ORANGE City Council has struggled in the past to fill quorums in some of its community committees, however recent efforts appear to have solved the problem.
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The council asked for applications from the public late last year for its 22 committees – the advisory groups are consulted on council policies and also have the opportunity to raise concerns in their respective fields.
As a result, 115 were chosen to be part of a committee, with 24 of them part of multiple advisory groups.
Matthew Chisholm, who ran independently as a councillor in September, will be part of six, while long-serving contributor Elizabeth Griffin will be on five.
She will rejoin the cultural heritage, museum, centenary of World War I and Orange-Cabonne road safety committees and add the showground committee.
“I would really like to see the showground become a lot more user-friendly so people are more inclined to use it,” she said.
At the very least, she wanted to see a fresh coat of paint and anti-pigeon measures in the old pavilion, plus a kitchen and toilets near the recently-added Naylor Pavilion.
“The toilets are right up near the old pavilion and it’s a long walk,” she said.
A founding member of the cultural heritage committee in the early 1990s, she said there was still a way to go to ensure visitors to Orange learned more about its history, including improving Banjo Paterson Park and better promoting Fredericks Valley’s colonial cemetery.
“I believe strongly in Orange – I was working all over Australia and fell in love with it,” she said.
Three past councillors have also decided to remain involved with the council through the committee structure.
Ron Gander has enjoyed the extra leisure time since September, but he will be part of four committees, some of them he was invited to.
They will also include the showground committee, which was his particular passion before he became a councillor, when the facility was under threat.
“That’s when I got revved up,” he said.
During his four years serving in an official capacity, he said the committees remained one of his favourite parts of the job.
“Being the chair of the services policy committee, I was part of a lot of the [smaller] committees,” he said.
Fellow former Chris Gryllis will be part of four, including his favourites, the Tidy Towns and Sister Cities committees, while Neil Jones will join two.
Community members
- Ageing and access: Maureen Morgan, Matthew Goodacre, Sue Duchnaj, Joel Everett, Kim Gray, Ron Gander, Lina Moffitt, Darryl Curran, Anthony Gosper, Samantha Rath.
- Airport: Andrew Richards, Jason Vials, Michael Seccombe, Rohan Williams, Robert Alford, Peter Rodgers, Anne Salter, John Pullen.
- Australia Day: Siobhain Harvey, Ian Hatswell, Stephen Brakenridge, Ann Hailes, Katherine Tollner, Matthew Chisholm, Peter Chilcott, Geoff Bargwanna.
- Centenary of WWI: Charles Everett, Les McGaw, Elizabeth Griffin, Julie Sykes.
- Clifton Grove: Rob Nevins, Matthew Chisholm.
- Community Safety and Crime Prevention: Ron Gander, Sam Nelson, Lyn Bocking, Frederick Maw, Anthony Daley, Gavin Hillier.
- Companion Animals: Jan Tallents, Susan Sanders, Helen Wood, Anne Reith, Neil Jones, John Wills, Adrienne Hiskens.
- Conservatorium and Planetarium: Nat Burgio, Rodney Somerville, Melanie Smyth, Phil Stevenson.
- Cultural Heritage: Elizabeth Griffin, Charles Everett, Alexandra Rezko, Alison Bennett, Phil Stevenson.
- Economic Development: Tim Hall, Russell Tym, Bruce Buchanan, Michael Banks, Tony Healey, Greg Beileiter, Phil Gunn, Gemma McDonald, Neina Campbell, Craig Hort, Annella Powell, Darryl Curran, Learne Spicer, Bernadette Novotny, David Mallard.
- Environmental Sustainability: Nicholas King, Daniel Fock, Melissa Brown, Melanie McDonell, Neina Campbell, Robert Alford, Shahreen Alford, Andrew Kennedy, Annella Powell, Ronald Finch, Gavin Hillier, Anne Salter, David Mallard, Anwen Carney.
- Floodplain Management: Robert Alford, Cyril Smith.
- Health Liaison: Ricky Puata, Janette Savage, Jannine Bailey, Catherine Hawke, Jennifer Bennett, Chris Gryllis, Matthew Chisholm, Alison Bennett.
- Lucknow: Natalee Selwood, Deidre Beasley, Daniel Taurins.
- Museum: Elizabeth Griffin, Phil Stevenson.
- NAIDOC Week: Chris Gryllis
- Orange and Cabonne Road Safety: Lina Moffitt, Elizabeth Griffin, Shaun Eggleston, Matthew Chisholm.
- Parks, Trees and Waterways: David Perry, Gemma McDonald, Neina Campbell, Annella Powell, Brendan Stuart, Dennis Croucher, Neil Jones, Mathew Chisholm, Cyril Smith.
- Showground: Morrie Meagher, Peter Naylor, Ron Gander, Button Dunn, Elizabeth Griffin.
- Sister Cities: Graham Bloore, Chris Gryllis, Douglas Brooks, Bryce Ostini, Robert Brown, Junko Goodacre, Shery Pirie, Aya Hurford.
- Sport and Recreation: Alison Bennett, Michael Thornhill, Scott Holmes, Shahreen Alford, Kim Gray, Peter Rodgers, Annella Powell, Brendan Stuart, Shaun Eggleston, Darryl Curran, Gavin Hillier, Matthew Chisholm, Gary Norton, Stephen Martin, Catherine Lawrence, Wayne Hill, Peter Jarick.
- Spring Hill: Kerry Rains, Trevor Clark, Jeffrey Nalder, Nicole Day, Sam Nelson, Peter Rodgers, Stephanie Huysmans, Allison Rodgers, Terri Newman, Suzanne Vials, Simon Oborn.
- Tidy Towns: Alison Banks, Tony Smith, Chris Gryllis, Frederick Maw, Ron Gander, Wendy Fisher.