Jenny Hill’s true character will be revealed in this, the Case of the Disappearing Donation, because she has committed, shall we say, an ‘error’ of much greater gravity than one she took such a morally high toned exception to in others. If she has any principles at all, she must report this to the CCC herself, and fall on their mercy.
And a classic ‘look over there, not here’ by the council … when it comes to urgent pipeline business, we’ve all been looking in the wrong direction. There is evidence that at the height of our water restrictions, there were massive leaks in the Paluma pipeline that were purposely left to gush out for weeks before anything was done. And further disaster can’t be far away.
And a Magpie Exclusive: bullying isn’t restricted to kids, anyone vulnerable can become a target. And that’s just what has happened to a 76-year-old widow living alone on a Rollingstone property… midnight stalking of her house, threats, intimidation and vandalism. And just in case you’re shaking your head knowingly, there not an indigenous person involved. It’s a heady mix worthy of the movies, with rapacious property people, developers and a MOST Interesting array of legal folk involved harassment aimed at forcing the victim to sell her property for peanuts. And you’ll never guess which legal eagle is in the thick of it.
But first …
‘I Want A Fast Car’
It’s always fascinating when two totally separate news stories can suddenly complement each …no. no. not the actions in Ipswich and our own mayor’s financial indiscretion, more on that in a minute. No, The ‘Pie speaks of the symbiosis between the announcement of $30million compensation for 88 Palm Islanders because of police ‘racism’ after the 2004 riots, and the announcement that of the new Brabham supercar to be built in South Australia.
The sleek jalopy is exclusively a track car, with the first target a Le Mans campaign, but since private buyers are the market, the car can be raced anywhere in the world … and that means anywhere … even after a few wheelies outside the cop shop on Charters Towers Road when some newly well heeled Palm Islanders come to town. That’s what Bentley – the two legged version not the four wheeled model – thinks.
No performance figures have been released, but it rumoured to go from a standing start through ‘Chrissst’ to ‘Shiiiitt’ and top out at ‘Fuck, hold on’, and goes faster than last week’s pay.
The first 35 of the planned run of 70 Brabham BT62’s will come in the green colours carried by Sir Jack when he won the F1 championship in 1966, becoming the first, and still only person, to win in a car he built himself. But it won’t be just our mates from Palm Island taking their BT62s out for a spot of pig shootin’ and bush bashin’… one of the test cars spotted at Philip Island has also shown that it will be a hit with big game hunters in South Africa, with a cunning disguise. The zebras will never know what hit them.
From Pipe Dream To Pipe Nightmare
Mayor Mullet hasn’t much to laugh about right now, but she and the Impaler and the Townsville Council water wallahs must have been having a snigger or two over the past year or so.
While the general public’s focus on water security for the city has understandably had all eyes turned south-west, no one was looking north. Specifically, looking at the woes of the ageing Paluma pipeline (actually, that’s plural, two pipes run in tandem, one above ground the other below.)
Now it emerges that more than once, the above ground pipe has sprung a leak. Witnesses say at least three times, with a massive loss of water at the height of the city’s water restrictions.
It is self-evident the 60year old Paluma pipes are ageing, that’s inevitable and requires monitoring and a forward plan, and while some work was done 8 or 9 years ago, two crucial issues arise from this revelation. There does not appear from council indifference to be any plan in place for any real maintenance or replacement, not even should there be a catastrophic incident … one of the leaks already known apparently happened when a landholder inadvertently damaged the above-ground pipe.
But The ‘Pie is reliably told that the landholder didn’t bother to report the matter immediately, and when another leak happened on another property and was reported, it took the council SIX WEEKS to come and take an interest. That’s a lot of the precious liquid gold dumped into inhospitable and undeserving scrubland.
But the second matter is one of council neglect and negligence.
Much of the pipeline is overgrown, the undergrowth now clearly overgrowth, with a potential to cause major damage.
And on top of that, there is no access road to much of the pipelines length in the Rollingstone/Toolakea region, and probably elsewhere. For some reason, even the rural firies don’t worry about any access routes in a crucial area for fires. Fires that inter alia could also cause major damage to the rusting supply pipes,
In all the political duck-shoving in Walker Street and in George Street, the TCC has proved to not just be asleep at the wheel, but totally indifferent to this city’s smaller but crucial second water feed.
In all the political duck-shoving in Walker Street and in George Street, the TCC has proved to not just be asleep at the wheel, but totally indifferent to this city’s smaller but crucial second water feed.
And they cannot say that they don’t know about the looming danger … even that rare commodity in our sadly decimated and depleted council – common sense – must alert them to a major problem in the offing.
Bluewater Bullying
Bullying by its very nature is the essence of cowardice, but it is particularly vicious when greed is the motive.And that would seem to be the case in a situation that has developed for an elderly widow on a Bluewater property. Sandra Richards, a 77-year-old widow owns the well-developed ‘Moongobulla’ property, where she has grown a pioneering mahogany tree plantation.
Mrs Richards is also well known in Townsville for her charitable work, which she has continued with after her husband died four years ago. And his passing was the time that, as her son Cameron put, the vultures started circling.
According to Cameron, his mother has been subjected to threats, intimidation and bullying behaviour by relatively new neighbours, including the Navarro family. Mr Richards says his mother had always used an access road that had been established for 50 years, but Mr Richards says the Navarro family have blocked her access, and have also turned back Mrs Richards’ caretaker and discouraged visitors. The previous week the caretaker was forced to walk several kilometres through the scrub to meet someone on the highway to collect basic food supplies. A fence on her property has been purposely set on fire, and there have been late night movements of people near her house.
Mr Richards hasn’t been able to uncover any clearly stated motive for this stand-over behaviour, but he believes there is some development scheme which necessarily involves the acquisition of Moongobulla to succeed. Some land sales which Mr Richards believes are connected to the pressure group may be the obvious answer. Some of the sales use the name Moongobulla, as historically several properties running along coast strip once had that overall name.
The son’s effort to seek an explanation and reach agreeable arrangements have fallen on deaf ears for more than two years now.
And those deaf ears, says Mr Richards, belong to this woman, solicitor Connie Navarro, the daughter of the family next door. And just have a guess, go on, who Ms Navarro works for? None other than this bloke …
Yup, our old mate, Barry The Legal Foghorn Taylor, of Emanate (or is that Enema) Legal of Townsville and Brisbane (and Noosa on weekends). Mr Richards reports that Mr Taylor has taken a personal interest in whatever it is that is motivating the Navarros, since he has attended several meetings with them and other landholders in the area, but the purpose of said meetings is not known. Mr Richards speaks of a person named Tiong, whom he describes as a ’palm oil billionaire from Sarawak’, and who apparently has property interests in the Bluewater area. Mr Richards believes they are trying to wear his mother down so she will sell up in a scared fire sale.
Now in this matter, The Magpie is certain of one thing … if Barry Taylor takes a personal interest in the goings-on with whatever Bluewater/Rollingstone development may be in the works, there is undoubtedly a big quid to be had, over and above his eye-watering legal charges. And The Magpie, through personal experience, knows for sure that if there is any legal bullying to be done, Bazza’s your bloke. The ‘Pie is not saying that mr Taylor either directs or condones any bullying and in fact illegal behaviour in this matter, but how can he not know what is alleged to be happening? There has been voluminous email correspondence between Cameron Richards and Connie Navarro at her Emanate address.
Taylor has a clear professional obligation to counsel the ‘meetings’ against such actions, to cease and desist in any illegality or he must walk away.
Mrs Richards is made of sterner stuff than her bullies imagine, and is sitting tight, waiting for her mahgony plantation to reach saleable age and market the valuable timber. And further advance the industry, as outlined in the above linked story.
We will be watching further developments with close interest, as no doubt will the Townsville Bulletin, who so loudly and hypocritically honk on about how deplorable bullying is (would be good if you fixed up your own newsroom before virtue signalling your abhorrence of bullying.)
The Magpie hears there is a lot more to come before this tawdry tale is over.
| .From Circle Jerk To Cluster Fuck |
 She meant ‘cock-up’ surely? And Jenny Hill sure as hell knows the drill here, this is EXACTLY what she so spitefully reported several Townsville councillors to the CCC for three years ago – perceived conflict of interest. And it doesn’t matter whether the donation came before or after the develop changes were made … actually, afterwards is an even worse look, but it doesn’t matter. If she is to retain a single shred of credibility, dignity for the office and ethical consistency, she must herself bring this matter before the CCC. If she doesn’t, she can’t even claim some sort of ‘slip up’ defence when someone else makes the complaint. As they surely will.
In a nutshell, the comparison is a $22,000 oversight of non-reporting for Mayor Mullet and Labor, which means this entire council has conflict of interest problems, versus Townsville First councillors Veitch, Parsons, Roberts, Lane, Ettinghausen, and Blom, were fined a total of $11,000 and reprimanded for NOT TICKING THREE BOXES OUT 175 ON A LARGE SPREADSHEET. The Bulletin and their crack team of investigative journalists were too busy judging Townsville best pizza or something to rate it as much of a story, on page three, with Tony Raggatt again failing to ask any questions as he reprinted what was probably a media release. Which is a bit strange, given that Ipswich has been pinged bigtime …
… and the CCC confirming the Gold Coast next on the agenda, with Bundaberg also looking shaky. But at least one Magpie commenter doesn’t think there will be any tough times ahead for The Mullet and co. Nonaligned The left look after their own! Shorten forgot to declare a large donation from the Union to help him get into parliament, Mayor Mullet seems to have suffered the same memory lapse! The evidence seems to be mounting. The CCC is already considering this complaint from Townsville resident Terry Smith. Further to the complaint that I made earlier today about Townsville Mayor Jenny Hill, it has since come to my attention that Mayor Hill received an electoral donation of $10,000 on 18/03/2016 from a company called Letenyard. That company is a related entity of McConaghy Properties. At the first Council meeting held after the election (Meeting of 26 April 2016) the council led by Mayor Hill voted not to defend a Planning and Development Appeal made by the McConaghy Properties. The resultant appeal overturned a decision of the previous Council which Mayor Hill voted against at the time. McConaghy Properties were substantially enriched by the decision of the Council. The defendant of the Appeal, Parkside Developments were a financial contributor to the election campaign of the candidate that stood against Mayor Hill. Whilst the Mayor declared her perceived conflict of interest in the minutes to the meeting, the minutes do not disclose if the Mayor exercised any control or influence over the council officers that were involved in the process and that made the recommendation to Council. A further review of the minutes of council meetings subsequent to the election of Team Hill and Mayor Hill has frequent disclosures of donor the BMD Group being involved in substantial infrastructure tender awards. This whole thing reeks of Mayor Mullet’s favourite personal fragrance, Eau du Pescatore. But Hey, If You Were Mayor …
Last week’s special inviting folks to say what they would do for mayor attracted the usual heady mix of ratbags and serious and seriously worried people. We’ll keep saving some of the best up for another time, but The ‘Pie particularly liked the loopy one and that suggested Palm Island become a state and The ‘Pie become Townsville mayor. A super computer is still working out the odds of those two things happening. Palm as a state is the more likely of the two, according to odds makers. Radical Dreaming But there were several calls for radical Bay to be rejuvenated and the dangerous road to be from The Forts to the beach be repaired. One commenter pointed out that the road and Radical Bay have nothing to do with the council, And that sparked a bright idea from the Magpie to rid this place of phantom developments.
As far as The ‘Pie knows, that whole Radical Bay shooting match is under the nightmarish bureaucracy of the Queensland Parks and Wildlife poobahs. But here’s a challenge for all across the political spectrum … if contracts like the stalled Sea Goddess one at Radical are issued, they should surely contain KPIs – Key Performance Indicators that include stringent time penalties and/or automatic cancellation if performance agreements are not met. There would also be (this is the tricky part) the suitable KPIs applied to the bureaucrats in charge of the approval process. This, at a stroke, would rid the state – and Townsville particularly – of those leeches whose only agenda is buy property, get the appropriate approvals and permissions for all sorts of bright shiny blue sky developments, then sit on the property until they can flog it off to another party, the price of which has now skyrocketed because of the approvals are in place. The buyer may then be just another ‘rent seeker’ chasing a do-nothing profit and further sit on the acquisition. KPI clauses put a brake on, if not an instant stop, to this ‘greed is good’ culture. This is a clear case where for the community’s sake, no development is better than no development with applications approved. |
There is good reason why you don’t hear too much hullabaloo in this blog about the likes of Lancini, Honeycombe or Tapiloas ‘s of this world… we need developers who are willing to take risks, and all the above employ people, build things and transform the old into the new. Not always to everyone’s taste, but pleasing everyone will never happen, progress doesn’t work like that.
And President Trumpets Blats On …And On
But hey, the bloke is up against it, and finding things very tiresome.
And with that in mind, a final thought on the modern Seven Deadly Sins
……..
That’s it for this week, folks, slam in those comments in, you can do so 24/7. And The ‘Pie won’t try to bully you, but asks with humble demeanour if you’re able to spare a donation to help meet blog expenses, then he will think nice thoughts about you. The How To Donate button is below.
