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In this WBBROC newsletter:
  • Meeting with Ministers at Parliament House
  • Success - A Regional Waste Strategy
  • Economic Development Forum
  • New WBBROC Admin Officer
  • 2015 - A Culminating Year
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The Perfect Place News
Welcome to the December issue of the WBBROC newsletter.  We hope you find it informative and interesting, and that it gives you a glimpse into the projects and developments that the organisation has been recently working on.  

Your positive feedback has been appreciated, and we are always happy to improve the way we communicate with you.  

Don't forget that the WBBROC website www.wbbroc.org.au also has up-to-date information about our organisation and the various sub-committees, projects and events of WBBROC.
WBBROC members  meeting with the Deputy Premier in Brisbane recently.

Meeting with Ministers at Parliament House

WBBROC held its November meeting at Parliament House in Brisbane.  WBBROC has been doing this twice per year as this also gives WBBROC members an opportunity to meet with State Government Ministers. 

This time, WBBROC members met with several Ministers, including the Deputy Premier, Jackie Trad, Mark Bailey the Minister for Transport and Leeanne Enoch the Minister for Innovation.  Since the meeting with Leeanne Enoch, WBBROC has been following up with her senior Departmental officers regarding the possible funding of the Regional Centre for Innovation.

Success - A Regional Waste Strategy

As reported previously, WBBROC has been working on a Regional Waste Strategy.  This has been attempted three times in the past without agreement across the region.  That makes the fact that all six WBBROC Councils have each recently endorsed the Regional Waste Strategy developed by WBBROC in 2015 a great result.  It is a demonstration that all Councils can see the benefits of working together on common issues.

The next phase will now be developing an implementation plan to realise the benefits of the strategy.

Economic Development Forum

174 business people, Local Government representative and Government officers attended the recent Regional Economic Development Forum that was held at the Brolga Theatre in Maryborough.  The success of this Forum was due to the efforts of WBBROC, Regional Development Australia and the Department of State Development.

A diverse and inspiring range of industry speakers from Oz-Tac Engineering, Seahaus, Hyne Timber, Proteco, Wellcamp Airport and Queensland Industrial Minerals presented snapshots about how they are capitalising on opportunities available in the Wide Bay Burnett region through investment and innovation.

In the afternoon, workshops were held to help businesses focus on becoming ‘export and procurement ready’, and are well placed to capitalise on ‘digital technology and innovation’ which enabled attendees to hear first-hand about how they can position their businesses effectively.

Read more about the forum here. The date for next year’s forum will be Thursday 6 October, 2016.
Nicole representing Gympie Regional Council at the Regional Economic Development Growth Forum in Maryborough

WWBROC Admin Officer

In August this year WBBROC gained a part time Administration Officer with support from Gympie Regional Council.

Nicole Harper works in the Economic Development Unit of Gympie Regional Council and provides administration assistance to WBBROC one day per week. Previous to this she has worked for various community organisations in western Queensland that provided support and development for business  and community and was a volunteer with many local groups.

She moved to the Gympie region with her husband and three children last year and they are enjoying the opportunities the move has provided them.

Contact Nicole:
E: nicole.harper@gympie.qld.gov.au
T: 07 5481 0743
 

2015 - A Culminating Year

2015 has been a big year for WBBROC.  It also signals the last few months of the 4-year term for the current Mayors and Deputy Mayors.  During those 4 years, the WBBROC Councils have worked closely together and reaped the benefits of collaboration and being united in the priorities for the region.  Everyone involved needs to be commended on the cooperation and collaboration that has occurred.

During this time, WBBROC has developed a vision, a Regional Economic Development Strategy, a Regional Investment Attraction Strategy, an agreed number of priority projects of regional significance and much more.  In addition, it has also developed two websites to promote its work and promote the region as a place to live, work and invest.
 
Front row: Cr Keith Campbell, Lisa Desmond, Cr Wayne Kratzman.
Back: (L to R) Cr David Batt, Cr Don Waugh, Cr Robert Garland, Cr Gerard O'Connell, Cr Mick Curran, Cr Mal Forman (Chair), Peter Byrne, Mark Pitt and Bernard Smith at Parliament House recently.
So that is a solid amount of groundwork and it lays the foundations for the years ahead.  At its recent meeting WBBROC agreed on the following priorities for the immediate future:

Existing priorities:
 
  • North Burnett Minerals Province
  • Port of Bundaberg
  • Bruce Highway Realignment (Gympie) and on to Bundaberg
  • Churchill Unallocated State Land (USL) development site
  • Mary Valley Economic Development Strategy
  • Centre for Regional Innovation
Additional priorities:
 
  • Telecommunications
  • Water Security & Allocation
  • Brisbane West / WellCamp Airport & Time Sensitive Product Opportunities
WBBROC MEETING DATES
WBBROC will be meeting on the following dates in 2016:
  • Thursday 19 May
  • Thursday 18 August
  • Thursday 10 November
CONTACT WBBROC
Joe Veraa – Executive Officer
Email:  info@wbbroc.org.au
Tel:  0417 475 149
Website:  www.wbbroc.org.au
Additional regional website: www.widebayburnett.qld.gov.au 
Copyright © 2015 Wide Bay Burnett Regional Organisation of Councils Inc. All rights reserved.


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info@wbbroc.org.au

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