Resolve key on path to success
Mareeba Council opens way for $21m shopping centre
MORE than four long years of study were acknowledged when Sean Taylor finally received his public health doctorate.
Mr Taylor was one of 222 James Cook University health graduates who marked the end of their studies yesterday at a ceremony at Cairns Convention Centre.
Ninety-four qualified nurses, 59 dentists, as well as exercise physiologists and psychologists were also among the graduates.
The current Torres and Cape Hospital and Health Service Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health principal adviser, Mr Taylor’s specialisation is in improving diabetes care and management in remote healthcare regions.
Torres Strait Islanders living in the Torres Strait region have the highest prevalence of Type 2 diabetes in Australia – more than three times the rate of other Australians.
Originally from the Torres Strait, Mr Taylor completed MAREEBA Shire Council is expected to approve a proposed $21 million shopping centre in the town’s CBD at their final meeting of the year tomorrow.
The controversial project internships in America, Canada and Germany as part of his doctorate.
“I had mixed emotions about graduating. I’m really excited about the work I did and reflecting back on that work, the great experiences I had with the patients,” he said.
“But there was a lot of time I spent away from my partner and family. When you do a doctorate you take a lot away from your personal life and focus on your career.”
Mr Taylor celebrated last night with a dinner at the Pullman International hotel.
JCU Adjunct Professor and a leader in the area of disaster medical response in Australia, New Zealand and the Asia-Pacific region, Commodore Andrew Robertson, delivered the address at yesterday’s graduation ceremony.
The event was JCU’s second Cairns graduation ceremony for 2017. The university’s Division of Tropical Environments and Societies conferred 385 degrees in March, bringing the total number of degrees awarded this year in Cairns to 607. first went before the council in January 2015, when local developer Reedlodge Pty Ltd applied to buy a 1128 sqm parcel of state-owned land under the trusteeship of the council.
The firm attempted to acquire the parcel of land before lodging a development application for the proposed Byrnes Street shopping centre.
In January, councillors voted not to relinquish their trusteeship over the land, which is reserved for aged housing, but Reedlodge has now decided to move forward with the project by lodging a Material Change of Use – Shopping Centre for their block of land on Byrnes St to the council. The proposed centre is set to include a full-scale national supermarket and several specialty retail shops with more than 200 jobs estimated to be generated during the construction phase.
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