Guides in need of safer venue

SAFETY concerns in the Aitkenvale area have come to a head for one local club, which has been forced to abandon its clubhouse until a security solution is found.

The Girl Guides of the Aitkenvale District, whose clubhouse is in Aitkenvale Park, have been forced to stop using their facility because of ongoing safety issues.

Girl Guides Queensland chief executive Kim Harrington confirmed operations at the Aitkenvale clubhouse had been suspended since August 28 and there was no indication as to when members could return. She said it was a “culmination and repetition of events” and the “consistency of mess and ongoing safety issues” that had sparked the decision.

Ms Harrington said Girl Guides Queensland was working with Townsville City Council and looking at additional safety options.

“The safety of our members, leaders and the parents of Guides is paramount,” she said. In August the Townsville Bulletin reported a Girl Guide leader had been assaulted in an attempted carjacking in the area almost three years ago and the council had moved one of its mobile closed-circuit television units into Aitkenvale Park to try to deter people camping out and littering the area.

Businesses and residents have been calling for action to tackle a volatile mix of roaming youths and squatters gathering in and around the Stockland precinct on Ross River Rd in Aitkenvale.

Cr Maurie Soars said council was working closely with the club to provide a suitable venue to accommodate them.

“The safety and wellbeing of the Girl Guides group is a priority and at the moment we are focused on providing a safe space for the group to meet,” he said. “We are looking at options to increase security and privacy for the girls and council is exploring ways to fund this for them.”

It is understood this may include finding a way to fence the area around the clubhouse. It comes after the Townsville Bulletin reported that Mayor Jenny Hill had last week met with Housing and Public Works Minister Mick de Brenni to discuss the issues plaguing Aitkenvale.

“We plan on having more talks … on developing an action plan to address these issues with the relevant agencies in the one room,” she said.