I fully support an independent inquiry into the Lords Place overhaul.
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In fact, I am surprised that this call has not been made much earlier.
At the present time, too many unanswered questions remain.
How could a million-dollar revamp end up in such a fiasco?
The ratepayers of Orange, who have footed the bill, are entitled to a full explanation.
Who is responsible - the councillors or senior council management?
Back in September 2023, I asked for an explanation as to why action was taken to chop down the trees before any councillor had an opportunity to lodge a recision motion.
I am still waiting.
Nothing less than a full and independent inquiry is going to provide the answers and give some proper explanation to the ratepayers.
Hopefully, an independent inquiry will also ensure that the same mistakes are not made in the future.
Bill Walsh
Road safety concerns in city's south
To follow on from Jack Moulder's letter 27/1/2024.
Orange council has closed Shiralee Road - Rifle Range Road - Hawkes Lane and Park Road.
This is all for the case of subdivisions and the southern distributor road/southern feeder road.
Parts of these subdivisions were completed and occupied prior to these closures.
This has forced all traffic in this area to travel via Pinnacle Road (a very difficult and dangerous intersection).
This traffic includes cars, school buses, trucks with and without trailers.
The road has deteriorated considerably due to the amount weight and speed of traffic.
The speed limit has been changed to 50km/h posted speed limit.
Orange City Council has been unwilling or unable to undertake maintenance on the road other than the occasional filling of potholes.
There are many areas where the pavement has broken away and numerous areas where there is a drop off or rut from the paved surface.
I have witnessed several occasions of near misses with vehicles.
The council could have concentrated on completion of the intersection of Shiralee and Park Road plus maintaining Shiralee Road.
September 2024 completion date for this work is far from satisfactory.
Road safety has not improved - it is dangerous to all.
David Phillips
Plenty to worry about
I believe it's fair to state that parts of our modern society are built on greed.
Recent concerns about the cost of living, together with a surge of inflation, have made everyday Australians look more closely at pricing and competition between supermarkets, energy suppliers and banks.
A recent report by Professor Allan Fels, that was commissioned by the ACTU, concluded that "business pricing has added significantly to inflation in recent times".
I believe that other reports have been commissioned by State and Federal governments.
I'll wait until these reports have been made public before I make up my own mind. I imagine that all suppliers, especially farmers and orchardists, will do the same.
Going back over two thousand years, it was Aesop who wrote, "thinking to get all the gold that the goose could give in one go, he killed it, and opened it only to find ... nothing."