Letters to the Editor - January 4

Delight and good humour abounds in Batemans Bay with the decommissioning of paid parking, on the initiative of Mayor Liz Innes.

Business houses, shoppers, (local and tourist,) are  indeed using this Chistmas bonus to full advantage.

Whilst doing last minute Christmas shopping, a comment was made about the difficulty elderly and slow moving people, in particular two icons of the shire, Gwen Wray and Robyn Innes, have in using the half-hour parking to get to the post office or bank; this even more so with the long queues.

My Eurobodalla Shire Council colleague, Cr Phil Constable, and I have been asked if the parking limits could be changed. Having been in business, we are very aware of the need to have a turnover of parking facilities (some of the logic for paid parking).

As a pharmacist (retired), I am aware of the procedure and the limitations involved  for medical practitioners to fill in forms for patients who need to get a disabled-parking permit. Similarly, there is a recognised duration of healing period, post-operatively. Some shires have stickers for ratepayers to use on their windscreens to exempt them from paid parking.

We propose to give a notice of motion to council for our first meeting in 2017 that "the ESC create and trial  a new community service; a double-time parking sticker, which would allow a vehicle to park double the time.”

Blank stickers could be given to medical practitioners to fill in the section “Valid until”, and the car registration number. Someone temporarily incapacitated, e.g. post-operative knee  replacement, could  be given six weeks. Someone who can get around, but moves slowly e.g. the elderly, might be given 12 months. Duration would be at the discretion of the practitioners.

Cost should be minimal. We do not foresee practitioners refusing the minute it would take within a consultation. Rangers would need to be a little more aware, and we would have a very grateful section of the community.

We would be very interested in feedback from residents and ratepayers as to this proposition.

Memo to our visitors: the same road rules apply here in sleepy old Broulee as they do wherever you came from to enjoy our beautiful beaches etc.

This includes not walking down the middle of the road with total disregard for any vehicular traffic.

It’s a pity a few bogans spoil it for the majority.

It’s disappointing our politicians who, at election time, plead with voters to elect them and then completely change personality, from wanting to be representatives of communities to dictators of communities, often making decisions and rules that are detrimental to a large number of the voting population, who provide them with incomes and lifestyles they’ve previously only dreamed of.

They never seem to support a reduction in their salaries, remunerations etc.

What about their taxpayer-funded pensions? No, they don’t touch them, do they?

They just continue at compounding, nationally unaffordable, amounts. They retain their fortunate lifestyles; they all agree to screw those who had faith and believed their election propaganda.

We are all putting up with a morally corrupt process.