The building and plumbing applications.
Plumbing. We have had a response from Sunshine Coast Regional Council, with authorisation of our application to install a sewage system.
The site plan above for the approved sewage system is taken from a drawing of the origional concept for the hall property. The Council has approved a modified plan, noting that the toilet block will be incorporated into the hall building. The siting of the tanks will vary, but the placement of the ETA beds will remain the same.
Building. County Coastal Certifiers of Caloundra, who are assessing our building application (Council no longer assesses building applications), have responded, claiming that we may be discriminating against the disabled by not having the disabled access ramp at the main hall entry, denying them equal access. They have requested that we source an opinion from an accredited disability access consultant, to resolve this opinion before they consider our application further. The Management Committee have contacted a consultant (Equal Access in Victoria), and with the certifier are working through resolving this matter.
The Obi Obi Hall.
A member of the Association contacted the Management Committee, with an opinion that, due to the age and lack of repair of the hall, there may be structural problems which may make the walls of the hall vulnerable to strong winds, resulting in the possible collapse of the hall. That to protect the hall, bracing should be placed internally to support all the external wall. The Management and Building Committees acting up on this advice (noting that because of the condition of the hall, there is no damage insurance cover possible), decided that bracing of the walls should be carried out. With timber donated through Rodney Heading (Vice President), a meeting was arranged at the hall.
The result of the Management and Building Committees meeting at the hall.
The tender process.
The Management and Building Committees have been involved in making precise information available to allow the quotes resulting from the tender process to be as accurate as possible. The Building Committee is assembling a Scope of Works (a list of the fine construction details that are not covered by EBIS’s hall working drawings), and a Schedule of Finishes (which covers the finishes, protective coatings and paints required).
The Trustees.
Peter Wellington (Independent Member of Queensland State Parliament) was asked by a Trustee to look into the matter of allowing the Obi Obi and Kidaman Creek District Community Hall Inc to become the sole Trustee for the Obi Obi hall property. Peter received a response from Micheal Choi (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Natural Resources Maines and Energy and Trade), who has stated that there has been no change in the previous advice given to us, which is that the Trusts Act does not presently allow for a single identity in a trust to have ownership of property , and that changes to our Trustees would require an amendment to the Trusts Act. Micheal Choi has suggested other options and the Management Committee will investigate.
Please Note.
Obi Obi Rural Fire Brigade would like our community to note the following notice taken from the website of the Rural Fire Service.
Declared Fire Danger Period
Declaration of a Fire Danger Period
In preparation for the on-coming fire season the Commissioner of the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service has declared a Fire Danger Period from midnight August 29, 2010 to midnight January 2, 2011.
Declaration of a Fire Danger Period across the State brings a change to the previous situation where a small fire of less than 2 metres in size did not require a permit. During the fire danger period anyone wanting to light a fire will need to obtain a ‘Permit to Light Fire’ from their local fire warden who will assess the circumstances around each application and develop appropriate conditions or reject the application. A declared fire danger period has no impact on other categories of existing notifications that remain unchanged. This includes fires lit out-doors in a properly constructed fire-place for the purposes of cooking and those exemptions applicable to primary producers, including cane growers.
The requirement to obtain a permit for small fires has been introduced with the aim of reducing the number of fires that get out of control and to limit the demands placed on QFRS resources over the bushfire season. During the 2009 fire season small fires that escaped were a significant cause of bushfires because people lighting them did not recognise the changing way weather conditions can affect fire behaviour or did not exercise appropriate control and supervision of the fire.
These new requirements for a Permit complement the situation in many local government areas where councils have adopted a local law under nuisance provisions that prohibits the lighting of fires. If the local government has such a local law a permit is unlikely to be issued by a fire warden unless permission has been obtained from the local government and if so, must be presented to the fire warden when applying for a Permit. Residents who are unsure about the application of nuisance provisions of local laws in respect to the lighting of fires in their area should contact their local government.
Prior to lighting fires, residents should check with either their local fire warden or the rural of urban fire brigade in respect to information on making an application for a ‘Permit to Light Fire’ as well a whether any notice, notification or local fire ban applies for the area where it is proposed to light the fire.
All such notices and notifications are published on the Rural Fire Service and the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service websites and in the media.
For further information or fire permits, please contact our acting Fire Warden, Grahame Beljon on 54469252
OBI OBI HALL 