Community
23 January, 2024
New council wannabes
NEW contenders have thrown their hats in the ring for Cairns Regional Council’s divisions 6 and 8 at the March 16 elections.
As an independent life-long local resident and small business owner Alan Benn will take on incumbent councillor Kristy Vallely (Unity Team), Shane Trimby (Team Eden) and Dr Nicole Sleeman (Community First).
Cairns Regional Council’s 2023 volunteer of the year award recipient Hannah Boon is the latest to contest division 8. She will compete against incumbent councillor Rhonda Coghlan (Unity Team), Phillip Musumeci (Community First) and Jo Piggott (Team Eden).
Mr Benn said as an independent he was hoping to emulate effectual and popular councillors such as Brett Olds and Cathy Zeiger, as well as the former independent division 6 councillor Linda Cooper.
“I think it’s time for division 6 to once more embrace someone not restricted by team politics and who will always have their best interests at hand and deliver much needed improvements such as the flood-proofing of Currunda Creek.
“There is no point having a multimillion-dollar siren warning system if you can’t get out of the valley.”
He is also advocating for an activity water park to engage and entertain the masses of families living in the area, a sensible and practicable crocodile-proof solution for Stoney Creek and Kamerunga, improved road safety along Kamerunga Road as well as constructing the missing link of pedestrian/bikeway path along Lower Freshwater Road linking Freshwater Connection to Peace Lutheran College plus the remodelling of Anzac Park at Stratford to enhance viewer participation and engagement.
Mr Benn said he brought a wealth of local knowledge and community involvement to the contest in what “shapes as a test of independent advocacy verses team group think”.
“It’s my view that the latest ‘Game of thrones’ type pantomime regarding the replacement of the previous mayor and the subsequent undignified and ongoing actions on the floor of council to fill the deputy mayor and vacant division 4 position, perfectly highlight how team politics and loyalties coerce the integrity of council procedures,” he said.
“As a small business owner, I know first-hand just how hard the cost-of-living crisis has impacted Cairns residents and the last thing they want to see is the people supposedly representing them, more interested in team politics, than working to put a lid on rates, repair roads and remove rubbish”.
Ms Boon, who runs creative content agency business Boon Creative, said she was a proud Far North Queensland-born and raised resident who had dedicated her time to serving her local community right from a very young age, including the Australia Day young citizen award for Douglas Shire Council in 2007.
She said she had extensive experience and a track record in volunteering for her local community working alongside various community groups and organisations for decades.
That includes Cairns Street Chaplains, assisting vulnerable intoxicated and displaced people on the streets, providing first aid and water to make sure people have a good night out on the town and get home safely (seven years) and Rotary Cairns Northern Beaches Club president (three years).
“In my leadership role, I, along with my Rotarians, have established a regular breakfast club at Smithfield State High School, with the successful application of a grant submission and regular fundraising from events to support this cause to feed the youth so they’re starting their day of education with full stomachs.
“I’ve also secured further grant funding with my club to fund a special youth development camp for disadvantaged indigenous youth in collaboration with Mark Harbrow Mentoring, and also as a club have provided additional sponsorship funds to assist with Smithfield State High students attending team sporting events down south to represent our region over the past couple of years.”
Ms Boon has also volunteered at the Ironman 70.3 event, the Cairns Italian Festival, Rotary FNQ Fields Day in Mareeba, and was a board committee member for the Cairns Business Women’s Club for two years.
“After years of observing what has been happening at a local government level, listening to my friends, family and community members voicing their thoughts and ideas for the region, I felt I couldn’t sit on the sidelines anymore and feel that now is the right time to step up and be the voice and bridging glue for our local community,” she said.
“I am proud to be running as an independent candidate for my local division and I am committed to being a local leader you can trust,” she said.
