One step forward four steps back

Tony Fung flies into Cairns to meet his most ardent supporter

Tony Fung's original plane

Good to see ya buddy

Tony Fung and Justin Fung along with Michael King flew into Cairns to meet up with his mate Bob Manning who supports Aquis like a religion.
 I thought that the Mayor would listen to his constituents as the majority now don't want Aquis residents have had enough of the crap that's gone on in the past.
Why did the Fungs have to fly to Cairns to tell Bob that Aquis is hoping to go ahead without the casinos which doesn't make any sense at all as this project will be the most expensive resort without a casino in the world no other country would be silly enough to even contemplate a move like this.
What was wrong using Skype or a telephone so much cheaper than cruising in on a 757 and then fly back to Hong Kong following the meeting.
The chances of a licence being issued now are doubtful as they have had to pull out of the IRD process so maybe Great Keppell Island may get the licence that they are looking for their proposed casino.
The other concerns the rise up is the aquarium being built in Cairns but Fung is also going to include the following sounds like duplication:

(1). Aquarium
(2). Theatre...Cairns is in the process of building a new one
(3). Convention and exhibition centre & cultural centre... Cairns already have one.

It has been stated that that a casino would be included but the the Aquis project director would not elaborate does the left hand really knows what the right hand is doing.
Even though this may only be the first stage a resort of this size ($2 billion dollars) it can't been seen to support this without a casino so will this really go ahead or is it another smoke screen as we have seen in the past.
The Treasurer should have a better understanding that a population of 160,000 would not support Aquis and the tourism side changes all the time....god help Cairns.
Again I say that Cairns have more important things to consider and do in Cairns such as roads, footpaths, water infrastructure and cleaning up of the CBD.
Don't expect to see much community consultation on this as we haven't seen in the past from council it really doesn't exist, SHAME REALLY.

Check out the comments in the Cairns Post:

If this wasn't so serious it would be funny

It's becoming so bloody boring..... IT ISN'T THE GOVERNMENTS FAULT

The Mayor Bob Manning

 

 

 

 

Deborah Hancock 

They're on the "band wagon" again... Deborah Hancock, Trent Twomey and the Mayor Bob Manning who want the government to "FAST TRACK" Aquis why? Cairns won't benefit from it nor will boost Cairns image. 

 

Trent Twomey

In their words "A CAIRNS business leader is warning the Queensland government to stop playing politics with the $8.15 billion Aquis Great Barrier Reef Resort proposal and work to get the game-changing plan approved" read more:
http://www.cairnspost.com.au/business/chamber-calls-for-aquis-decision-to-be-made-quickly/news-story/3ba2d8bee7b9fdd14aa49e0ec1c92eda 

 also check out the Weekend Post March 26, 2016

The past 3 years has not shown any progress what so ever except
to say "there will a big announcement shortly" regarding Aquis but don't hold your breathe.
The most important thing to remember is that when the trade agreement was signed during the Tony Abbott reign any invetsor who invests more than $150 million dollars does NOT HAVE TO USE AUSTRALIAN WORKERS so why are people pushing this project as Cairns will get nothing as far as employment goes.
Tony fung walked away from the Gold Coast Sheraton Mirage  the same as he did with the Cairns project and he probably will walk away again.
Interesting to read recently that Tony Fung stated that he had considered purchasing the Reef Casino but had "backed off" due to the possible hostility with shareholders.
He (Fung) needs to be aware of the hostility within the community of Cairns after he walked away from the Reef Casino and left town quietly and purchased the Canberra Casino which still does not have pokies and probably never will.
Now we have The Mayor of Cairns, CEO of the Cairns Chamber of Commerce and Trent Twomey from Advance Cairns which is supported by the Cairns Regional Council (the Mayor is a director of Advance Cairns) and receives donations every year why, they never seem to do anything that we hear about.
We always hear the Fungs are having positve discussions http://www.cairnsvideonews.com/2015/09/positive-talkswheres-paper-work.html 
but nothing happens which is not surprising as they have not yet submitted the required paperwork the same as they did with the LNP when they were in power.
To think that the 3 above mentioned people are demanding that the government fast track the Aquis licence is totally irresponsible taking into consideration that this is an $8.5 billion dollar project and if it's not done right then the rate payers will end up paying to clean up the mess.
Remember when Aquis first surfaced at a cost of $4.2 billion dollars the Fungs were going to do marvelous things such as build four lane road build an overpass at the Caravonica roundabout etc then the announcement came that the design had changed and the cost a staggering $8.5 billion dollars all paid for by the Fungs but they changed their offer towards infastructure and stated that they assist in a small way why because they probably didn't have the cash.
They bought the Canberra Casino and were to place it on the Hong Kong stock exchange which didn't happen it was eventually put on the Australian stock exchange http://www.cairnsvideonews.com/2015/08/gold-coast-investor-tony-fung-floats.html   
Eventually the public found out through the media that Tony Fung had secured two investors to help build Aquis or is this another ploy? we will have to wait and watch.
http://www.cairnspost.com.au/business/aquis-forms-key-chinese-alliance-to-finance-cairns-casino/news-story/c232510f2cb739caec27ee57fee2c24c
Comments in todays Cairns Post showed that 95% of the people commenting don't want Aquis, why, because they are fed up with all the bullshit that has gone on with this project.
To the civic leaders start doing things for Cairns businesses and the council should be more concerned with roads, footpaths and tidying up the CBD.
Cairns is a TOURIST REGIONAL CITY NOT A GAMBLING CITY.
If Aquis was to go ahead (which I doubt) this will create more heartbreak within families, more prostitution, increase in crime and has happened everywhere else the triads will be involved somehow and no work for locals and Cairns will be lost forever.
Finally, it cannot be found from 2011 to 2015 a listing showing that Tony Fung is a millionaire let alone a billionaire.

Smithfield bypass... will it work?

The Smithfield  roundbot at present

 

Possible bypass in RED.

Planning for Smithfield Bypass underway:

THE  horror Smithfield peak-hour gridlock could become a thing of the past in under three years, much to the relief of frustrated Cairns commuters.
Yesterday Barron River MP Craig Crawford announced a $1.69 million planning study had started on the long-awaited Smithfield Bypass project.
The road would likely travel through mostly cane farming property in an almost straight line between the McGregor Rd and Yorkeys Knob roundabouts, and could save as much as 20 minutes on a trip bet­ween Palm Cove and the city.
The announcement could not come soon enough for Cairns motorist Jarryd Flower, 23, who spends about 45 minutes each morning driving from Edmonton to his job in Smithfield.
“Thank God,” he said when told by the Cairns Post of the funding announcement.
“I don’t even know how to describe it – the backlog is ridiculous. It should be a 20-minute drive.”Mr Flower, who drives a Mitsubishi Triton ute, estimated the stop-start gridlock was costing him about $40 extra in fuel each week.
“Every dollar does help,” he said.
“It’s also timing, it’s the waiting.”
Mr Crawford said that, while the State Government had already bought much of the land for the bypass, there were still a few properties that needed to be acquired.
He said he expected a ­design for the road would be complete before the end of the year, and construction – estimated to cost about $120 million – could be finished in two years.
“This is about getting the necessary studies and planning work behind the scenes that has to be done for these large projects,” Mr Crawford said.
The possibility for motorists to enter and exit at Caravonica on to the Cairns Western ­Arterial Rd, and traffic lights at the Yorkeys Knob roundabout will be considered in the ­design.
Mr Crawford said he would work hard to stop the proposal falling by the wayside as other projects across the state competed for limited funds.
“Residents can be assured that I will be in the ear of the Treasurer, Premier and Main Roads Minister to get this ­important project happening,” he said.
A $1.69 million planning study has started for the proposed multi-million dollar Smithfield Bypass project, north of Cairns.
Member for Barron River Craig Crawford said planning was underway for the new project, which looked at linking Yorkeys Knob and McGregor Road roundabouts, bypassing Smithfield.
“Previous planning has consistently shown this proposed bypass is the best solution for reducing traffic volumes and congestion at the Smithfield and Caravonica roundabouts,” Mr Crawford said.
“Preliminary estimates indicate stage one of the proposed bypass is likely to cost about $120 million.
“We are looking at the possibility of including a two-lane divided road between Yorkeys Knob intersection and McGregor road, the signalisation of the Yorkeys Knob roundabout, and upgrading the Caravonica roundabout to a double right turn from Captain Cook Highway to Cairns Western Arterial Road.”
Mr Crawford said the proposed bypass would reduce congestion at the Smithfield and Caravonica roundabouts.
“The bypass would also provide a more efficient route from the northern beaches to Cairns city,” he said.
“We expect to have a business case completed for the proposed bypass by December 2016.
“Once planning is complete, any funds for detailed design and construction of the proposed Smithfield bypass will have to be prioritised against other important projects across Queensland’s 33,343-kilometre, state-controlled road network.
The photo with the RED LINE is the possible by-pass route which will run behind Bunnings and on the northern side of Catana Wetlands.
The bypass will come out on McGregor Road near the Campus Shopping Centre but as yet the hook up with the Captain Cook Highway is yet to be decided.

Meet Your Candidate Report...Yorkeys Knob Division 8

March 14, 2016

Report from ‘Meet the Candidates’ forum

On 10 March YKRA held a meet the candidate forum at the community Centre. More than 50 residents from Division 8 had an opportunity to listen to and question the mayoral and divisional candidates for the upcoming local council elections.

It was terrific for the community to be able to discuss issues relevant to the Cairns and northern beaches.

Some of the issues of particular and concern were:

1. Approval of seven story apartment in Atherton Street, Yorkeys Knob. Residents expressed dissatisfaction with the lack on consultation and transparency regarding this decision. Current Division 8 councillor, Jesse Richardson, when asked about her position on this, acknowledged that more consultation should have occurred. The Connect Cairns team agreed that the process was flawed and that they would consult and engage with the community on any development that was not in line with the approved local government planning guidelines.

2. Green train. Cr Bob Manning confirmed at the meeting that the proposed light rail between Gordonvale and Palm Cove would not commence for some time yet and that over the four years, Council would engage a consultant to undertake a feasibility and finance study. He acknowledged that it would be necessary to discuss this with State and Commonwealth in the future. Cr Manning also commented that the Cairns Post did not report correctly his statement about the costings. There was also confusion with Cr Jesse Richardson advising some residents that another scenario may include the construction of a bike path, instead. Connect Cairns re-confirmed their transport policy which includes securing a light rail corridor in line with anticipated future population growth and working with the State government to by-pass the Smithfield roundabout.

3. AQUIS. Cr Bob Manning confirmed that the Unity Team would approve the development proposal, but that he understood it would be a scaled and modified version of the current plan. He suggested that the Unity team would be making an announcement on this project, but that approvals from State and Federal levels of government were some time away. Connect Cairns stated that they were willing to talk to anybody that wanted to invest $8Billion into our economy, and that it was the responsibility of council to ensure proper process once the material change of use (MCU) application is received by the proponent.

4. Council procurement. Following a statement from Jim Brooks accusing the current council of questionable purchasing a resident directed a question to Jim Brooks requesting an example of such questionable purchasing.
5. Jim Brooks provided two examples including one which he claimed a ‘sole provider’ contract was given to a company to the value of $1.2M, when there were clearly other potential suppliers of goods and service of that nature. He also spoke of a company which was given “preferred supplier” status 9 weeks before it went into liquidation, and queried the effectiveness of the pre-qualification assessment.
   Given the seriousness of the accusation Cr Bob Manning committed to having an immediate review to be available within 24 hours of the issue by council 's internal auditor. He commented that “one of us will have to apologise when the report's findings are available”

Once again the YKRA provided a forum for the community and all reports show that it was another successful event.

We thank the participants and in particular, you, the community who attended this presentation.

Maurice Milliner

President – Yorkeys Knob Residents Assoc. Inc.

STOP PRESS. Re item 4. YKRA has received a reply from the CRC CEO Peter Tabulo responding to the concerns raised about council procurement. We are providing this reply for your information: an internal auditor rather than an independent investigator had looked at only the parking machine issue.

From: Tabulo Peter <p.tabulo@cairns.qld.gov.au>

Subject: Meet the Candidates Forum

Date: 11 March 2016 6:15:18 pm AEST

To: "'mauricemilliner@tpg.com.au'" <mauricemilliner@tpg.com.au>

Dear Mr Milliner, at last night’s meeting a matter was raised in the Mayoral Candidate forum relating to the procurement of parking meters in the CBD. The Mayor indicated that he would have the matter reviewed and information provided by today.

Given that this matter was raised at your association’s event, I considered it only reasonable for you to receive a copy of the review by an independent internal auditor and I ask whether it is possible for you to circulate it to those residents who were present.

I will be providing Mr Brooks with the details as well.

I thank you for your assistance in the matter.

Peter Tabulo
Chief Executive Officer
Cairns Regional Council
Phone: +61 740443017 Mobile: +61 0409596244
p.tabulo@cairns.qld.gov.au | cairns.qld.gov.au
PO Box 359, 119-145 Spence St, Cairns Q 4870

Preliminary Advice - Regulated Parking Technology Upgrade - Procurement compliance- 11 March, 2016

Dear Peter,

Thank you for your time today, and for making senior executives and officers available to walk-through at a high-level the procurement approach for the selection and award of Regulated Parking.

Technology Upgrades, including the rationale and approach for use of s.235 Other Exceptions allowed under the Local Government Regulation 2012, Part 3 - Default contracting procedures.

I understand from the information provided by your team, and my examination of the Governance Committee Resolution (17 June 2015) Item1. Sole Suppliers and Council Original Meeting

Resolution (29 July 2015) Item3. Project Launch Approval Regulated Parking Technology Upgrades, that benefits existed for the organisation to adopt consistency in the make and model in

its fleet of Pay & Display Parking Machines (Regulated Parking Technology) and to take advantage of technology advancements.

The organisation had various makes and models of Pay & Display Parking Machines in active use in the field for many years. This enabled CRC officers to assess the performance of the various

technologies equipment maintenance and suppliers in a Rlive practical day-to-day settings. Based on the results of officer Rin-field observations and a test of the market through a medium-scale contracting arrangement on two occasions, officers had evaluated that one provider of Parking Ticket Machines and associated maintenance was most suitable for the organisation s needs.

This provider was the Reino International Pty Ltd (trading as Duncan Solutions).

In June 2015 the Governance Committee resolved, on advice of Officers, to accept the Annual Sole Supplier list for the 2015/16 Financial Year, which included the Reino International Pty Ltd (trading as Duncan Solutions). In July 2015, Council resolved at its Ordinary Meeting to accept the Officers recommendation that Regulated Parking Technology Upgrades be undertaken The Officers Recommendation Report noted that a supplier from the Approved Sole Supplier Listing 2015/16 would be the engaged party to complete the contracted components of the upgrade project.

From the information provided to me on 11 March 2016; my enquiries of your team about the process of evaluating the suppliers of Regulated Parking Technology locally and the basis for their decision to recommend Reino International Pty Ltd (trading as Duncan Solutions) to the Governance Committee as a Sole Supplier, together with my knowledge of the application of the legitimate exceptions to open tendering available to Councils under the Local Government Regulation 2012, Part 3 - Default contracting procedures s.235 Other Exceptions, I am satisfied that the legislative requirements were complied with.

Peter, please note this represents my preliminary advice, and is my view in the absence of any other

information being disclosed that may alter the conclusions I have drawn. I will provide a formal letter next week covering the above.

The apology has arrived 12 days later

Jim Brooks Mayoral Candidate

Following John schillings outburst on radio aimed at the Mayoral candidate Jim Brooks, the Divison 2 incumbent has today issued a pre-recorded apology on the remarks he made on Wednesday February 24, 2015.
One has to ask why has it taken so long for the apology to be forthcoming? taking into consideration

4CA talkback host John McKenzie made an "on air" apology on Friday February 26, 2016, maybe someone received a letter in the post which quickly prompted the apology on radio today.
Rather than go on listen to what John Schilling had to say:



If you did not believe Jim Brooks had done no wrong why say it in the first place.
Credibility shot down.

Again they line up....

Jim Brooks the Mayoral Candidate for the Connect Cairns team was again on talkback radio and again the usual "ready to get you" callers were lining up for their spill.
Jim Brooks again proved that he can handle the heat and answered all questions without raising his voice or cutting anyone off (which you probably feel like doing) and one of the callers was Bob from Forrest Gardens (crime stopper person) who was also on the talkback show on Thursday February 25, 2016 the day after Jim Brooks made his first radio appearance saying that in his opinion he felt that Jim Brookd was arrogant and didn't want to liten to anyone and taking over the callers, well Bob I listened to that session and I didn't hear him trying to talk over the callers.
Bob also tried to get into Jim Brooks on todays talkback and at one stage said that he should get his head out of the clouds and went on talking about the dredging and that the present council support the dredging as it was an important part of Cairns.
As Jim Brooks said on Feb 25 and again today that the council doesn't make the decision as far as the dredging goes it's up to the Federal and State Governments and if they won't move then there's nothing really that can be done except to protest.
Having been on the dredging committee I personally know the hard work that the committee put into the process and have done the best they can.
There are Bob a lot more important things to be done around this city but the incumbent Mayor and some councillors have their minds set on Aquis and if they think that Fung is going to throw money around all one can say is "don't hold your breathe".
I have never met Jim Brooks but listening to him he seems to have a good grip on what should or could be done around this city and nothing seems to faze him and is a very good speaker.
You can't please everyone and council elections are no different, people will stick with Bob Manning and others will probably go with Jim Brooks.
Deborah Hancock stated in the post following the debate between the incumbent Mayor and Jim Brooks that she couldn't pick a winner so the election should be very interesting.
Here's  today discussion with Bob and Jim Brooks:

Council's reply to the 7 storey 54 units in Yorkeys Knob

Ssshhhh say nothing

 Yorkeys Knob Residents Assoc  learned through the media in November 2015 http://www.cairnspost.com.au/business/yorkeys-knob-highrise-development-approved-by-council/news-story/bb369871ac82fa931ed2214a003d8763
that the council had signed off on the construction of a 7 storey 54 unit complex in Atherton St, Yorkeys Knob without any consultation with the community.
After reading the councils reply you can understand why they don't have to consult with the community, read paragraph 3 and 4.
Typical council getting away without consultation as they knew that there would people asking questions.
Yorkeys Knob Assoc were told in November 2015 by Division 8 councillor Jessie Richardson at the completion of her bi-monthly report that the "Atherton St was going ahead" without explaining what the work was.
Also it's been discovered that the application went to council in May 2015 yet during the following 6 months and the commumunity had not been advised and keeping in mind that this will be the tallest construction on the Northern Beaches.

We pay their wages