THE Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) Annual Conference brought together councils from all over Queensland recently to discuss issues confronting their communities.
Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding said it provided the city with the opportunity to put forward a motion calling on better protecting our heritage during the development assessment process.
“As our city grows, it is crucial that we preserve our historic sites and we call on the State Government to grant Council the power to decline demolition of heritage buildings, if it is a result of poor maintenance,” Cr Harding said.
“We also advocated for greater funding support to combat the spread of fire ants, a significant environmental threat to the Southeast.
“The responsibility for fire ant suppression, management and treatment costs have transferred to council, but additional funding for appropriate equipment and resources has not.
“Another important issue we raised was the need to extend the State and Federal Voluntary Home Buy-Back Program.
“Our call for an extension of this program would ensure that more residents in vulnerable areas will have access to this important support.
“Although a late motion regarding the alignment between the outcomes of the Flood Commission of Inquiry 2012 and the Planning and Environment Court was ultimately withdrawn, we agreed that the issue would be considered by the LGAQ Policy Executive, ensuring it remains a priority for future discussions.
“The motion was put forward after a recent verdict of the Planning and Environment Court, which overturned a decision of Council to allow a development to proceed on flood affected land.
“I was also honoured to be asked to address this year’s conference to discuss cost shifting to local government and our We Can’t wait campaign.”
The motions put forward by Ipswich City Council included:
• That the LGAQ request the State Government to amend the Local Government Regulation 2012 to make clear the ability of councils to levy a separate rate or a separate charge using the rateable value of land in the local government area. (Passed 198 votes to 9);
• The LGAQ calls on the State Government to provide funding to cover appropriate equipment and resources, estimated to be $300,000 annually, to each council that supports the shift of red imported fire ant suppression, management and treatment costs under the Queensland Government’s Fire Ant Suppression Taskforce Plan 2022-2023 to 2025-2026. (Passed 213 votes to 1);
• That the LGAQ call on the State Government to:
o Expedite the work outlined in Recommendations 11 and 12 of the Qld Heritage Advisory Panel in relation to revising Heritage Act provisions relating to essential repair and maintenance work to meaningfully and effectively allow for the protection of at-risk local heritage places by local governments, and;
o As part of the work being carried out in (1) above, grant Local Governments power when assessing development applications involving local heritage places to decline demolition if the local government forms the view that structural inadequacy is a result of the place not being properly maintained. (Passed 208 votes to 11);
• The LGAQ calls on the State and Federal governments to initiate an extension of funding for the Voluntary Home Buy-Back Program. (Passed 210 votes to 8);
Ipswich City Council also put forward a late motion for consideration, which was later withdrawn for further discussion by the LGAQ Policy Executive:
• The LGAQ calls on the State Government to undertake an urgent review of the efficacy of land use planning instruments to ensure that planning decisions made by assessing authorities including State Government, Local Government, Building Certifiers and the Courts are consistent with the intended outcomes of the Commonwealth/State Voluntary Home Buy-Back Program and the findings of the Floods Commission of Inquiry 2012, encompassing efforts in taking people out of flood impacted areas and avoiding development in inappropriate locations.
