26 July 2019

Local Government Week 2019 will be held next week from July 29 to August 4, with a full schedule events to be held in Gunnedah.

The theme for 2019 is “Your Council”, looking at the many areas council is involved in throughout the community beyond roads, rates and rubbish.

“Council is so much a part of the community, from the care provided by GoCo, to our parks and sporting facilities, cultural precinct and library, and business development,” Gunnedah Shire Council general manager Eric Groth said.

“Our latest statistics show Gunnedah people made Gunnedah Shire Council facilities a big part of their lives in the 2018-19 financial year.

“They also show how busy council staff have been across a huge range of tasks including upkeep of roads and keeping the cattle moving through the saleyards.”

Gunnedah’s Local Government Week activities will begin on Monday, July 29 with a free tour of Gunnedah at 10am with tea, coffee and scones and jam to follow. The bus leaves the Visitor Information Centre in Chandos Street at 10am and returns at 11.30am.

Other activities during the week include: a free tour of the Waste Management Facility and Community Recycling Centre; free Upcycle Art Workshops with Jade Punch; Knit, Natter, Colour and Chatter at the library; and a Free Gamers Meet and Greet.

On Thursday, August 1, there will be a free barbecue bacon and egg breakfast with Gunnedah Shire Councillors in the Smithurst Theatre Courtyard at 7.30am. There will also be a free tree giveaway and presentation of the Business Partner Program.

At 5.30pm on the same day, there will be a free screening of A Plastic Ocean at the Civic, a documentary which began when journalist Craig Leeson went in search of the elusive blue whale and found something far more disturbing.

View Gunnedah Shire’s Local Government Week Program here.

Gunnedah Shire residents’ top pics for 2018-19

• Top day at the pool – Australia Day 2019 when 1501 people made a splash. The top month was January, with 14,791 visits.
• Top movie – The Incredibles 2, closely followed by Avengers: Endgame.
• Popcorn proved very popular at the movies, with 7008 containers sold. Medium was the most popular size, with 3006 sold.
• Top reads – The most borrowed books in Gunnedah Library were the J.D. Robb In Death series; second most popular was Nora Roberts (who is the same author under a different name). The most popular genre at the library was picture books, followed by Australian fiction, thriller/mystery, general adult, non-fiction and junior fiction.
• Biggest week of attendance at the Civic Theatre – July 12-18, 2018 (791 people attended)
• Top sporting field – Donnelly Fields is used by the most groups and activities, including cricket, oz tag, touch football, softball, Little Athletics, rugby, school athletics carnivals, school cross country, colour fun runs, Australia Day activities and NIAS training.
• Most popular library program – the Bookends Literacy Assist program, followed by Toddler Time, Brain Training and Junior Brain Games.

Some top Gunnedah Shire stats for 2018-19

• 118,189 cattle were sold through the Gunnedah Saleyards for a total of $87,421,410
• 1799 guideposts were repaired or replaced across the shire
• 11,809 potholes were repaired
• 2058.26km of maintenance grading on unsealed roads
• nearly 12.3 million square metres of roadside slashing
• Top month at the Visitor Information Centre – October 2018 – 1224 people (CMCA Rally was held during this time).

Local Government across the whole of NSW:

• Employs more than 55,000 people
• Looks after more than $136 billion of community assets
• Manages an estimated 3.5 million tonnes of waste each year

Photo Caption: Pop up tree day and Local Government Week Program

ENDS

Media Contact: Eliza Gallen (02) 6740 2100.