Mayoral Column 23 February 2015
Published on 23 February 2015
Grant money on offer
Local sporting and community organisations have until Friday 1 May to stake a claim for a share of the $200,000 pool, now available under Council’s annual Community Grants Scheme.
The idea is that such grants go towards projects which develop or improve existing community facilities, provide activities or deliver services that improve the quality of life for Loddon residents.
Over the past 15 years, Council has invested more than $1.4 million in around 650 projects, worth, in total, $5 million.
The scheme funds projects on a 2:1 basis, with Council giving $2 for every $1 contributed by the applicant.
The most that can be applied for is $10,000, which requires a contribution of at least $5000 from the applicant, either cash or in-kind or both.
Last year, 44 grants were made, taking up almost the full allocation.
For more information, please phone Tony Bellenger on 5494 1200.
Boort just got a little friendlier
The Campervan and Motorhome Club of Australia (CMCA) has officially declared Boort as an RV Friendly Town.
The partnership will encourage travellers to visit Boort and in turn provide an economic boost to the community.
The CMCA do an evaluation of the general attitude of small communities and local councils as part of its assessment when identifying RV Friendly Towns.
The advantage of Boort becoming an RV Friendly Town is that the business community will benefit from the dollars spent by these mobile travellers. The value of road based tourism in Australia is estimated to be $7 billion per annum. It is important for Loddon, especially as a regional municipality, to attract as much of this revenue as possible.
Boort will join with Bridgewater, Pyramid Hill and Wedderburn as identified RV Friendly Towns.
Upgrades have started at Wedderburn’s netball court
Wedderburn’s old netball court has been ripped up, with the redevelopment works officially starting.
Concrete is set to be laid by late February and the club will erect the poles for the fence line early March.
The courts are on schedule, with works set to be finalised by the end of April, in time for the opening game of the North Central Football Netball League’s 2015 season.
New light towers will be installed and a coach’s box will be erected as the finishing touches are placed on the court.
This work will mean that 17 of Loddon Shire’s 18 netball courts have been upgraded in recent years as per our Netball Court Plan. This is a great outcome and again demonstrates the high value that Council places on our sporting clubs. The issue of the second court at Boort will now be addressed.
Calendar of events brochure
The Shire is establishing a calendar of events brochure to assist with the coordination and promotion of events that are conducted within Loddon.
Events are an integral part of our community’s social cohesion.
They are also a great time to showcase our local communities to travelling tourists, neighbouring towns and municipalities.
It is hoped all event organisers will submit their event details to us for the creation of the brochure.
This is a free way to gain a wide exposure for any community event.
The brochure is distributed throughout a number of regional visitor centres across Victoria, including the Loddon Visitor Information Centre, at tourist stands and placed in Loddon accommodation facilities.
The brochure must be completed by the first of July. If details are not submitted, events will miss out on the collaborative marketing and visitors likely to come to our region.
The brochure is organised from 1 July 2015 to 30 June 2016.
For more information, contact the Loddon Visitor Information Centre on 5494 1257.