Whitsunday Pool Party for Blake

Proserpine Pool is hosting a pool party this Saturday for a local family who needs $37,000 to buy a specially-adapted vehicle to fit a wheelchair for their son who suffers severe cerebral palsy.

Kerry Read-Zorzi says her 10-year-old wheelchair-bound son Blake is their miracle. While he can barely talk – only recently voicing the words “mum, nanna, hello and oh no”, - she says her adorable son loves to sing, dance and socialise.

“We love our son so much. We want to be able to make his life as comfortable and enjoyable as possible. Due to the enormous costs of everything he needs we find this a huge challenge at times,” Ms Zorzi-Read said.

The Read-Zorzis need a new vehicle specially modified to support Blake in his wheelchair and the growing challenges this brings.

 “We are getting a wonderful response from the community but need a lot more help to reach our goal of $40,000. The Big4 kindly helped us with a weekend last weekend April 27 and 28 and raised just over $3,000 which included many donations. We are, from the bottom of our hearts, so deeply grateful for their support,” Ms Read-Zorzi said.

The pool party which will boast a monster inflatable, hourly lucky door prizes, face painting and much more, starts at 2pm and goes until 9pm this Saturday and the cost is $8 per person or $20 for a family.

Whitsunday publican takes on the big guys

  It’s enough to drive you to drink. A Proserpine publican whose insurance company turned their back on him after pocketing $75,000 in premiums over three years due to “faulty building work” is calling on the Building and Services Authority (BSA) to “do its job or shut its doors”.

  Thomas Dunne is the publican of what is often referred to as the Palace Hotel, one of Main Street’s oldest, most iconic buildings.  It’s a family affair with all four family members working within the confines of O’Duinn’s Irish Pub collecting their wages from pouring beers, cooking meals and providing a place for travellers to rest.

  However, a dispute over water damage to the interior of the building which dates back to when the Dunnes first bought the old hotel back in 2006, has this publican close to the end of his tether.

  “We noticed the water coming in, in 2007, and then it started to get really bad. The pictures hanging on the walls were going mouldy and the water was basically coming in and dripping down the walls. It has nearly ruined our restaurant,” Mr Dunne said.

  “It was so bad … when our insurance was due for renewal in 2010, the insurance company did their report and said they wouldn’t be re-insuring us … after we gave them $75,000 in premiums over three years,” Mr Dunne said.

  The publican says their first point of call was the BSA, the government-run group which regulates the building industry in Queensland.

  “They are dragging their feet and have been for years. I want them to get the builder who did the original work to come back and fix the entire problem caused during the previous renovations - the inside and the outside.

  The BSA tells me the case is closed and that I should go to the small claims court. Well if that is the case, why don’t we all go there … and the BSA can close its doors and save a hell of a lot of money,” he said.

  The builder who emphatically denies being responsible for the water damage is Peter Bailey from Bowen.

“We met with Thomas and the BSA onsite at the hotel last Tuesday morning and we did a full hour test to try to establish where the water was coming in from. Usually the test goes for about 15 minutes but we conducted an hour-long test which showed no water entry to the building.        

 “I understand Thomas’ frustration … I do. And if the water was getting in through faulty workmanship then I would fix it immediately but it’s important to remember there were a lot of other people doing work on the building, besides me, before Thomas bought it … including air conditioning contractors and the people who moved the pokie room to where it is today,” Mr Bailey said.

  The builder says if the BSA recommends he go back to the hotel to do some more work, then he will.

  “I feel for him, and I understand his frustration but the thing is I believe the water proofing method that was originally installed on the building has failed,” Mr Bailey said.

  The general manager of BSA Queensland Ian Jennings says the urgent meeting was set up between the publican, the builder and a BSA inspector on May 1 to hopefully clarify the issue.

  “This building inspection was intended to determine whether water penetration is still an ongoing issue at this property.

  “Investigations are still pending and the BSA will be pleased to provide an update when the report is finalised,” Mr Jennings said.

  But Mr Dunne remains adamant the BSA is right at the centre of the controversy and clearly isn't doing its job.

  “They are a joke. This is their job. Not mine. Why don’t they shut their office down instead of messing with people’s livelihoods.

  “The meeting last week was an example of their incompetence. He said there was no water leaking, so I got him a chair told him to climb up and look at the pools and pools of water.

  “I was fuming, I had to walk away.”

Newly minted MP opens Whitsunday electorate office

Just over six weeks after his election, the newly-minted Member for Whitsunday, Jason Costigan, has opened the doors to his electorate office, located in Federation House on Proserpine’s Chapman Street.

There are not enough hours in the day for ‘Costo’, who traverses the Whitsunday electorate from dawn to dusk, listening to the locals who sent him to Parliament with a healthy 14.1 per cent swing.

Don’t be fooled, though. Between the parliamentary sittings in Brisbane and the meetings in the office, Mr Costigan is determined to be hearing about the local issues straight from the locals themselves.

Yesterday was spent attending a Red Cross open day in Mackay, followed by a Whitsunday Leadership Group in Proserpine, with enough time to spare for a swing by the office at 2pm.

“I’m not going to be stuck in some bunker as the invisible man,” Mr Costigan said. “I’m big on face-to-face diplomacy, and that’s the approach I’ll be bringing to the job.

“I’ll be facilitating a number of meetings with organisations, individuals and stakeholders to listen to their issues,” he said. “The issues people have raised with me so far have been consistent with the issues raised in the 57 weeks I spent campaigning.”

Today and tomorrow will be spent in Brisbane, where Mr Costigan will conclude his parliamentary induction ahead of the first parliamentary sitting week of the term, scheduled for next week, during which he will be officially sworn in as Member for Whitsunday.

Whitsundays' War on the Shore packs a punch in Airlie Beach

The crowd was on the edge of their seats the entire night on Saturday at this year’s War on the Shore fight night.

Whitsunday Boxing Club president and fight night promoter Paul Barrett described the event as ‘spectacular’ with each of the 10 fights well received and the crowd glued to the centre ring.

"All fights were really well matched and it kept the crowd on their toes because no one was really sure who was going to win," Mr Barrett said.

"That’s what you want, and it had all aspects like big Todd Housell who threw and copped big punches or Alice Fraser who boxed so techniquely it was textbook."

"Whatever you wanted it was there."

With local fighters so well matched to their opponents who travelled to the Whitsundays for the event, each round was hard fought and each win was well deserved.

"They all trained so hard and it showed. We had wins, losses and draws but everyone was at the maximum of their ability," Mr Barrett said.

Winners on the night were Evan Douglas, Todd Hounsell, Anton Zaffir and Shaun Taylor, while Alice Fraser and Cameron Mead drew their fights. Mr Barrett praised local fighter Adam Mitton who fought hard despite suffering broken ribs, as well as Jake Algie and Dan Zealand.

"That’s credit and shows his overall toughness," he said.

Mr Barrett said overall he appreciates the crowd’s participation and looks forward to the next fight night in September.

"There will be a couple of surprises for the one in September and they keep getting better. It won’t be short of a thrill."

He also said people who pre-purchase tickets to the next fight night will receive express entry through the doors and the standard of fighting will be
just as high.

Calen hotel gutted by fire

It was an emotional day on Friday as owners and locals watched on as a Calen icon burnt to the ground.

Multiple Queensland Fire and Rescue Service (QFRS) crews attended the hotel fire located on Mcintyre Street, Calen at 9.50am where they worked to evacuate the building.

Unfortunately, the hotel and its attached residence were well alight upon arrival while firefighters also worked to protect neighbouring buildings and the fire was under control
at 11.15am.

Work to monitor the situation and dampen down the scene went on for some time.

Significant damage was caused to the highway building however no injuries were reported.

Sugar industry the centre of Whitsunday arts festival

The Proserpine sugar industry is back in the spotlight.

Two locals, Lyn Fenton and Bob Barford are excited to bring a new, innovative festival to the Whitsundays, called ‘Sweet’ and solely based on the cane industry.

Being involved with small and large festivals for over 30 years, Mr Barford wanted to put sugar with spice to create a festival showcasing musicians, artists, dancers and more.

Mr Barford said all artists will be local.

"It’s a country event, not aimed at tourists, and to by no means exclude tourists, but the focus is giving local people the chance to see what they can do," Mr Barford said.

"If it becomes a tourist attraction, that’s a bonus!" he said.

"What a better subject than to loosely base this on the sugar industry..that’s the backbone here."

"We are trying to give a good show for everyone to have a look at a good musical, fun event."

Ms Fenton said she hopes the one-of-a-kind festival will bring positivity to Proserpine.

"We want to step up morale for Proserpine and make a tribute to the sugar industry which started everything," she said.

"It may even make Proserpine an arts centre..there’s lots of talent here but they’re all hidden away."

The festival intends to bring various community groups, performers, stallholders and artists together in a combined show.

"The performances will be woven together to tell a story. It will be special," Ms Fenton said.

Many groups have already jumped onboard to be part of the festival however organisers are still looking for a shanty singer, lead male and female singers, backstage hands and help with sounds and lighting.

Mr Barford and Ms Fenton are hoping people with old cane equipment will come forward for a display. There will be a meet and greet evening at 6pm on June 2 at the Proserpine Entertainment and the festival will be held on July 21.
For more information contact Bob on 0407 895 011.

Sparks fly at final Whitsunday Regional Council meeting





No truce was reached between Mayor Mike Brunker and his main challenger, Councillor Jennifer Whitney, before the final council meeting of the term, held in Bowen on Thursday.

Whilst Cr Brunker began the meeting by thanking Council staff for their work over the last four years, Cr Whitney succeeded in steering attention towards the controversial Airlie Beach Main Street Project.

Cr Whitney submitted a notice of motion calling for Council to hold a public meeting at the Airlie Beach PCYC within a month to provide a community update on the project.

"Walking around the streets of Airlie, there’s still a great deal of confusion," Cr Whitney said. "Businesses are struggling to survive week by week."

Cr Brunker was critical of the suggestion.

"Putting something like this onto a new council has never happened in my lifetime," Cr Brunker said. "We may as well set the budget now, too."

Despite Cr Whitney claiming that "people are very anxious to have a community meeting," the motion was defeated.

The second motion submitted by Cr Whitney requested Council to advise of the total debt following the funding of the Water and Sewerage Infrastructure.

Cr Brunker claimed that the figures had been available since 2011.

"In two days you could be mayor, and you don’t know that information," Cr Brunker said.

After the two motions were debated, Whitsunday Regional Council CEO John Finlay praised the achievements of the Mayor and Councillors.

"This isn’t something you can learn by reading a textbook," Mr Finlay said.

Mr Finlay acknowledged Council’s achievements, among them the Bowen PCYC, front beach development, sewerage treatment and water treatment facilities, the Whitsunday Coast Airport upgrades, extensive road upgrades, and the "tackling of inherited deficit from the previous council."

"This council has set the bar for the next," Mr Finlay said.

Cr Mark Gaudry, who chose not to recontest his position as Division 6 representative, used his final meeting to deliver a light-hearted speech, thanking council staff, his colleagues and his constituents.

"Thank you for your friendship, help, advice and support," he said.

"Council is a cross between the Commonwealth Bank and Vinnies," Cr Gaudry said. "You’ve got to run an efficient business, while also being the first port of call for support and donations."
Cr Gaudry expressed his faith in the local government system, and wished current and prospective Councillors well.