then reopen again. And it detracts from our ability to do those larger pieces of strategic work. Mm-hmm. So, it is certainly there. It's a key piece of work for the 21, 22 year. In terms of escalating it, I am not wanting to put any more pressure on my teams than they really have on their plates. So, we're dealing with some big issues there, in terms of just building facilities, opening, closing, opening with... So, for example, this week, you know, you've got a lot of work to do. You know, you're opening a facility, and yet you don't have the ground rules as to what can actually operate and not operate. And through... You know, you've got that facility open and people in there, and you're still trying to work out what the rules are.

01:02:00 So, yes, that piece of work is important, but their day-to-day operations are what is taking priority at the moment. Yeah. Councillor Lorentson: In regards... Oh, sorry. I've got a question. In regards to opportunities, future opportunities, Larry touched on it with infrastructure and Olympic funding and tourism infrastructure funding. Should we be looking at... And I know that we are under-resourced, as you just said, but just as something, as a council, we should be thinking about is maybe putting together an Olympic working group, where... I've spoken from the Noosa Yacht Club to skateboarding, to surfing, surf life-saving, all these different things. I think it's important to have these people that want to understand what benefits can be derived specifically for their sport, but also as a council. So I'd love a conversation or a forum or something to invite these sporting groups to understand

01:03:00 what are the benefits that may be heading our way. Speaker 11: Yes. It's obviously of great interest, not just to the sport and recreation sector, but the broader community about what opportunity there is there, and the team, particularly within community. I think the sport and recreation sector are very keen to start a process around that to understand, and obviously in Anthony Dowd's area, through economic development, to see what opportunities are there. So we will start that process and look at... We'd absolutely take the learnings, for example, out of the Commonwealth Games, and the things that work well out of that, the things that didn't work so well, and then to see, well, what opportunities are there for the community. So, yeah. We can expect to see a working group or something this week. Councillor Jurisevic: Hopefully we can expect a tour to be later in town again then. Speaker 11: Yeah. We've been there every time since. Speaker 6: There's a whole lot of stuff around that, you know. It's early days, yeah, but do you want to try and get an event?

01:04:00 If so, that takes you down a different path. Do you want to leverage off the side in terms of economic development? And we know, for example... It's all about what you want to get out of it, then you work out how do you maximise that, whether it's sport, health, publicity, tourism, economic development, training facilities, all of those sort of things. Get it out and then work out a bit of a strategy over the next few years. Speaker 11: We certainly know, for example, that we've got a very good reputation and track record in operating as a training area. Yeah. Training, developing, the lead up. And we know what additional benefits flow from that. You know, initially it was support around infrastructure, et cetera. But there's the community flow on from that has been huge in terms of a sense of positivity, a connection to people from other countries, and people becoming engaged in sports that they otherwise might not. Yeah. So there's that.

01:05:00 There's lots of opportunity. And we intend to be part of that. Councillor Jurisevic: I was reading this morning that netball, not only from the Australian side, but from the world organisation, had a very, very strong case to put forward for netball to be at least an exhibition sport. If not, I support by going down there. Glad we don't have the Tewantin netball courts then. We'll have to spend a career in it. Mayor Stewart: Kerry, I've been talking to Cheryl about it and it's noted here on page 47. Just can you talk a little bit about the Working for Disability Sector and Vulnerable Older Residents to Meet Their Needs for Emergency Planning? I believe there's something in September going ahead about that? Speaker 11: Yes, so this is part of our work out the other side of the bushfires where we identified that we had two particularly vulnerable groups. Aged people and people with a disability that might be living in care and the plans that were in place there,

01:06:00 we found that although some of them might have been good in theory and practice, they weren't implemented or weren't able to be implemented. But of a higher concern for us are people living independently. And so that might be older people who are under, for example, a My Aged Care Plan where they're receiving in-home support or people living with a disability who are receiving in-home support. Now for those people, a lot of those were left very vulnerable and it was very concerning to us to see after the fact that many of these people remained in their home because there wasn't that link to say, hang on, we've got this. We've got this person living in their home, they don't have transport, they've got significant mobility issues and they can't leave. So the approach is this person-centred emergency plan that works with individuals to establish a plan that works for them and to have an organisation.

01:07:00 So for example, if you are in our situation where we have Noosa Community Support and we have people who receive in-home care, that we're a primary organisation that has connection and responsibility for that person, a duty of care, that we would, that person in their home needs a plan, but we also need to take responsibility to make sure that that plan is enacted. So that's what that work is because that, you know, when we look at the risk level, that for us was a high risk level. So that's part of the work that Cheryl's area is doing and bringing on. And we've got some additional funding to ensure that that work can occur, that it can be of a high quality and more importantly to me, that it can be done quickly. Councillor Lorentson: Great, thank you. With the Noosa Community Support, two questions.

01:08:00 Have we mandated compulsory vaccination for staff? And in regards to the compliance recommendations from the Royal Commission, what were those reforms? And in regards to the compliance recommendations from the Royal Commission, what were those reforms? Speaker 11: So two separate things there. So the first thing in terms of vaccinations, the Commonwealth has mandated vaccinations for some of the aged care sector. And those vaccinations have to occur by the date in September. At this point, services that are delivering in-home aged care have not been mandated but are highly recommended. At this point, services that are delivering in-home aged care have not been mandated but are highly recommended. It would not surprise me that that sector will, that component of the sector will also be mandated because it is a high risk. It would not surprise me that that sector will, that component of the sector will also be mandated because it is a high risk. In terms of our approach, we're taking a risk management approach. We're working with our staff. We're providing time for them to get vaccinated.

01:09:00 One of the huge challenges here is a lot of the staff that work in that space are casual. So we're supporting that say our priority is to make time for you to be able to get vaccinated so that then you're providing that in home care at a higher quality level in terms of our confidence. We expect though that there will be direction around that and that we would comply with that direction. I don't have a time frame about that but we've certainly seen that you know we're watching what's happened in other countries and there's that gradual progression. So at the moment we have strong encouragement, we have risk management plans in place for our clients, we have captured the data for who is vaccinated and not vaccinated and understanding why people might not be vaccinated so understanding that some of it's

01:10:00 about access and then working to do that. If there was a situation where we thought there was a high risk issue then we would make alternate rostering arrangements so as our clients were Speaker 6: not put at unnecessary risk. Just again Kerry's talking about it's about relation to our community here the respite centre in terms of our staff for the balance of the staff we are not mandating it been mandated by other levels of government but we are certainly encouraging it at every single opportunity we can. Yes. And promoting it very strongly amongst our staff and encouraging them to get vaccinated Councillor Jurisevic: it's not been made. Do we have any figures on the level of staff vaccinated? Speaker 6: Not at this point, no. I imagine it'll be a fairly similar profile to the sometimes case which is our 42 percent first dose in 2020. Speaker 11: What I can certainly tell you is that we've got a lot of staff that want to get vaccinated but that access is still an issue. That is improving considerably though so for AstraZeneca

01:11:00 availability you could get an appointment next week easily. Councillor Jurisevic: There's still that I mean we've had our first back with AstraZeneca but they gave us a three month 12-week time there hasn't been a lot of promotion as to whether or not that can actually be brought forward or not or whether we retain that for a week. Speaker 11: So what so the advice is that and it depends on what situation you are in the advice is to get the maximum efficacy of the AstraZeneca dose that there is a 12-week period between first and second. However when the situation is as such as it is in Sydney then what they say is bring that forward because you want two jabs to get efficacy for that crisis you're facing and then what they would do, is they would bring forward the booster jab for those people.

01:12:00 Councillor Jurisevic: And the 12 weeks hasn't changed for the... Speaker 11: Here in Queensland we were on the cusp of they were on the cusp of saying hang on maybe we need to look at this but we've done such an amazingly brilliant job of containing the western Brisbane cluster that that advice remains the same. So the 12 weeks for AstraZeneca and the three weeks for Pfizer is what gives you longevity of impact. Councillor Jurisevic: Okay Amelia anything further? Councillor Lorentson: Just Royal Commission increased compliance. Speaker 11: So we our Noosa community support is regularly audited and there are different rules and so residential aged care has a whole different lot of controls around it as opposed to respite or in-home care but even so... So, we take all of that information and look at how those recommendations and how we can apply it.

01:13:00 Our audits and our assessments are always of a very high standard. The only recommendations that we ever receive are minor administrative process ones. So, and probably the only one that we're really sitting on is that there's a, the software system that we use is a bit outdated now. We could upgrade that system. Otherwise, our Noosa community support, both in terms of respite care, in-home care, and our ancillary programs is of a very, very high standard. Frank, do you think? Councillor Wilkie: Yes, thank you. On page 46. You mentioned the current priorities involve a lot of work with housing providers, homelessness networks, groups that are dealing with homelessness.

01:14:00 I also know that your staff deal with people who are experiencing homelessness on a regular basis and may have a supportive relationship on a personal level with them. So, I just want to compliment you on that. Great work that your department is doing there. Speaker 11: I'll just say we're very, so for... Those of us that are in, live in this world, today's a really exciting day, because it's census day. So, it's very, you know, it's a big year for us and one of the issues that we really struggle with is painting a true picture of people who are homeless or sleeping rough and so the team are really actively working to capture that data and last census was very challenging. But they're taking a new approach and they were reporting to me today, we're capturing data, so. Meaning going to people experiencing homelessness, helping them fill out the form, fill out the form, giving them access to the forms.

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01:15:00

01:15:00 Yes, so that we're able to demonstrate a more, I mean, it's never going to be 100% accurate, but we want to be kind of truer picture because when we're, unfortunately, Noosa, it does have that reputation of being highly affluent, we have all that we need and there's, you know, simply makes it much, much harder for us to get resources to provide support on the ground if we're able to paint a true picture of people who are homeless or sleeping rough and so that we're able to demonstrate a more, I mean, it's never going to be 100% accurate, but we're able to demonstrate a truer picture, particularly through something like the census, which is the benchmark for this type of demographic work that will help us. Councillor Jurisevic: Of course, in the past, it's always been a knock on the door and you've, you know, someone's there and that, so you're homeless, you're not going to get that knock on the door or in the modern era, the last two census, including this one, is that you've got access to a computer at your fingertips and being able to input your data, but even with a disabled sister

01:16:00 in war, she's got to find her, without support, she's not going to be able to input her data and I imagine anybody in a situation where they don't have access or really access to that is, you know, that's not going to be their highest priority to turn around. Speaker 11: No, it's absolutely not, no. When your priority is where you're going to sleep for the night or get a meal, it's not. It's also that, you know, for a lot of those people, they are every day dealing with mental health challenges or they have maybe a distrust of government and authority, so to get, you know, just even get some people who will work through that process is fantastic, so that's the team's focus this week is census. Councillor Wilkie: So on that, and you've partially answered the question about the difficulty of quantifying the issue of homelessness in Noosa. Anecdotally, what is the scale of the issue? How many people are couch surfing, sleeping rough, experiencing homelessness in Noosa at any given time? Do

01:17:00 we have any idea, even anecdotally? Speaker 11: We don't have an idea of the numbers because, and one of the reasons is that what we're seeing is people who are experiencing that, that have never been in that space before, so to some degree, they don't, would not want to admit to that. They don't want to let the world know that this is the situation that they're in, so they go to significant ways to try and cover that up. In fact, the irony of that is, it's that cohort we actually can help more effectively because they haven't slipped into habitual homelessness. So we don't have an idea of the true numbers. What we do know, because of the calls on the service that we have, and because of the strong

01:18:00 network and the calls on their service, is much greater than it has been in the past, and we know that there are more numbers. We know that there are more numbers who are obviously sleeping rough, that in a quantum it's larger than it has been in the past, absolutely. The numbers that we are simply having to provide that emergency welfare have grown. Councillor Wilkie: Yeah, the other thing I wanted to raise, page 54 in local laws, 26 reported dog attacks, there were 16 in the last quarter. Yeah. And it seems to be around the number of them. 16. 16, 27, 28 fluctuates. Yeah. And it's being an owner of two little dogs. I understand that little dogs are particularly prone to dog attack, and it's often these sorts of traumatic issues that you'll start to deal with. Do we need to do any, there's still like a, it seems like an unacceptably high number

01:19:00 of dog attacks are occurring every quarter. Do we need to do anything more in terms of public education? What is the answer? Is that a good question? Speaker 11: Thank you. It's a really good question and a really difficult issue. We've had a couple this last quarter which are very harrowing to deal with. It's not one answer. It's a multiple. So education, absolutely. And frequently when we're in this space, there will be at least one party in it going, I never thought my dog would do this. I can't believe it. I can't believe my dog would do this. Or my dog was just outside the front gate. You know? Speaker 10: It's just a disaster. So they're off lead? Speaker 11: Generally they're off lead. It's a rare situation where we're, it's an on lead. It will nearly always be that at least one of the dogs is off the lead. So it is around education and we're keen to actually get in and we're starting to do some

01:20:00 more work in this space now about education in some of the sectors that we see as a priority. So our older population in retirement homes, et cetera, we're starting an education program there because they are highly vulnerable for themselves personally in a dog attack. Councillor Wilkie: They don't have the strength. And this is where they're occurring? These dog attacks? No, they tend to actually- Are they occurring in nursing homes? Speaker 11: No, they tend to occur when they take their dog out for work or- For work. So they might take their dog for a walk and it could be, for example, that they let their dog off the lead just for that little bit because they always let Fluffy off for a little walk there and it's okay. Or it might well be, and this is the one that we have concern about, the other dog is off the lead. The owner has, say an older person who has their dog on the lead, their dog gets attacked. Trying to help that owner understand that they should not get in the middle of it.

01:21:00 As harrowing as it is, they shouldn't get in the middle. So some of that education aspect, but even simple techniques- Councillor Jurisevic: Well, they put themselves at risk then. Speaker 11: About how to avoid it. So education is one. The second one is that we need to be able to be where these issues are occurring. So our ATV trial absolutely showed us what the difference can make about having a vehicle that allows us to be in that space immediately. Whereas in the past, they could see us, they could see staff coming, walking up the beach and they would disappear. And so we couldn't act. So that trial is moving into its next phase, which is that we've put in the procurement for the ATV and the staff will move into that space because that's a critical area that we see. Councillor Wilkie: I noticed the other figure here is 339 new dog registrations. Last quarter was 450 new dog registrations. Are you capturing owners who haven't registered their dogs or is this just a churn of new

01:22:00 people coming into the Shire? Speaker 11: So it's several things. It is a churn of new people coming into the Shire, but it's also COVID, everybody decided that they were at home and they would now have a dog. Unfortunately, we're now seeing the downside of that. And in things like RSPCA and the other rehoming organisations are now seeing so many dogs put up for adoption. So we're very concerned about that because we know that if that many are being put up for adoption, there are potentially a whole lot more that aren't put up for adoption that are either in not good care. And we know that when dogs aren't in good care, behavioural issues occur. Or they're potentially running wild. So, yeah. Councillor Wilkie: Thank you. Thank you. Is there a further question? No, thank you.

01:23:00 Mayor Stewart: Keraris had one question. And Frank touched on it. And the staff should be commended for all their hard work. I guess they deal with so much. They deal with homelessness. They deal with mental health issues. They deal with DV. How are the staff, how are your staff coping? Because they take on so much of the heavy lifting. So how are they? Speaker 11: We have, at the start, good team morale. We have good processes about debriefing. We have, you know, this council organisation has a very good employee assistance program. And we regularly will refer staff to that program. Where we can see, you know, there's a lot of work that needs to be done. And we, and absolutely, it does happen. One of the reasons that our staff are so very good in this space is because they are passionately committed to it. But the downside of that is that that passionate commitment means there's an emotional commitment too.

01:24:00 And sometimes they get too close. And sometimes it is hard for them to separate. And in that point, that's where, you know, we've got good management practices in place. And sometimes it is hard for them to separate. And sometimes it is hard for them to take people out of a situation. And to simply say, you know, we need, we need for you to take a break. We need to do some work. And so we will rotate staff through. They've all got their specialist area. But we will rotate them through to give people a break out of the more high conflict, difficult Speaker 10: situation. Speaker 11: And the important thing also is, and I will have discussions about, with staff about this, is to say, this difficult issue that's being put on your plate today, should this be on your plate? Or should it be on somebody else's? I understand that we care about it. But are we the right people? Because you've already got a lot on that plate. So is it one of our, you know, we've got a really strong network.

01:25:00 Perhaps somebody else would be better to take the lead on this. Speaker 6: And we're watching out for the cumulative impact. Yeah. Yeah. Speaker 11: And we will have, you know, the staff that we will have a discussion with and say, it's time for you to take some leave. Mayor Stewart: Kerry, how about yourself? Because you take on so much of that staff sort of mental role. And you're on their shoulder to cry on. Whose shoulder do you cry on? Speaker 11: I am having three days off in a couple of weeks. So I'm having a long weekend. Yeah. Yeah. So Brett is very good at reminding me. Yeah. Councillor Jurisevic: But one of the, one of the things the staff have been very good at is bringing and establishing services in our community. And I'm bringing here Orange Sky Laundry being re-established. Our Nerds for Social Services Hub being re-established. Take Two Community House post COVID, because it was a COVID testing centre. Getting the COVID, getting Sunny Kids across the road here at the, at the post office. Continue to work with Sunny Kids and Northern Sunshine Coast Social Network, Social Services

01:26:00 Network to finalise position and pay for recommendations for identified gaps in service delivery for family and young people services. I mean, we never stop. I'm, what was the one I was reading here? That was the, under volunteer, I said, I'll go back to disaster recovery in a moment. I was, I never cease to imagine the sort of volunteer initiatives that we get. And here's a new one next quarter. It's called Deliver First Session of Hairdressers with Hearts at the start of Tuesday's Social Services Hub. Can you tell us a bit more about Hairdressers with Hearts and how that came about? Speaker 11: Yeah. So that, I guess the, the Social Services Hub, that's unbelievably a couple of years old now, has really proven itself as a model that works. And so where is it? Councillor Jurisevic: I remember that first round table. Speaker 11: Yeah. Yeah. So, and in the beginning, you know, there was that hesitancy and people thinking, oh, this isn't going to work. And, and it was hard work to get people involved. It was hard work to get agencies involved.

01:27:00 Whereas now it's really proven itself. And so now we will find other people go, well, hang on, I think I could contribute. And, and people are coming forward with different things and it's a trusted service. It's most importantly, it is trusted by the clientele that we're supporting. And they're, you know, the connection through that sector, they, they bring people forward. So, and it's interesting when a new person comes into our community that's having issues, one of, you know, another homeless person will refer them. But it's not, I mean, obviously it's not just supporting homeless people, it's people that, anyone. Anyone at risk. Councillor Jurisevic: But it's facilitated, my, my opinion is it's facilitated with all those agencies and understanding that they're not there on their own to, to handle the load either. That there's a network of agencies that with cohesion and work together that they can, they can support each other through, through the process and help support those people

01:28:00 in need. Speaker 11: And it is absolutely based in the theory of case management that says when we all work together and focus on an individual, we have a better chance of supporting that individual through their issue and onto a better place than if we're all operating independently and scattergun and you, you, you have a little bit of a paintbrush effect but you don't have a maximum effect. This is proven to work. Councillor Jurisevic: I'm delighted to see it working as well for them both. And remember that first, that, that first meeting that you discussed and we went. Yeah. Well, they don't come together now. So it's great to see that, that convenience here now. Speaker 11: And, and I think the concerns and, and rightly so, the, you know, the concerns about what that might look like for Noosa haven't, you know, haven't gone out. It's, it's a really highly regarded effective service. Councillor Wilkie: One last question if I may. Please do. Yeah. Forgive me if I've missed it in here Kerry or misunderstood the timeframe.

01:29:00 Speaker 11: Yep. Councillor Wilkie: Were we committed to doing a pre-feasibility study on the Noosa Regional Gallery? Yes we are. Speaker 11: So. Where are we at? So we have funding this year to continue that process. So we did the first work with our consultants outside the square this par, early this past financial year. Yeah. And the next stage will continue this financial year. So that work will kick off later in the financial year and it will then run out over two months. So it will, this next piece is a big piece of work which really looks at, okay, we've done the review on the, the existing gallery. We understand what the challenges are. We understand what some of the potential options are. This is now the, the deep bit of work on those options. Councillor Wilkie: Would it be okay to have that added as the one thousandth and second item? Speaker 11: Yes. I'm, I apologise that it's not in there. I. Councillor Jurisevic: Keep track of it. And then it drops off my radar.

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01:30:00 I didn't even realise it wasn't, it wasn't, it wasn't mentioned because I just assumed it. The other, the other areas for me Kerry. This disaster recovery, it's amazing that we, you know, two years after the, nearly two years after the bushfires, we're still, still working, organising, delivering further mental health first aid training. We're working with our SES negotiating volunteer recruitment campaigns to keep, keep the volunteer numbers up in these areas where they're essential to, to the community. And that, that, that we continue to work with the SES in, in each of those areas, Cooran, Cooroy, Boreen Point and all the, all the rest of it. That we continue to plan and coordinate further mental health week training and those sort of things to help people that, you know, in that recovery space and continuing to, continuing to do so. So I, you know, credit to you and your team that we, we haven't, haven't, you know, 12, two years after the bushfires, we're still, we still have space. It's amazing to me. We realise what an important element it is to, for ongoing, ongoing support of the community that have been, that have been through things.

01:31:00 And we'll continue to go through, you know, events as storms and fires continue to ravage our area. Visitors, as usual, activities, you know, are there. The, the fact that community facilities are all part of it as well. There's, there's so much, so much engaged. And the libraries, of course, libraries and galleries are continue to function and be a great source of, of comfort to our, to our community when they've been allowed to open. But even when they haven't been allowed to open, we still have digital, digital facilitation where we have. Yeah. So, a credit to you and your team. Speaker 11: We're just very hopeful that, that we get a short window in the world that we're currently in for Floating Land to go ahead. So, there's been a, you know, there's so many people looking forward to it. No, it's in the diary. Yes. It's, they are just looking at plans at the moment. I do, because, unfortunately, the Sunshine Coast Horizon Festival has been cancelled.

01:32:00 Yeah. But what we've said to the team is that, at the very least, I feel maybe some of our programming may not be able to continue, so master classes and things, but I, I don't see any reason why the sculptures couldn't proceed. Yeah. And in fact. Councillor Wilkie: We could put masks on them. Speaker 11: And in fact, I, I've taken a lot from, you know, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the Olympic Games in terms of what that's done for people in a sense of positivity and hope. Yeah, absolutely. And so, I think, even if we were in a situation where we could not have the full program, I do believe we could still have the sculptures. And that would give people something even if, just to go out and have a walk and look at the sculptures. So, there will be some form of Floating Land. Thank you all so much for joining us today, it's been a pleasure to be here with you today.

01:33:00 Obviously it's reliant on our artists being able to get here, but fingers crossed for that. There's a lot of work that's gone into it. Councillor Jurisevic: Just to show how diverse your portfolio is under your area, waste management. Speaker 11: We're so very, very excited because our waste manager starts Monday. Councillor Jurisevic: That was the question, when does he begin, and I can't wait for public consultation and development of the Noosa Cancer Strategy for Waste going forward because it's one that I get bombarded with on a regular basis going, when are we going to take that next step? And the weighbridge, is that a progressive issue? Speaker 11: Yes, it's needed to go through procurement again because we did not have notes, so that will go through procurement again. Councillor Jurisevic: All good. So it's an astounding volume and variety of work. What are some of the things that are covered under your care? Speaker 11: It's a full team effort.

01:34:00 I'm very blessed to have very incredibly intelligent, dedicated, passionate people behind me, so it's a full team effort. Councillor Lorentson: My only question, Kerry, so talking increased workload, I can physically see that you're exhausted. I can feel it. Another way that we can help you is giving you extra support. Is that a conversation that we should be having as well? Speaker 11: Yeah, look, I think there's some issues there. For me, filling some key positions are important, so I'll be really very happy to see Cooroy come on board. Unfortunately, we've had a real disappointment with our local laws manager recruitment in that the position, the appointment for that has not proceeded, so that application is being withdrawn. So that's very disappointing.

01:35:00 I think from my perspective, it's probably in the message that I've sent out and saying, please give staff patience at the moment and kindness, because don't load them up with unnecessary things. I know that everything... Now you tell me, Kerry. I know that everything... Sorry. You're the one. I know that everything that we do and want to do is really important. But for these couple of weeks, really, we just have to focus on what's essential to get things back up and running. Sometimes it seems easy just to go away and close the doors, but to reopen and reopen under challenging circumstances, and unfortunately, we've got some members of the public who aren't respectful in this space, so we're dealing with challenges there. In the main, people are wonderful though. It's just there's a really high workload over this next couple of weeks to get back up again. Councillor Jurisevic: Again, through an intermittent lockdown like we had a week, what do you do with all those

01:36:00 staff that are now in a situation where they... The legislature has closed down. The aquatic centre has closed down. The legislature has closed down. When are they... Speaker 11: There's a lot to close... So when you close down, there's a lot to close down. A lot of it, that's right. Because there would have been a whole lot of programs in place that don't go ahead, and so there's cancellations, there's refunds, there's a whole range of stuff there. Then you've got a whole lot of work that still needs to continue in the back end that can't stop. In the aquatic centre, you can't just walk out the doors of the pool and leave the pool going. You come back and have a really interesting colour pool. Yeah. In colour green, yeah. Yeah. So work continues, and it continues in a space of people homeschooling and all that kind of stuff. So my big message for teams is, do you really need to do this?

01:37:00 Does this have to happen today? What's the worst could happen if this happened next week instead? And then when they open up again, like the J at the moment now is dealing with all its promoters. Councillor Lorentson: Hmm. Speaker 11: Because yes, technically they can reopen, but it's 50%. Do the promoters want to go ahead, oops, no, hang on, they're under lockdown now because they're coming out of Byron Bay. Every day presents a new challenge. Is the answer more resources? No, I don't think so, because it's difficult to get the resources we need at the moment, and you've got to train them when they come on board. My advice at the moment is, can we just focus on actually what's essential and important, and let's be kind and patient to our staff. Speaker 6: And the long term thing is stability and certainty. Yeah. Absolutely. The J is probably the best example we have in our organisation of the ups and downs. Yeah. And that's the same for any business.

01:38:00 You just want to be able to plan ahead, have certainty and do it once, as opposed to book everything, unbook it, book it again, change it twice. Yeah. Speaker 11: I do think, you know, it is interesting, though, the things that we thought were a challenge 12 months ago in this space, we do seem just like routine now, and every time there's a new learning, and we learn something new, and we apply that new thing, and we get better at it. And, you know, a big thing for me is, okay, this challenge that we've grappled with, and, you know, we've grappled with in this last week, what could we now do to make that more effortless? How could that be easier? Because that seemed, you know, hard. So how can we make that easier? Councillor Jurisevic: Well, I guess we all learn and become more resilient as the challenges continue to come. Yeah. We add that level of resilience to life. Councillor Wilkie: Yeah. I'll move the recommendation. Councillor Jurisevic: Thank you. I'll second it. All in favour? All those in favour? Deputy Councillor? Thank you. Thank you.

01:39:00 Thank you. And Terry Bassi. And thank you. I will. Absolutely. Speaker 11: And I will appreciate that. Thank you. Councillor Jurisevic: Thank you. By the way, Executive Services Department update for the fourth quarter with Deb. Hello. Director of Executive Services. Hi Deb. Councillor Wilkie: So, Deb, when you recommenced the, the drug and alcohol testing program. Speaker 6: We haven't changed our policy. We did look at it towards the end of the last term, but events of COVID and other issues that have took it, so councillors are not currently covered by our policy. Councillors are all willing to be involved. They're all willing to be involved, yeah. And you're not employees. The current policy covers employees. You're not employees. Councillor Jurisevic: Can I answer that while my census form lasts longer? Speaker 9: And we were due to continue with the testing, however, then we had the last little spat of lockdown. And, of course, we don't know who is going to be tested because it's randomly done.

01:40:00 Councillor Wilkie: By an external agency? Yes. How many staff at a time are tested and what are they tested for? Speaker 6: I can probably answer that. I'll be sure. Normally it depends on where they turn up, but no different. I've been through it. It's about 20, 25, depending on which location. It might be the depot, it might be here. Randomly generated names and call up and you come up and go through it. The interesting thing was that when we first put this forward a couple of years ago, we thought the union and staff would be quite resistant. It was the exact opposite. It was really pleasing that the union and staff had about time because if any of our colleagues are affected in driving machinery, they don't really want to know. They're not safe. It was really, really positive and it's been good acceptance all the way through the process. Councillor Wilkie: How do they take the sample for it? Speaker 6: So it's a swab through the mouth and a breathalyzer type issue. And that picks up if there's a major problem and if there is one, then you need to get more detailed testing, follow-up testing.

01:41:00 It's like an instant result and if it turns up as a positive, then you have to get a more, a more, you know, a土lson sample. Councillor Jurisevic: Yes. Speaker 6: Okay. And if the way the policy works is that, you know, if someone has that, we first need to look at if they've got an issue. Do we work with them to look at a certain lifestyle problem or what they need to do? Are they operating machinery or not? We've got a support programme, but ultimately we have really strong support through staff. Um, great. Councillor Jurisevic: Any other questions. Oh. Councillor Wilkie: Oh, you've mentioned traineeships, ongoing support to existing trainees. How many trainees do we have? Three. Three. Speaker 9: Yeah, three. Speaker 6: We only have three or four at any one time. That's not including our apprentices? Councillor Jurisevic: No, no. Speaker 9: They've been training. Yeah, and then we will be looking at going forward with the year ahead. And that number we look at operationally where we might be able to accommodate them,

01:42:00 but also to where we receive part funding for them. And that's normally coordinated centrally through LGAQ. And it's LGAQ, isn't it? Yeah. And so that normally comes up once a year and we put our bids in and we discuss it with the executive team. Councillor Wilkie: And they receive training from a variety of departments. Speaker 9: Yes, yes, they do. Sorry. I'm having trouble with fogging up and masks. So I'll just pick that up a bit. Councillor Wilkie: And I didn't get to check the last quarter's stats, but under Q4 call statistics, average speed of answer, 36 seconds. Is that an improvement or is it holding steady? Speaker 9: Look, what we're finding generally is that our timeframes for the amount of time we're spending and dealing with calls has gone up slightly because often it's not just one inquiry. They make a number of inquiries when they do. We aim for the 30 seconds, but you'll see the call durations there.

01:43:00 They're around that five minutes. So they're a little bit longer than what we would aim for, which would be normally just over three. But it is the reality. And what we're seeing is consistently probably higher numbers, whereas we thought, you know, following a few years after the amalgamation, once we got everything happening, it would decrease. But we're kind of seeing consistently higher numbers and especially at this time, because you've got people who have a little bit more time. Now that they're home to make contact, people say, we've got a really engaged community, too. And they like to speak to our customer service staff when they're making requests or seeking information. So they will make contact. Councillor Wilkie: Can you tell me where is the wellness site to start and how frequently is it visited and used? Speaker 9: Oh, we've recently launched a bit of a new campaign, which is called Refresh, which is looking at

01:44:00 how people can be connected, but also have access to different resources. And it might be around health, nutrition. It might be some more team focused things about how we can sort of exercise more. I can't tell you the exact numbers on the site, but it is from the feedback that we've had from staff and from some of the previous things that we've conducted. For example, we had, you know, a bit of competition within groups, within council, about exercise and numbers and things. It was really popular. So it might be perceived that, you know, we could be spending our time elsewhere, but the well-being of staff, especially during the COVID and with people working from home is really important and the connectedness. So, yeah, so we're really we're really watching that. We surveyed staff probably about, it was actually earlier during COVID and we actually had some quite good responses that people still did feel comfortable with.

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01:45:00

01:45:00 But as time goes on, you've still got to keep in touch. So we will be doing a little bit more and seeking feedback from staff about how they're travelling, especially if we're having lockdown periods with more and more people working from home and they're a little bit more isolated. Councillor Wilkie: So is that the, it says here, current priorities, launch of the wellness program, Thrive. Speaker 9: Yes, that's it. That's the Thrive. Speaker 6: And the re-raged wellness program. Speaker 9: Yeah, yeah. And an email went out to all staff probably about a couple of weeks ago, just launching it, re-launching it. Councillor Wilkie: And what's it inviting them to do? Speaker 9: Well, it's inviting them to engage very much around some online connectivity where people can actually tap into exercise programs, what activities could be, they can tap into around diet recommendations, everything I mentioned before. But it's actually a coordinated program. And it's a lot more, in the way that it's presented, it's, it's, it's probably a bit more professional and user friendly.

01:46:00 Councillor Wilkie: I think this is great, this is important for the development of a positive culture, health and well-being. Speaker 9: Yeah, and we're still developing it because Karen Carlaw has been taking the lead on that in our people and culture area. And she's actually working with a provider who actually, you know, it's an actual platform that we can access. Councillor Wilkie: And you mentioned the establishment of a staff wellness committee is coming up in the next, who will be on the wellness committee? Speaker 9: Oh, I'd expect that there'd be reps from around the different areas of council and it'll be coordinated. Oh, all across council? Yeah. Councillor Wilkie: Outside workforce and all? Yeah. Councillor Jurisevic: Yeah, great. Yeah. When you challenge those physical activities, you really need to think, you know, the council group because, I mean, this is, this is the group that sit down the most, so. Speaker 9: Well, this would be standing up. Well, yeah. Speaker 7: Thank you. Speaker 6: Any just. Some of the things on that that staff have done is like the trainers at the leisure centre have done some videos for staff who are working from home to get up and move and things like that. So that's a good thing, yeah. That's great. Councillor Jurisevic: If non-insurance claims received the increase of four for the last quarter, 16 public liability claims, money, personal injuries or tree-related damages,

01:47:00 Speaker 7: are there any areas of concern there that are popping up? Councillor Jurisevic: Is there any consistency? Are there any areas that we need to... Speaker 9: No, look, tree roots is always a problem. You know, we had a recent situation where someone had tripped and injured themselves on tree roots. It's hard in some of the natural areas. The natural areas by themselves are really attractive because they're natural areas. But then, you know, there might be some potential hazards. So it's mainly like tree roots and things like that. Councillor Jurisevic: Is there an element of personal responsibility if going into a natural area? Speaker 9: When I say a natural area, I'm probably... I'll give an example of an area for sure along the river here. It's very much, it can be a bit tidal and there's, you know, there's natural vegetation there. But people actually like to walk in that area because it's really close to the river. So it's that balance about making, you know, people do have to accept responsibility.

01:48:00 But at the same time, you know, there's an element of responsibility on us that if there's a potential hazard there and especially if it's a risk and we are aware of it, then we need to consider what we need to do to reduce that or mitigate it. Councillor Jurisevic: So what level of injury, I guess, would require to be a plan? It might be someone... A broken boat or a hospital visit or... Speaker 9: Yeah, someone... Yeah, it could be. It could be someone could trip over and fall and then break their arm and be taken to hospital. Councillor Jurisevic: So those... Yeah. I don't see anything else from me. Again, there's an amazing amount of technical stuff that your integrity-related and audit risk-related matters and governance matters that, you know, the organisation can't do without the credit for your team that we get and are on top of so many of that. Thank you. Speaker 9: And we've got an audit risk committee coming up in the next couple of weeks.

01:49:00 So, yeah. Councillor Wilkie: How's the implementation of the Human Rights Act? How's the conditions going across the organisation? Speaker 9: It's... Look, we did our original training some time ago and we've discussed this at the executive team. Like anything, it's about, you know, being consistent and reminding people that we do need to consider human rights, especially when officers are looking at reporting. We've got the policies and the tools in place and governance with the temporary position that we have there now is actually working with the areas to help them to provide them guidance in how to implement those, but also in the risk and improve the risk management as well and doing risk assessments in some of our areas as well. So, it's improving, but... And I'm noticing it's already appearing in our reporting. Yes. Councillor Lorentson: Which is excellent. Speaker 9: Yeah. Councillor Lorentson: And in our policies. Speaker 9: Yeah, yeah. And it is a requirement for us to include a statement on human rights in our policy and we're slowly just tackling those because if you were to review a policy,

01:50:00 you've got to review the content of the whole policy, not just the statement on human rights. So, we're working with the areas to do that. We didn't have the resources to do that and some of the areas with the amount of work that they had on didn't necessarily... I'm not saying that they didn't see it as important. They did see it as important, but they just weren't used to using the tools and knowing how to apply the policy. So, we're working with them to help them in that area. Councillor Jurisevic: I know that the comms team said they'd be succeeding in all their methods of engagement. So, they've been... Speaker 9: Yep. So... Councillor Jurisevic: ...updates on all factors. Speaker 9: Yeah. One of the things we will be doing is looking at our community engagement strategy. So, we're starting that conversation and we'll be having a chat with Brett. We've got a chat with Brett this week about that. And then we'll be coming to council with an approach about how we actually start that discussion on our community engagement strategy and what, as a council, we're wanting to do in that space.

01:51:00 So, that's coming. Councillor Wilkie: Well, that being included in that will be a consideration of publicity around a lot of the things that... There's small but significant programs and interactions that council staff have. For example, like the wellness program that's operated at community houses where elderly people are... Yeah. ...they... A physio engages with them and gives them exercises to do while they're still seated. And I know it means so much to the people that attend down at Peregian, for example. Yeah. But that is a wonderful story. Yeah. It's not big stuff. Speaker 6: No. But... So, there's a difference there between communication and engagement. So, at the moment, the last couple of years, we've spent a lot of time trying to improve our communication, telling our story and... Yeah. ...getting information out. You have to have that as your building block before you start to do more about the engagement, which is a two-way, you know, for listening and what do you think about this. Oh, I see what you're saying. And what level of that engagement is. So, it's building that pyramid up to...

01:52:00 Yeah. I'm sorry. Councillor Wilkie: I've come in at the wrong stage. No, it's okay. I think you're talking more about, yeah, the comms going out to the community. Yeah. Speaker 9: And we have, and Ken's been actively doing that because one of, you know, and part of his role is to actually look at how we, you know, our reputation and increasing our communications and getting... Yeah. ...and reaching people. And, you know, a bit around our brand or our image, if you like, as well. But, no, that's been a really strong focus over the last couple of years, but now we really have to get into the community engagement strategy and review that. Yeah. Because that was something that was listed for last year, but, and we were originally going to look at it when we did the new corporate plan, but because that has been put back a little bit now, we've decided that it's very important to start this conversation now. So we will be, we'll be looking at engaging with council on that. Councillor Jurisevic: Thank you. Thank you, Deb. All right. Thank you. Speaker 9: Thank you, Deb. All in favour? Thank you, Deb. Thank you, guys.

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