Voters digest talking points over breakfast
RATE rises, light rail, the Esplanade and a few not-so-subtle jabs were on the menu when candidates faced off at the Cairns Chamber of Commerce mayoral debate.
A panel of three would-be civic leaders and the man they want to thrust into retirement fronted an attentive crowd for breakfast-hour discussions at the Hilton Cairns yesterday.
Mayor Bob Manning promised to run a tight ship based on the CPI-or-less rate increase mantra that has marked the lion’s share of his budgets since he was elected in 2012.
“The best indicator of what we will do in the future is what we have done in the past,” he said.
Cairns NQSA Team leader Jen Sackley took an unveiled swipe by reciting a quote: “A man who brings his past to his present has no future.”
She said her team would keep rates low but the council should look at borrowing to invest in major infrastructure.
“There will be no other time in your future that you will be able to borrow on the interest rates that we’ve got now,” she said.
Georgia Babatsikos planned to keep finances in order by weighting essential projects over decorative ones.
“You just have to budget within your means and prioritise the most important things,” she said.
She also unveiled a plan for the CBD that included a free city loop bus, activation levy on vacant properties, shade upgrades and water misters along key pedestrian routes.
Ian Lydiard vowed to keep rates as low as possible but warned a big infrastructure spend was needed.
“This council let our core infrastructure down. We have water lines breaking down on a regular basis,” he said.
Cr Manning insisted the region’s core infrastructure was in good order – an assertion largely backed up by the Queensland Audit Office which recently found the average remaining useful life of infrastructure assets for Cairns was 48.29 years.
Cr Manning steered away from his unrealised 2016 push to establish light rail in the city but suggested there was still scope for an “electric rubber” rapid bus transport system with dedicated fast lanes.
His three opponents all backed light rail or trackless trams, with Ms Babatsikos suggesting existing rail lines might be available for conversion.
The Esplanade’s dining precinct appears destined to maintain the current council’s plans and remain open to vehicular traffic except during special events, with no candidate arguing it should be blocked off entirely.
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