Organisations responsible for sports facilities across the Lismore Electorate can apply for their share of $500,000 in funding from the NSW Government for new life-saving defibrillators, according to Lismore MP Janelle Saffin.The equipment is funded under the NSW Government’s Local Sport Defibrillator Grant Program, which provides up to $3,000 to eligible sporting organisations for the purchase of automated external defibrillators at sports facilities.Since the program started, more than 2,000 defibrillators have been installed at sports facilities across the state. In Lismore, that includes Lismore Old Boys Rugby League Football Club, Lismore City Bowling and Recreation Club, South Lismore Bowling and Recreation Club, Lismore Tennis Club and Marist Brothers Junior Rugby League Club.Applications close on 27 November 2024 or when funding is exhausted. For further information, including eligibility criteria, please see the program guidelines at: https://www.sport.nsw.gov.au/grants/local-sport-defibrillator-grant-programState Member for Lismore Janelle Saffin said, “With our high participation rates in organised sports and public spaces lending themselves to outdoor recreation, it’s critical that as many local sports facilities as possible are equipped to respond to potentially life-threatening incidents.“This popular program traditionally has had a strong take-up rate, so I urge eligible sporting organisations to make an application in this funding round to increase the coverage of defibrillators in our towns and villages.“Every life saved is worth it.”NSW Minister for Sport Steve Kamper said, “With more than 9,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in NSW each year, the first few minutes following an incident are critical, and access to a defibrillator can mean the difference between life and death.“The NSW Government wants to ensure people participating in sport have access to this life-saving equipment.“The Local Sport Defibrillator Program ensures clubs are equipped to respond to these life-threatening emergencies.”Professor Jamie Vandenberg, Co-deputy Director of the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, said, “Being able to access a defibrillator quickly and easily could be the difference between life and death for someone suffering a sudden cardiac arrest.“In fact, survival rates nearly double if a defibrillator is used in the first few minutes of a cardiac arrest. “Currently, just one in 10 people who have a sudden cardiac arrest outside of hospital will survive. “This is a sobering statistic, but it’s one we can change for the better by installing more of these lifesaving devices in sports clubs across the State.”

Yesterday, September 17, was National Citizenship Day. Ten (10) people formalised their link with Australia at a ceremony in the Lismore City Council Chambers in Goonellabah. People from Belgium, Canada, China, Israel, Malaysia, New Zealand and the Philippines have chosen the Lismore LGA to settle down and live their lives.Mayor Steve Krieg presided over the ceremony, with Federal MP Kevin Hogan in attendance, to give a warm welcome to the new Australians.After formalising their ties, the National Anthem was played and sung before cheers and congratulations were passed around. People took the opportunity to get a photo with the Mayor and Mr Hogan.Magalie from Belgium has been in Australia since 2017 and has travelled extensively around the country before settling into life at Dunoon with her partner. Magalie is impressed with the Lismore LGA, “ It has everything you need.“Not far from the coast, this is a nice rural area and an amazing city!”Making the decision to become a citizen makes Magalie's position more secure, “I wanted to fit in like other people here.”(Singing the National Anthem concluded the ceremony)Jennifer, originally from Malaysia, has been here for ten years. She is getting older, and her partner told us she was very excited to become an Australian, although she was a little shy. Three citizenship days are held a year. Besides today, Australia Day and sometimes a ceremony in April are the other traditional times to connect your story to the lucky country.Mr Hogan said, “ I'm always reminded when you come to citizenship ceremonies, the people are very appreciative of becoming an Australian citizen and have great pride about being an Australian citizen. “I think that's always a good reminder because I don't think some people appreciate the good fortune it is to be an Australian citizen and the wonderful country we have.” Mayor Krieg said, “It's probably the highest honour as the mayor to be able to preside over a ceremony like this. And as Kevin said, you know people choose to come and live here. (Jennifer with her new citizenship status)“When you're born and raised here, you may take it for granted - how great our country is, how democratic we are. We've just gone through an election last weekend, and for people just to have the simple right to vote is something that is not common around the globe. “We need to appreciate the freedom that we are granted, and it is great to welcome 10 people who may or may not have experienced that freedom that we've all grown up and enjoyed.“It is a really special honour to be able to welcome those people as Australians.”

Lismore City Council may need to stop using ticketless parking fines if the NSW State Government is successful with a change of legislation to be introduced into parliament. The state government says the changes will improve fairness and transparency for drivers by ensuring drivers receive on-the-spot notifications for parking fines. In mid-August, Lismore App reader Steve said his partner received a fine in the mail more than a month after the alleged parking offence."She has no idea of doing the offence, of course, as the alleged offence was so long ago. I just wish to follow this up, but wondering if they are required to notify a fine will be issued."At the time, a Lismore City Council spokesperson said, "Lismore City Council fines are issued in accordance with NSW legislation. Ticketed notification on vehicles is not a legislated requirement. Council uses a mix of ticketless and ticketed fines depending on the circumstances."Councils across NSW issued 822,310 ticketless parking fines in 2023/24, up 49% from 551,441 issued in 2022/23.The legislation to be introduced by the NSW Government will:Require councils to attach an on-the-spot notification to a vehicle. This could be the penalty notice itself, or a short description of the offence and notice that a fine will be sent to them. Require councils to take photos of offences – even if they use the traditional ‘ticketed’ method – and make them available for Revenue NSW to provide to drivers. The photos must include images of the vehicle, relevant signage and the physical notice left on the vehicle. This will streamline the review process for any challenged fines.Limit the circumstances where an on-the-spot notification is not required to be left by a parking officer, for example, where it is hazardous or unsafe for them to do so.Invalidate ‘repeat’ ticketless parking fines, addressing a key concern of the existing system, that drivers can be fined multiple times for the same offence before they even become aware of the first infringement.Introduce data reporting rules to monitor the implementation of the legislation and evaluate if any future reforms are necessary.The requirement to issue an on-the-spot notification will not apply to a limited number of parking zones, such as enclosed parking areas that use licence plate recognition technology, and in national parks with limited mobile phone connectivity. Regulations issued by the Minister for Finance will clearly specify these parking zones and describe the wording, font size, colour, and location of signage to give drivers sufficient advance warning they are in a ticketless infringement zone.Since March 2024, the NSW Government has consulted councils extensively which has informed the development of the legislative reforms. That engagement will now focus on the development of the regulations which will contain operational details.To protect the safety of infringement officers from abuse and aggression when issuing tickets, they will not be required to leave an on-the-spot notification where it is unsafe to do so. Under existing provisions, assaulting an authorised officer is an aggravating factor to be considered by a court during sentencing.The overwhelming majority of ticketless parking fines in NSW are for offences in council-operated parking facilities. The parking fine reforms will apply to facilities operated by councils, NSW Government agencies and universities. Acknowledging their unique operating requirements, these changes will not apply to police officers.These are important and necessary reforms that will ensure the ticketless parking fine system meets community expectations and delivers a uniform experience for motorists across NSW, regardless of where they park their car.Premier Chris Minns said, “Drivers deserve better than the current system.“Too many motorists have driven off with no idea they might be liable for a parking fine.“This system was introduced by the former government without enough protections for drivers. We’re fixing that.”Minister for Finance Courtney Houssos said, “No one ever likes to get a parking fine, but the idea you only find out about a fine weeks later doesn’t pass the common sense test.“Setting new, higher standards for parking fines, including rules about invalidating unfair fines, is the right thing to do and goes a long way to re-building community trust.“Frustration among drivers and community members about the ticketless parking system is high – and that’s fair enough. The ticketless parking fine system was introduced by the previous government without regard for the impact on drivers and families.“I want to acknowledge the NRMA for their long-standing advocacy on this matter. Along with motorists, they first raised their concerns in 2020, but were ignored.”NRMA Spokesperson Peter Khoury said, “The NRMA commends the NSW Government for addressing the increasingly unpopular ticketless parking fine system adopted by dozens of councils.“Motorists who abuse the limited public parking spaces available obviously deserve to be fined. However, ticketless parking fines removed transparency and made it almost impossible for motorists to contest their fine if they felt they had a legitimate case. “The Government’s announcement today can give the public confidence that enforcement will again be open and transparent, and we encourage councils to work with the Government on implementing these measures.”

All NSW public school teachers will soon have access to a generative AI app developed by the Department of Education, after feedback from a trial in 50 schools showed the tool significantly improved workload efficiency and enabled teachers to focus more of their time on the classroom.In what will be one of the world’s largest systemic rollouts of AI chat for teachers, NSWEduChat will be made available for all teachers by the start of Term 4. The trial began in 16 schools at the start of 2024 and initially expanded to 50 schools in Term 2.Purpose-built for use in education, NSWEduChat has distinct versions for teachers and students with the version for teachers aiming to reduce time spent on routine administrative tasks. The expansion of access to the generative AI app NSWEduChat follows high engagement and positive feedback from the initial trial including:Time saved producing a range of resources to meet the different ability levels of students.Improved ability to adjust classroom resources to students’ interests.Significant time saving in checking correspondence, newsletters, and preparing materials.Some teachers involved in the NSWEduChat trial have reported saving over an hour per week on producing various lesson resources.The objective of the trial is to understand the benefits of generative AI on teaching and learning – including how it can assist teachers to get through administrative work more quickly so their energy is focussed on students. As part of our work to address the teacher shortage, which includes paying teachers more and giving more teachers permanent roles, the Minns Labor Government is committed to reducing the admin load on teachers by five hours per week. Providing NSWEduChat access to staff systemwide will allow the Department to explore the impact of the tool in assisting teachers to save time while creating quality learning opportunities for students. NSWEduChat is based in the department’s own cloud environment, ensuring data is secure. Use of the app is optional for staff. To help staff use the app, the department provides professional learning resources including workshops and online guides.Deputy Premier and Minister for Education and Early Learning Prue Car said, “We are proud that NSW is leading the world in developing its own purpose-built generative AI app for education.“Teachers who have been using this tool say it’s helping them spend less time on admin, enabling them to focus on teaching.“NSWEduChat does not replace the valuable work of our teachers – it helps them to save time, tailor their resources, and focus on their critical work in the classroom.”“The expansion of this trial to all teachers is part of our work to reduce the admin burden and get more teachers in front of our students.”

Lismore MP Janelle Saffin is urging local councils, Aboriginal-led organisations and multicultural groups to apply for a share of $840,000 in grants under the NSW Government’s 2025 Connecting Seniors Grant Program.Ms Saffin says applications for the grant program opened yesterday (Monday, 16 September 2024), with 28 grants worth $30,000 on offer for locally-driven projects, programs and activities that foster inclusion for seniors, from social gatherings to dancing lessons and singing groups.“What I like about this round of our program is its increased emphasis on intergenerational projects to foster social connection between older and younger people,” Ms Saffin says.“Combatting ageism, promoting social inclusion, sharing lived experiences and breaking down stereotypes are all worthy things to aim for.”The grant program is divided into five categories:Aboriginal Grants: Four grants for Aboriginal-led organisations or Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations for initiatives targeted for Aboriginal communitiesMulticultural Grants: Four grants for multicultural organisations for initiatives aimed at Culturally and Linguistically Diverse groupsCreation Grants: Six grants for new projectsEnhancement or Expansion Grants: Six grants to boost existing projects Local Council Grants: Eight grants specifically for council-led projects.The Aboriginal and multicultural categories are new this year with the aim of reaching a more diverse range of older people.Since its launch in 2020, the grant program has funded more than 120 projects over 30,000 seniors across 82 Local Government Areas across NSW.The grant program helps deliver on the NSW Government’s commitment in the Ageing Well in NSW: Seniors Strategy 2021-2031 to promote inclusion for older people.Applications for the grant program close on 21 October 2024. Find out more and apply at https://dcj.nsw.gov.au/service-providers/grants/connecting-seniors-grant-program-2025.html.

As vote counting continued at the Lismore Region Returned Officers Office in Zadoc Street yesterday for the Lismore City Council Election, Steve Krieg increased his mayoral vote from yesterday's 48.17% to 48.45%.Every percentage increase means it is virtually impossible for his opponents to catch him. Vanessa Ekins is the closest candidate at 21.05% (dropping from 21.25%). Ms Ekins now bows out of local politics after serving 20 years as a Lismore City Councillor and a short term as mayor.Steve Krieg is yet to claim victory; however, that is expected to occur later today.The makeup of the Lismore City Council for the next four years also became much clearer throughout yesterday's counting, although not finalised.The Krieg Team will have control of council again after recording 5.33 quotas, up strongly from a concerning 4.66 on Sunday as pre-poll votes were counted from Goonellabah and Zadoc Street. That guarantees the five seats needed, plus the mayor, for a six-seat majority.The Krieg Team will have Jeri Hall, Andrew Gordon, Electra Jensen and Andrew Bing as returning councillors, with Gianpiero Battista making a return to council after a three-year absence.The Greens hopes of getting Dr Luke Robinson as a third councillor have evaporated. The Greens started the day with 2.94 quotas and hopeful but ended the day with 2.38 quotas. Adam Guise returns for a third term and has first-timer Virginia Waters for company. Virginia is the first Nimbin representative for quite some time.Labor would be happy with its 2024 Lismore City Council Election result, moving from 1 councillor to 2. First-time councillors Harper Dalton-Earls and Jasmine Knight-Smith will be part of the eleven-member council.Big Rob would be another happy man after easily being voted on to Lismore City Council in 2024, with 1.22 quotas compared to 0.83 of a quota in 2021. At one stage, it looked as though the Krieg Team would win 5 seats and Big Rob would have the balance of power. However, they play looks highly unlikely. It would appear the split of votes from Elly Bird's Our Sustainable Future Party has been shared between Labor and The Greens, which has helped both parties achieve two Lismore City Councillors.Voting continues today with the below-the-line votes to be allocated in the Councillor Election. That will get the total votes to about 27,000, which was the total in 2021.The mayoral votes have approximately 7,000 to be counted to hit the 26-27,000 mark. These include the Lismore Zadoc Street booth pre-poll votes and postal votes. The indicators are these will favour Steve Krieg as he Krieg Team vote increased after being counted yesterday in the councillor vote.The informal vote will end up around the 3-4% mark but won't be known for some time as the informal is mixed with the below-the-line votes, unclear ballot papers and formal ballot papers that are marked Above and Below the line..The 2024 Lismore City Council Election will not be declared until after all postal votes have been received. The deadline to receive postal votes is 6pm Friday, September 27. The result will be declared in writing between 1 and 3 October 2024.

Woolworths Goonellabah plans to increase the grocery pick-up and home delivery components of its business.Woolworths has submitted a DA (development application) with Lismore City Council for 'Proposed alterations and additions to an existing shopping centre to provide Direct To Boot services & additional Home Delivery services, including the construction of a roof canopy, relocation of TOMRA recycling container, storage area, loading docks and associated signage, along with an extension of the loading hours.The changes are estimated to cost $2.8 million.The proposed changes are at the front of the Woolworths building outside Anytime Fitness. Six new 'direct to boot' rear parking bays will be developed to service the increased need for online shopping.Existing parking bays will be lost, including two accessible parking bays, but they will be relocated.There will be more changes at the loading dock area of Woolworths where the Return and Earn and recycling bins are located.The Return and Earn will be relocated to the corner car park, to the left when you enter the area off Oliver Avenue. The recycle bins will also be relocated.A new Home Delivery depot ramp will be constructed where those facilities exist. The existing playground near Simeoni Drive will get a refresh and the trolley bay will be relocated.The plan says that there will be a loss of two car parking bays. However, Woolworths claim that the benefits of Direct To Boot and Home Delivery will offset that loss.The proposed extended loading times between 5am and 7am.An Environmental Noise Assessment Report said the potential noise generated by the proposed extended loading hours was assessed at the nearest noise-sensitive receivers in accordance with the noise criteria detailed in the NSW Noise Policy for Industry. Noise levels were predicted to comply with the noise criteria without the need for acoustic treatment.Lismore City Council has yet to make a decision on the DA.

The Minns Labor Government has today unveiled its Consumer Energy Strategy: Powering our People and Communities, which they say will make it easier for households and businesses to access energy saving technologies like solar, batteries and energy efficiency upgrades, that will help reduce their energy bills and ease cost of living pressure. The strategy is designed with people at the centre, committing $290 million in new funding and outlining 50 actions to help households and small businesses cut their energy bills to help address the cost of living pressures and increase the uptake of energy savings technologies.Last year, the NSW Government commissioned the independent Electricity Supply and Reliability Check Up.The Check Up recommended that a NSW Consumer Energy Resources strategy be developed, which the NSW Government accepted.Key actions outlined in the strategy that the NSW Government has committed to implementing include:Developing a new incentive and rebate scheme to help households upgrade to energy saving technologies.This includes a $238.9 million new Home Energy Saver program with financial support targeted towards eligible households. The program will be designed and rolled out by the end of 2025. Introducing new home energy ratings from 2025 so renters and buyers have more information about the cost of heating and cooling their potential homes.Setting the first targets in Australia for solar and battery uptake, virtual power plant participation (which allows solar panels and batteries to share their capacity across the grid) and installation safety. This includes a target of 1 million households and small businesses having access to both a rooftop solar and battery system by 2035, rising to nearly 1.5 million by 2050.Improving the safety and reliability of installations by increasing the number of electrical safety inspectors.Providing practical resources and outreach so people can make informed decisions to improve energy efficiency and cut bills. This includes funding community organisations to conduct outreach.The actions outlined in the strategy will build on the good work that is already underway and will contribute to our vision for the future of energy in NSW, where all households and small businesses can enjoy the energy security, climate, health and cost of living benefits of energy saving technologies.These actions have been developed through close consultation with industry and the community.The Consumer Energy Strategy comes on top of the $435.4 million for annual energy bill rebates and debt relief, $200 million to support the roll-out of public EV charging stations and $175 million to make energy savings upgrades for 24,000 social housing homes.To view the full NSW Consumer Energy Strategy and for more information, visit www.energy.nsw.gov.au/energy-strategy  NSW Premier Chris Minns said, “There are many houses across the state that are too hot in summer, too cold in winter, and as a result, energy prices and costs for the household skyrocket.“Through the strategy, we are making it easier for households and small businesses to access the cost-saving benefits of solar panels, batteries and heat pumps while they reduce their emissions.“Having more energy-saving technologies in homes and small businesses is the best way to help households and small businesses reduce energy bills, reduce emissions and improve electricity grid reliability.”Minister for Climate Change and Energy Penny Sharpe said, “Our vision is for NSW to be a leader in the energy transition, and this strategy is a crucial step towards achieving that goal. “We want to make it as easy as possible for residents and small businesses to benefit from the energy transition, creating a more sustainable and affordable energy future for all.“By prioritising accessibility and equity, we are empowering households and small businesses to upgrade their homes and businesses. This will not only lower energy bills but also benefit our environment.“The NSW Consumer Energy Strategy is our plan to supercharge the energy transition and put households and small businesses at the centre of this work.”

Richmond RiverFest 2024 is a month-long festival celebrating all the good things we experience in, on and around the river - and it starts this Sunday.Kristin Den Exter is the coordinator of the event, produced via the Richmond RiverKeeper Association, and it is still growing. Kristin is very excited about what this will mean for the culture and communities around the river.“I'm loving that there are events along the whole catchment, from Lismore to Kyogle, Coraki to Ballina, and even the Brunswick catchments have come on board with some events as well,” says Kristin.The Brunswick Riverkeeper movement is producing positive change with their waterway, similar to the Richmond Riverkeeper Association's efforts. The inkling for the festival began two years ago with the idea to get the whole catchment involved. After a successful upper catchment RiverFest last year, this year the whole river is celebrated, and more.“We've got paddles, canoe trips, there's picnics, planting trees, water bugs, there's a bug and beer science in the pub. So I think there's something for everybody. The way these events are being planned is to engage people of all ages, including young people.”The festival program is still being added as organisations hear about it and want to get involved.(The confluence where the mighty Richmond meets the Wilsons River at Coraki)“The festival program is building, so we'll promote events week by week.”The festival launches at Lismore with the “River Time” event, sponsored by the Lismore City Council.“It's a four-week festival launching on World River's Day this Sunday, September the 22nd.“It's a lovely way of bringing the RiverKeeper network together and reaching into our communities and doing what we love, which is enjoying the waterways and being good custodians of our river.”Ballina Shire Council are also premiere sponsors, and, “they will support the end of the Festival event, “Where Waters Meet” at Coraki on the 20th of October.”Anyone with a business or an idea that can help celebrate the river is invited to get in touch. Kristin says, “As long as you host the event before October 20, I can include it in the festival.” Find out about all the events at the Richmond RiverFest website, and don't forget to check back weekly!If you have an idea that will add to the Richmond RiverFest line up, email Kristin to discuss the opportunity.For more info on the RiverKeeper programs, click below:Richmond Riverkeeper AssociationBruns Riverkeeper Alliance

Lismore City Council held an all-staff meeting last week to update employees on the council's flood recovery of all of its assets.As we have mentioned before, we are talking about a serious repair bill, northwards of $1 billion.Council's Chief Operating Officer (COO) Brendan Logan and the Director of Flood Recovery Josh Hartcher provided an update on the details of the meeting so the community is informed about the upcoming construction journey.Stage 1 was all about securing the funding for the assets that council is restoring. The good news is they have been agreed in principal with contracts being finalised and signed in the coming weeks."We've said a lot over the last couple of months that we can stop talking about funding and we can start talking about building, and that's what that means. The funding isn't going to be the issue now, we have enough confidence, whether it's actually signed off or about to be signed off, that all the money we need is going to be made available. So, no more talking about funding and plenty of talking about building," Brendan Logan said.A critical negotiation point with the state government was changing the historical way that funding was executed. As we all know, the Lismore damage bill was unprecedented in terms of size and scale, so giving Lismore City Council (LCC) 75% of the money and then being paid the final 25% upon completion was never going to work in this scenario. In fact, it could have realistically bankrupted LCC."We've been very successful in negotiating that final payment to a very small percentage so that we're always cash flow positive, and the amount that might be withheld isn't of a material amount to put council at risk.""To be honest, the details of why it's so serious is two dot points. It's not a huge amount of information. It's if you withhold this amount of money, council will be insolvent. You're never going to lose that battle. Surely, it was just getting some people with an open mind to say, okay, we accept that. Then, what mechanics do we have to put in place to deal with that?Josh Hartcher added, "That's been the battle, getting them to accept it. It was May last year when we started hearing noises out of the RA (NSW Reconstruction Authority) saying why don't we try this? But actually, that coming to pass and being locked in was March this year, with the execution of tripartites. And then that's from the seniors, but getting the wheels of bureaucracy to implement that policy has been another six months."The analogy that I would use is that a funding body putting in a commercial term of withholding 25%, yet you've got to go and build 100%. You tell me a private sector contract where that exists? No one does that. And that was accepted. It just took 2023 and lots of meetings.LCCs work in this space will help other councils negotiate funding with the state government in the event of future disasters, now the precedent has been set.In terms of the complete flood restoration body of work for LCC, they have spent less than 10% of what they need to spend and detailed plans are in place that show the final element will be complete in 2029."You can't dive into something without a plan. So currently, the plan is to complete in 2029 because we've done all of our analysis and all of our scheduling," Mr Hartcher said, "We've got some really, really high quality, experienced people at 70 Carrington Street now. We've done a lot of analysis, taking into consideration workforce accommodation requirements."In terms of project starts, a lot of that was driven by an analysis of looking at some of those roads up in the catchment. Would you start one here (closer to Nimbin Road) and then have brand new infrastructure that gets smashed by construction traffic for two years while those projects get done? Or do you start back up here and then work back? So, a lot of that intellectual work has been established to go out to market."We're now moving into a strong procurement phase. It's going to be one of the largest contracts ever issued by local government in Australia, I would suggest. The aim is to get that executed this financial year."Once you've got that contract in place, who knows what efficiencies will be found. So, at the moment, the plans are 2029. I'm a civil engineer. I did a Master's in Project Management at the University of Sydney, and I've studied lots of programs around the country. I can give you a number of examples of where there was a plan, and they did it in half that time. It would be very dangerous for us to say we would be finished earlier. That's the goal at the moment."If you think back to the two major roadwork projects on Nimbin Road to fix two landslips, they involved complex geotechnical solutions to stabilise the ground, not just for the short term but well into the future so it can withstand another major flood event.When you look at the timeline over the next five years, LCC has to space its projects, or it risks taking a large part of the Northern Rivers construction workforce away from the private sector, meaning anything related to housing would suffer. The estimated number is 600-800 people who need to be accommodated somewhere."We have all of that forecasted out. I would need to look at the forecast, but if you have to pick a timeframe, it will be towards quarter three, quarter four, next year when construction really ramps up in that landslip area. We currently have, I think, 11 procurements underway, and there are 67 projects in the red section; that's where the majority of the capital cost is. But there are 270 odd projects we have to do before that. The idea is we're getting get everything else out of the way, so that then the managing contractor can focus on the landslips."Everything else includes other parts of the roads program that aren't landslips, such as drainage, urban works, bridges, lots of road refurbishment projects, and miscellaneous projects. Then you've got the water, the waste, and the buildings.Does securing funding mean we will finally see some action in the Lismore part of the Northern Rivers Resilience and Recovery Program? So, under water pumps, drain clearing etc."When the announcement was made saying we've got shovel-ready projects, let me give you the nature of what that actually looks like from my point of view, Josh explained. "It's some words in a cell on a spreadsheet, which is an idea and a number that's been given to us. So, as a project manager, my first recommendation to my seniors was do not sign anything until we do some due diligence on this because you don't know if that two or three sentences can be achieved for that number."So, we've signed all the agreements now, but we didn't sign them immediately after the announcements because we've got to protect this organisation. I understand why that's difficult when a public announcement is made in that regard."All of those projects are in development and some of them are in delivery. Some of the drain cleaning is happening. We're liaising heavily with Rous on Hollingworth, but we have asked for an extension of time."We'll give you more detail and show you the breakdown of each of those projects and when they'll be finished as part of that whole schedule."The good news is that we are finding that most of the projects are feasible for those numbers. In fact, there's a bit of robbing Peter to pay Paul within the program to get better outcomes for Lismore."Using local businesses to help rebuild Lismore is an important factor for Brendan, Josh and the team. With so much work coming online, they have looked at the application process and tried to simplify the process."It's the team's opinion that the form of contract that we were using is perceived as being too complex," Josh said, "So if I've got a couple of bits of gear, and I'm making money, I'm okay. I don't need to sign up for that big contract that I perceive as legally nasty and risky. I'm not going to respond."We've actually spent 15 months taking the contracts from this (points to a pile two inches high), to that (one inch), to that (a centimetre). In the state government, they're all like that (two inches high), and the State's got oversight of this, so they do the thud test with the contract."So, our delivery manager is working with our commercial manager, and we're going to hold an information session for the local contractors. We're going to bring in an expert on GC29 and explain how the contract works. All local businesses should not be scared of coming and asking questions. We are getting a lot of interest and we're getting lots of questions, then our commercial team responds to them.Given the scale and size of the upcoming projects, of course, there are a lot of checks in place to avoid any impropriety."The reason our commercial team responds is because we have to operate within the state government's procurement requirements, so you've got to be very careful about how you respond. We have to assume every decision you make will cop the worst level of scrutiny. So, our commercial team is working hard on getting back to everyone and answering the questions we need."The reason that the Flood Restoration projects are spread over the next few years is so the Northern Rivers workforce is not completely soaked up to complete these projects, leaving no trades left to fix and build houses and commercial properties and the day-to-day isues."We need local businesses to compete for our work. We have to be careful about not overcooking things and actually over stimulating the economy."Brendan Logan said, "I've made that mistake before in the state government. I was given $150 million to fix showgrounds when I ran governance for Crown Lands. There's about 149 showgrounds around there. In places like Gunnedah and in the southwest of the state, I consumed the entire tradie market on the showground fix, and everything else stopped. The showgrounds looked great, but everything had stopped."Josh added, "That's a good example. I come from Newcastle. You've got Rankin Park to Jasmine happening, billions of dollars. You've got the M1 to Raymond Terrace happening, billions of dollars. You got Hexham Strait Widening, I think that's $700 million. You've got John Hunter Hospital, I think it's just over a billion. All of these mega projects are happening at the same time. The same problem exists, you cannot get a tradie, and they need the houses to be built."The supply shortage is not just tradies, it also involves the supply chain."We've actually had to help the state government convince treasury, or give the data that we've analysed this, that we have a supply chain that can deliver it if they put it in the budget. We're talking about those constraints around concrete, and they're very real. We have got to come up with innovative ways; you can't let the contractor work it out later. That needs to be dealt with during that RFP (request for proposal) phase. They understand how to get a supply chain happening for what's required." One phrase we have heard a great deal about in Lismore is "Build Back Better". We have been told that the government grants are to replace like-for-like and, as Brendan Logan has said before, we want like-for-right, so there is more flood resilience when the next moderate or major flood hits Lismore.Have the buildings been built back better?Josh Hartcher said, "On the whole, yes. To the level it needs to be, no.""Our job is to deliver outcomes, and I know that it's difficult for someone to hear that from me in the role that I'm in when you're local here, and it's two and a half years after the flood, but all the reasons why put aside, we have to focus on delivering outcomes, doing the best we can to address resilience or lack thereof, within the constraints that we have at the moment. "We are starting to find that we have a lot more flexibility than we thought, but a lot of the scoping is already done for these projects. I'll give you an example. A lot of those roads up in those areas where it's a decent amount of topography, you'll have culverts under the roads, right? That culvert has a certain cross sectional area, and if the culvert, if it's too much water that falls on this part of the road, in the catchment side of the road, and the road acts like a dam. The water goes through the culvert. If there's too much, it overtops. Bye-bye road. That's the failure action that's happened in a lot of these cases. So, if you want to build more resilience, what do you do? You put more drainage in. But under the strict definition of the guidelines, that's not eligible because that's Betterment. Now, that doesn't pass the pub test to us. We have to fight tooth and nail for that."What you have read may be difficult to digest in terms of Lismore's Flood Restoration rebuild, but it is refreshingly honest. We are getting honest answers from Lismore City Council so the community understands what is involved over the next five years.Brendan and Josh have promised to sit down and share more information on the details of the Flood Restoration projects, such as water, waste and buildings.

The Lismore App revealed John Stewart's plans for the Living School in November last year, which included the creative plans for the Brown & Jolly building on Woodlark Street.John purchased the building in January 2021, but Covid and floods have delayed progress on delivering John's vision, as has the long DA process.On September 5, the development application (DA) was submitted to council, revealing more plans for the two sites and, as you would expect, revealing some soil contamination and asbestos through the many reports that need to be accompanied as part of the DA.Founder of the Living School, John Stewart, explained the DA process, his hopes of Stage 1 being complete by June next year and answered questions about public concerns about having a school on the CBD block"Soil contamination was there, but that's all of Lismore, really. There wasn't much asbestos in that building because that building was a 1900 building.""What takes longer is the flood. Then you've got all of the design requirements and plans and going through all the planning permissions and approvals. It's a process. "I don't think people understand that to get a DA to where it's able to be submitted, you have to do a traffic report, you've got to do acoustics, you've got to do a building efficiency report, there are so many reports, traffic, flood management, mitigation. As a result of that, it's taking a lot longer than I had hoped."In terms of time, the DA process has taken John two years."We were already looking at it before the flood. When the flood came through, council asked are you still going to be in the town? Because, as you know, most people were gun shy then and wanted to get out of the town. And that people feel you should not be building in the CBD."My view is that the buildings have always been in the CBD. We understand that floods come and go. I've been in floods in '74, but the reality is that we can mitigate against floods. And floods are going to come up, massive floods, so we know it'll be three days of water. Then you have to go and clean it out. You have to do the hygiene. The building, if we do it properly, will be able to mitigate against floods."John feels that when we have another major flood after the school is open, it should take a week or two to reopen, depending on the severity of the flood."We don't want to put kids in a traumatic zone if there's a massive flood like '22. But, in 2022, we quickly moved and went down to the community hall at Lennox Head, and that was only three days later. And the reason we want to do that is because we want to make sure we support our parents and and our kids."If you're a parent and your house has been inundated and flooded, you don't want your kids around seeing you cleaning up and being in an emotional state, so we felt there was an obligation for us to get kids, give them fun, give them a sense of security, give them back to school and their mates, and then the parents can do their work."As far as timing is concerned, John is hoping the DA will be approved within 90 days, so by the end of 2024."We've looked at everything that needs to be done, we've listened to what people have said, and we're aware of what we need to do to be a successful application. We've had pre-lodgement meetings. The intention of that school, moving into that space, is to allow Lismore to feel the success in the CBD."Part of why we want to do this is, is really not out of being stupid, but it's out of being supportive and giving people an understanding that a school could empower a town. We see it around the world. This isn't a model that's uniquely here. It is a model where schools are in department stores. There's High Tech High in California, which is through that space. There are schools in Finland, where they use warehouses."So, how do you use spaces that are available in there and create a repurposed venue for community? We're not trying to make an airport waiting lounge. We're trying to get kids into a building that's got history and heritage and give them that sense of connection with a town. Lismore CBD is unique because it is a CBD. It's a square within a square; it's blocks of streets. If you go down to some of our coastal towns, there is just the one street, and then they've built another street back from it. So it's not like an intentionally designed centre of a business district, which is what Lismore is."Once the DA is approved, the build and fit-out will only take six months."We'll do it in stages," John explained, "So, the build is really repurposing a building, and the building's already there. We're looking at a six-month stage one. So, the intention would be that we would be in, all going to plan, by the middle of next year."Stage 1 will be the building in the back lanes, Eggins and Larkin Lane where Spotlight used to be."In that building, we've already got big open spaces. So, it's just us putting on a new floor and moving a roof, taking a roof off. We want to have a walled garden with a rainforest in the heart of the town, and the reason we want to do that is intentional. It gives air to that building. It allows light into that building. It wraps itself within the Back Alley Gallery."There's a creative heart of Lismore. It also allows us to mitigate against floods. So if there's flood water that needs to be cleaned, and we all know that the first thing with a flood is you've got to get in quick and get that red mud out, so we can hose that into a rainforest space, and then we mulch it so it can be regenerated and the building can breathe. Because we also know one of the most toxic things within the flood was gyprock. We don't have gyprock. And secondly was black mould. Black mould grows where there's a lack of light and where it's moist. So we take that roof off, we'll get light flooding through."The materials at the bottom floor, we're not putting classrooms in that space, per se. We'll have learning spaces, but it's really concrete slab play areas. We'll have a half-court basketball court; we're going to have a yoga studio; we're going to have a pickleball court. So, the intentional play space, where people say, Where would they play? It's designed within the build."With the lower levels being used for play space, flood preparation is a relatively easy task. Not only that, the Lismore CBD business community will benefit from the building's higher levels."We're also looking at how we support the business community during a flood. What we did last time in that flood was open our doors to all the cafes in the town because they're all having to move their fridges and white good stuff. So, we gave them the keys to the building and said just take them up and put them on the top floor. But nobody, as you know, expected the water to get into there. "So, we are designing the building to have the capacity for the commercial cafes and shops to get access to our building in the case of a major, major flood. We want to be able to support them and move those white goods, so refrigerators and freezers, and then plug them into batteries. The other thing we know from the flood is that the electricity gets cut off, so we can get a battery bank run on solar, make sure it's floodproof, and then we want to be that community space that can support small business."Stage 2 will be the Woodlark Street side, the Brown & Jolly building."In that space, we want to put in more learning areas. Have a shop front, the kids can run. We're going to change the escalator into a slippery slide. We want to do some really cool, funky things. We want to take that building back to its original state. When it was Spotlight and Better Electrical, it was all about covering everything in gyprock and putting shelves up, so you never got to see the original build."That original build as cast iron pillars. It's a 1900 building, so the roof heights are incredible. It's got pressed tin ceilings, and what had happened is they just gyprocked over it. It's got the most amazing colonial windows, that are all broken, but they're in the state; they were all just gyprocked in. So, we want people to see the heritage of Lismore, to feel a part of Lismore, and by looking at the past, you can also respect the future."There has been a great deal of speculation and community concern about what having a school in the CBD will mean for Lismore. John answered some of those concerns."We're trying to create a community where students and children and parents are part of a connected space with public facilities and walking on footpaths. There's not a traffic drop-off spot in there. There'll be, of course, parking for teachers and spaces like that, but know that the kids will be dropped off at the Conway Street space or at the Transit Centre, and they have to walk into the site."The next phase of that is we'd love kids to be riding to school, so having bike stations where the kids can get their bikes and ride with their friends and get into school through the CBD. Now, why would you want to do that? Because kids have to be in space with the place, knowing shop owners, walking through streets, so people get to familiarise themselves."We don't want this idea of you get as close as you can, you open the door, and the kid jumps out. Why would you do that? Historically, and in my experience, where we used to have schools in the centre of London, and it was all about walking through that space. And when you walk with kids, you talk with kids. And so instead of us trying to get things and rush and hurry and drop, we want to slow it down. We want kids to be part of the public arena, and those people who've had shops in that space, when they see our little kids walk into the public library, when they see our kids going walking through the town to parks or to the community gardens. That's the idea of what we're doing."Another community question has been around construction delays in the CBD."There will be minimal interruptions because where the car park space is, that's where the build will be. And the intention is we're taking the roof off. We can't go in and disturb the community, as it's operating as a CBD. So, part of this process is to take a roof off, and put a roof back on. That whole little car park space there is the facility of where you act from."I think people have to understand that we're not putting huge flaws on, and we're not we're not reshaping the building. What we're doing is repurposing and keeping loyal to that building's original look and actually, in part of it, improving it.Hopefully, that gives the community a better understanding of what the Living School will be in the CBD come July 2025.

NSW POLICE STATEMENT 8:49pmAbout 3.15pm on Sunday 15 September 2024, emergency services were called to the Bruxner Highway near Alstonville, following reports of a two-vehicle crash. Officers attached to Richmond Police District were told a Kia Rio sedan and a Lexus sedan had collided head-on. Three people were trapped in the wreckage of both vehicles, and they were treated at the scene by Ambulance Paramedics and first responders. Three people – two males and a female with age yet to be formally identified - were taken to Lismore Base hospital for further treatment. Bruxner Highway was closed to traffic in both directions while emergency services remained at the scene. A crime scene was established and an investigation into the circumstances of the crash will be conducted by the Crash Investigation Unit. As inquiries continue, anyone with information or dash cam footage about this incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.ORIGINAL STORYThis afternoon, a two-car crash on the Bruxner Highway near Gap Road at Towalbyn closed the Bruxner in both directions for two and a half hours between Lismore and Ballina.NSW Police said a bronze Kia Rio and black Lexus collided around 3:30 this afternoon, leaving three people trapped for some time.Emergency services, Transport for NSW and a Crash Investigation Unit were in attendance.Diversions were in place for light vehicles via Teven Rd and Ballina Road in both directions, with heavy vehicles using Big River Way and Summerland Way between Grafton and Casino. This was due to a 5 tonne load limit on the Tatham Bridge on the Casino Coraki Rd.The rescue operation was completed by 6pm, so the Bruxner Highway is open again.The three people are in a critical condition.More to come.

Richmond Landcare Inc. is excited to invite you to our “Frog-Friendly Gardens” workshop on Thursday, September 19th, from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM at the Education Centre, Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens. In collaboration with Flo Gardens, this event is your chance to learn how to create a garden sanctuary that supports our native frog species.Join us for an evening filled with inspiration and practical tips on how to make your garden a welcoming home for local frogs. Flo Gardens experts will share their knowledge on the specific needs of our native frogs, the threats they face, and how you can help safeguard their habitats.Event Highlights:Expert Presentations: Learn from the pros about designing effective frog habitats, understanding what frogs need to thrive, and addressing environmental challenges.Guided Tour: Explore the Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens with a guided tour, where you’ll see existing frog habitats and gather ideas for your own garden.Light Refreshments: Enjoy complimentary refreshments while mingling with fellow nature lovers.Event Details:Date: Thursday, September 19, 2024Time: 5:00 PM – 8:00 PMLocation: Education Centre, Lismore Rainforest Botanic GardensCost: $10 per participantAges: Open to all agesSpaces are limited, so don’t miss out! Reserve your spot today and take the first step towards contributing to the conservation of our native frogs.Register now at https://events.humanitix.com/frog-friendly-gardens-workshop.About Richmond Landcare Inc.: Richmond Landcare Inc. is committed to the conservation and sustainable management of the natural environment in the Lismore and Ballina region through community engagement and education.About Friends of Lismore Botanic Gardens: Friends of Lismore Botanic Gardens is a volunteer group dedicated to the development, maintenance, and promotion of the Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens, fostering appreciation and understanding of local flora and fauna.About Flo Gardens: Flo Gardens is a local business dedicated to restoring our local ecosystems, starting with the flow of water in our landscape. They specialise in fresh water pools, creeks and waterfalls and have extensive experience in what makes a healthy ponds ecosystem and how to go about constructing them, including simple solutions for backyards enthusiasts.

Australia's largest garage sale, Second Hand Saturday, is on next Saturday, 21 September 2024.You can still register your garage sale for the online listings until 5pm Thursday, September 19. Click here to register.Right now, there are 273 garage sales registered across the Northern Rivers, with Lismore holding 64, Ballina 63, Tweed 85, Richmond Valley 20, Kyogle 15 and Clarence Valley 26.When you click on the Second Hand Saturday website, click on Browse Sales, and you can search by Council Area if you don't want to travel out of your own local government area (LGA) or you can search by category, such as antiques & collectables, books, clothing, electronics and furniture.A recent study done by Charitable Reuse Australia, in partnership with the NSW EPA, found that households across the state were able to save $423 million just last year by shopping second-hand.It’s not only good for our wallets, though. The study also found that 49,000 tonnes of what could have been waste was diverted from landfills through the second-hand market.You can be a part of Second Hand Saturday by registering to hold your own garage sale, or teaming up with family, friends or neighbours for a coordinated sale. There’s also the opportunity to register a group event as a local community organisation, fundraiser, school or church.Join the reuse revolution on Saturday, 21st September, as we welcome the North Coast’s largest day of garage sales - Second Hand Saturday.Since 2005, Second Hand Saturday has served as a platform and prompt for our community to support reuse and repair.

It was an unusual night of vote counting for the Lismore City Council Elections, as the low number of councillor votes counted meant there was still much uncertainty about the makeup of the 10 councillor seats.Steve Krieg is very likely to be the Mayor of Lismore for the next four years after polling 48.17% of the vote. His nearest rival is former councillor Vanessa Ekins with 21.25% of the vote. There are still another 12,711 votes to be counted; however, the trend was clear from early in the count. Even if Ms Ekins received 50% of the Labor preferences (primary vote 13.83% as of Saturday night's count), that would take her vote to around 28%, still well short of Mr Krieg.The real battle looks to be for the final seat on council, which may well determine the balance of power.Only 13,052 votes were counted on the night by the NSW Electoral Commission, which is a very low number. That leaves 18,895 votes to be counted on Monday. As it stands, the Krieg Team has 4.66 quotas, in 2021, they had 4.87. The Greens have 2.94 quotas and have surpassed the 2021 quotas of 1.38. The increase in votes is likely to have come from former councillor Elly Bird's Our Sustainable Future party. This can also be the reason for the increase in the Labor vote from 1.16 quotas in 2021 to 2.06 quotas in 2024. Big Rob looks very likely to be voted in for a second term on council, increasing his vote from 0.67 quotas to 1.21 quotas.A full quota means one seat on council. So, the scenario as it stands is:Krieg Team 4 seats plus Steve Krieg as Mayor, so 5 seats.The Greens 2 seats Labor 2 seatsBig Rob 1 seat.With 18,895 votes to be counted, including 10,548 pre-poll (before Saturday) votes, 1,984 postal and about 1,850 below-the-line votes, there are a few possibilities.The Krieg Team gets a 5th seat (plus mayor) and retains the balance of power.The Greens get a third seat, Labor holds on to two seats, and the Krieg Team has five seats. Big Rob potentially would have the balance of power if voting were simply a left/right scenario and not case-by-case.Counting will resume on Monday morning, as there is no counting on Sunday.Steve Krieg told the Lismore App that if the pre-poll votes follow the polling booth trends, the Krieg Team should be okay. At this point, the overall vote is down in 2021. Is that a disappointment?"I wouldn't say it's disappointing. I think what the people of Lismore have to understand is that we've made some relatively unpopular decisions over the last three or four months. But we're not driven by elections or popularity; we're driven by what's right for the community and for the Lismore LGA as a whole. 'I look at different polling booths that have come in, and we've increased our voter base, for example, in Nimbin, which we didn't think we would. And we were pretty solid in the results today, and I think, given the fact that there are 10,500 pre-poll votes to come in from that same polling booth, I think we will maintain our numbers of five councillors plus the mayor. And that's probably a fair indication of where Lismore is sitting."I'm looking forward to working with the new councillors who have been elected but also, the councillors that are coming back. We've got a really good team of people who are passionate about seeing Lismore grow and thrive, and that's always been our mantra. I think we can work together as a really productive council and get a lot of good things done."Big Rob was very happy about his early voting numbers."The numbers are very good. Especially my mayoral numbers have gone up substantially. I'm very humbled by that, with people voting for me. I mean, obviously, I'm not going to be mayor, but that converts more votes to councillor votes."The numbers I'm seeing are a bit higher than that, but I'll hold at least one quota. All the experts have been messaging me and calling me, saying that I'm going to hold that one quota. So, the only issue of contention at the moment I've been talking about is whether or not the Krieg Team can hold on to their sixth quota or if they're going to drop one to The Greens, who could get three (3).The Lismore attempted to contact Adam Guise and Vanessa Ekins from The Greens and Harper Dalton-Earls from Labor, but they had not returned our call at the time of writing.We may not know the final council makeup until early October, as the NSW Electoral Commission said, "The count cannot be concluded until all postal votes have been returned to the Electoral Commissioner. The deadline for returning completed postal votes is 6pm on Friday, 27 September 2024. "When all the votes have been counted, the official announcement of the election results will be declared in writing. Results will be declared between 1 and 3 October 2024. " Now, we wait until voting continues on Monday to see if the picture becomes any clearer or if we need to wait another week.

A woman has died following a single-vehicle crash south of Lismore overnight.Emergency services were called to the Bruxner Highway, South Gundurimba, when a Volvo station wagon was found in a paddock about 8.30pm (Friday 13 September 2024), after it left the road and crashed through a fence.NSW Ambulance paramedics attended but the 65-year-old woman died at the scene.Officers from Richmond Police District established a crime scene and investigations continue.A report will be prepared for the information of the Coroner.Anyone with information about this incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000 or https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au. Information is treated in strict confidence. The public is reminded not to report information via NSW Police social media pages.

Lismore has been out and about early, casting their votes in the Lismore City Council Elections. Voting booths are open until 6pm.The St Paul's booth on Keen Street saw Steve Krieg, Adam Guise and Jasmine Knight-Smith fronting voters with how-to-vote papers. Not too many were stopping for a chat, instead grabbing the material they wanted, then heading straight inside to cast their vote.(Current Lismore Mayor Steve Krieg, Labor's Jasmine Knight-Smith and The Greens Adam Guise at St Pauls Memorial Hall this morning)Steve Krieg said he was quietly optimistic about tonight's result."But you can never take anything for granted. I wish every candidate all the very best, and whoever gets on the council, I wish them well for the upcoming four years."One of the difficulties for all parties, and especially tough for the smaller independent tickets, is covering all the 22 polling booths in the Lismore LGA."We've got all booths covered today, which is a monumental effort. Manning them is a big task, and I want to thank all the volunteers who have come out to help. And you know, we've got grand finals in many sporting codes this weekend, and so for people to give up their time and their Saturday to come out and support is really good."(Steve Krieg casting his vote)In terms of pre-poll voting during the week, is there any indicators you can take? Are people taking the How To Votes papers?"A lot of people do know what they're doing. And, you know, elections are always funny times, aren't they? People are either right into it or don't really want to know about it. Until the votes are counted, you don't really know, and the support for myself and my team has been overwhelmingly positive. But, as I said, I don't take anything for granted, and that's why we're out here all day today and every day on pre-poll to meet people and listen to the concerns and listen to the good things as well, so we'll hopefully get a good result, and press on over the next four years to make Lismore the regional centre that we all want it to be."Lismore Greens lead candidate Adam Guise said he loves election day."This is where I began my election back in 2015, running against Thomas George off the back of the coal seam gas campaign. So, being back at St Paul's nearly 10 years later is a fun experience.""Pre-poll has been great. There's been a good, steady flow of voters. We expect, probably, I don't know, half the voting population might have already done their job, but we had a good, steady flow through and good support for The Greens, so I'm really pleased."(Adam Guise casting his vote)The question for The Greens is how many councillors will be elected for the next four years?"We'll get two, and it'd be great if we got three as well. Always, the 10th or 11th positions on council is anyone's guess because you don't need a full quota. So we're hoping that we've done the hard yards and the community supports us."A frustrating turn of events for mayoral and councillor candidates is the election vote counting after 6pm. It has been decided that Lismore's pre-poll voting, of which there are 10,548, will be counted on Monday. This will more than likely delay the final makeup of council until, at least Monday, and could delay the final mayoral decision as well. However, we should get a strong indication of which direction the result will go.There were 1,984 postal votes, with 999 scrutinised already.Not everyone thinks this election is the most important item on the agenda today. A group of clowns at St Pauls Memorial Hall were highlighting Lismore's housing crisis.A spokesperson said, "We think regular people should be involved in coming up with who the next mayor is in terms of the animal vote. It's not anything to do with animals, actually, this is just to do with grassroots politics. So, we're just some clowns from the local Lismore People's Assembly, and we think that just coming together and participating together is better than voting once every four years, and what we need to build in Lismore is sort of grassroots democracy."We're going to have an assembly on the 25th of September to talk about housing. It's a very serious issue, as you can see, and one of these representatives here will do the best job for Lismore, and it's up to the people to vote with a sticker."Everyone is invited to the Housing Assembly at the Koori Mail on Wednesday, September 25, between 5:30 and 8:30pm.A reminder that it is compulsory to vote, or you will be fined.Candidate information can be found on the Meet Your Candidates button on the front page of the Lismore App. This includes all 22 voting booth locations.The Lismore App will have live coverage of tonight's results on our Facebook Page from 6pm.

Healthy North Coast’s Community Wellbeing and Resilience program has been recognised for its efforts in building community health and wellbeing resilience in the face of increasing climate disasters, winning the Resilient Australia Mental Health and Wellbeing Award for NSW.Healthy North Coast’s entry, titled ‘Climate Ready North Coast: Elevating the community service sector’, showcases the work being done as part of the Community Wellbeing and Resilience program, which resources community-led, place-based initiatives that support better health and wellbeing through disaster recovery, and build community’s ability to face future challenges.Monika Wheeler, CEO of Healthy North Coast, celebrated the award win and acknowledged the great work being undertaken across the North Coast:“Northern NSW is one of the highest disaster-declared regions in the country for frequency and severity across all three measures of fire, flood and storm. Together with South-East Queensland, our North Coast region has been labelled a disaster ‘hotspot’.1“For this reason, a connected, engaged and vibrant community who support each other in times of need is so important.“It’s been wonderful to have this important work recognised at a state level. Congratulations to the terrific local community organisations doing great work for their communities on the North Coast through this program.“Congratulations also to the other North Coast organisations who received an award.”Dr Jean Renouf, Founder and CEO of Plan C, was also present at the awards ceremony:"I am so pleased to know that Healthy North Coast's work in support of community resilience has been recognised with this significant award.“Plan C has received funding under the Community Resilience and Wellbeing program in the past and we have seen first-hand its impact and relevance. It’s an intelligent program of high quality, that brings a number of community organisations together to further our collective impact. The award is really well-deserved. Congratulations!"About the Community Wellbeing and Resilience programSince 2022, Healthy North Coast’s Community Wellbeing and Resilience program has supported 23 local community organisations to a total value of $5.3 million, through funding provided by the NSW and Australian Governments, to support the needs in our communities across the North Coast.Most recently, the 2024 funding round trialled an innovative ‘Participatory Grant Making’ approach, which includes communities in the decisions that impact them, and prioritises trust-building over traditional competitive grantmaking approaches. The winners of the 2024 Community Wellbeing and Resilience funding will be announced soon.Healthy North Coast, along with the other NSW award winners, will go on to become finalists in the National Resilient Australia Awards, managed by the Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience (AIDR), which will be announced in November at Old Parliament House in Canberra.

At what age should the potential "life worm", that is social media, be able to infiltrate our time, our lifestyle and influence our opinions?  Communication tool, coordination tool, information tool or platform of opinion and diatribe to a hypnotic marketing weapon commanding your attention… The good comes with the bad. Our Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is addressing the issue in children.With the aim of providing a nationwide voice on how and when the youth of Australia gain access to social media, Mr Albanese has called for an age assurance trial to research the best outcome for kids. Children at the age of 14 to 16 are under the microscope.“We know social media is causing social harm, and it is taking kids away from real friends and real experiences,” said Mr Albanese. The Lismore App took to the streets to see what the people of Lismore thought.Corey from Wyrallah has young children. He has only just started thinking of the impact social media might have on them, but from his own experience growing up, he sees red flags, “It’s definitely a concern. Bullying was bad enough when I was at school, let alone being able to sit behind a keyboard and call people whatever you want.“It wouldn't be a bad idea to have some kind of licence. You prove that you're responsible enough to use it. You need a licence to drive a car, as you’ve got to prove that you can drive it safely.”Molly from Lismore says, “I think that young girls don't know who they're texting. My cousin, she's got heaps of followers on TikTok, and she doesn't know any of them, but she thinks they're friends. So I think it's a good idea, but I just don't think it'll work. I think there'll be loopholes around it.”Harry looks at it from a developmental viewpoint, “I think when kids are a certain age, they need to be able to develop their own imagination, their own way of finding things out, and have time to use those skills. Constantly going to a phone, we could be potentially losing that part of our skill set.“That natural curiosity and fulfilment by going out and finding out yourself and learning the hard way about stuff before constantly Googling or YouTube. “I think it's just a tool that needs to be used in a safe space with a bit of responsibility.”Aussie thinks it's a great idea to have a minimum age restriction, “Because of the stupid things you post online. A 13-year-old can post some dumb things that they will regret probably in six months' time.”Rebecca, who has spent 10 years in Lismore says, “It's never great to restrict people from access to things, especially socials, because it keeps you informed or connect with one another. “But on the other hand, social media is not always the best for adults, even. It can be quite a toxic place of misinformation. So honestly, I'm kind of a bit undecided about it.”Ben, who works in Lismore, said, “I have younger kids, and I think it's perfect to limit them until they get a bit older.”What do Ben's kids think about it. “I haven't talked to them yet, but they probably won't be happy. If the government makes it a law to push it back, perfect. I think young kids haven't got the mind developed at a young age to be dealing with it all.“Wasting time on social media is a bad habit. We do it as adults. It’s the last thing you want to do when you are a kid because habits develop at a very early age. Developing bad habits at 12 or 13, it's hard to kick them.”Rebekkah says, “As a mum of two boys when they were younger, they wanted to be on socials. We had the rule of no social media until they turned 16 ... sadly one of them was bullied because he wasn't on socials. So, yes, having a blanket age takes the pressure off the kids... and their parents.”Kristin has a different perspective, “It's the way they connect and talk, and it's a really different way of communicating. I understand there are harms, but it's not all harmful.“I think a real issue is mental health and the lack of resources and support for young people that need support, particularly in regional and rural Australia.“I think the fear that I have around this is criminalising young people for wanting to communicate. Yeah, so it's not a good message.“I would love to see the resources that might be getting put into this, into better support for mental health for young people, because we are an epidemic. And I don't think social media is the root cause. I think it just exacerbates it.”Zane, a teacher with over 20 years of experience working with children, lends further insight into the intricacies of the topic, “This is such a complex issue. Social media plays a significant role in the lives of our children, but it is often not the positive experience it should be. “There is a lot of scope for harm, whether it be deliberate harassment, accidental misunderstandings in written communication, the inability to disconnect or accessing inappropriate material.“Hard bans are difficult to enforce and can result in a problem becoming hidden. I believe children under 12 should not be accessing social media or should only be able to use messaging apps with strict parental control. “Children aged between 13 and 16 should have restricted access that parents can monitor. The danger I see is that apps such as Snapchat, which is the preferred communication platform for high school students, do not have any parental control, and parents can't see previous messages. “Appropriate parental control and monitoring set up the ability for children and young people to be educated and supported as they navigate into the world of social media.”The age trial is designed to take all of these issues into account and more.Mr Albanese is firm that the legislation be introduced by the end of the year, “We’re supporting parents and keeping kids safe with this action, because enough is enough.”