THE BYRON SHIRE ECHO Advertising & news enquiries: Mullumbimby 02 6684 1777 Byron Bay 02 6685 5222 Fax 02 6684 1719 editor@echo.net.au adcopy@echo.net.au http://www.echo.net.au VOLUME 20 #10 TUESDAY, JULY 26, 2005 22,300 copies every week $1 at newsagents only
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Illegal holiday lets in Byron Bay to close Fears are circulating among the tourism industry that the holiday rental market will be ‘closed down’ if Council enforces its policy on holiday letting. Advice from Council’s lawyers and the Department of Planning have confirmed that the permanent letting of properties to holiday makers in the residential zone is illegal. Tourism Byron have estimated that 600 out of 700 rental properties could be affected, however a tourism audit produced by Southern Cross University in 2004 counted only 17 percent of all holiday rental houses and units within the 2(a) residential zone. The anomaly can be partly attributed,say SCU researchers, to the fact that properties along Lawson Street, Alcorn Street and the Belongil were not counted in the study as those areas are currently zoned coastal erosion (7f2) and not 2(a). Holiday letting in the tourism strips along Shirley Street and Lawson Street will not be deemed illegal according to Mayor Jan
Barham. She points out that, if approved, the new Local Environment Plan for Byron Bay will permit holiday serviced apartments in medium density areas such as Lawson Street and parts of Shirley Street. Asked what action Council is likely to take next, and whether it will close down all holiday rental properties which are located in residential areas, Jan Barham replied, ‘ We will get a report on compliance and we will certainly be putting forward that we should be writing to all those people who are doing it illegally and inform them.’ Tourism Byron’s Grant Hawkins believes Council’s decision could have a disastrous effect on the tourism sector. ‘It will close the industry down. If they can regulate it of course. Everyone is asking how is it going to be regulated?’ Grant Hawkins says everyone needs to take a step back from the issue. ‘Tourism Byron will be inviting Council and community groups to work through the issues in a
workshop to work out more sensible regulation of the industry. We’re developing a range of options. We need to slow everything down and have a sensible discussion of the issues.’ While admitting that the industry does need some regulation he said he was not ready to disclose details of the options. ‘Some combination of zones and much tougher noise regulation are some of the initial thoughts,’ Mr Hawkins explained. Jan Barham doesn’t agree that the industry will collapse as a result of Council’s decision. ‘Well, the idea that it is going to impact negatively on the tourism industry is a subjective view from the real estate agents. I know that we have so many new tourism opportunities coming on line, particularly with tourism units in the centre of town which are legally allowed because they are in a business area. I also know that some of the legitimate tourism operators say they continued on page 2
I N F I N I T I V E S
Such a Splendiforous outing
Kali and Astro Boy, pictured above, dancing it up at the Dance Inc tipi circle on Saturday at Splendour. Right, Kele Okereke, lead singer with eagerly awaited British band Bloc Party, who set alight the Supertop with their funky hip hop blend. Photo Jeff ‘E Mood ’ Dawson
Mandy Nolan After a cold and windy week the sun came out for Splendour in the Grass this weekend. Hundreds of kilos of rubber wellies will be making their way back home unmuddied as thousands of punters made contact with their inner wild child, letting loose and turning on to the strange and gutteral growls
of Queens of the Stone Age, or alternatively, slipping into the sophisticated ambience of Moby. It was undeniably a huge weekend in Byron, with an estimated 40,000 partygoers in town, looking for a ticket to ride, some a fence to jump, and others were happy enough just to be near the action. This year
Damage bill from last month’s floods could reach $1.5 million
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Alex McAuley Byron Shire is facing an estimated $1.5 million clean up bill in the wake of the torrential rain and floods last month. With the majority of the damage caused to the Shire’s roads by land slips and erosion, Byron Shire Council is in the process of assessing the damage and preparing a submission for the RTA in order to claim Disaster Relief
Funding for much of the cost. Brett Lee, Director of Asset Management Services at Byron Shire Council, said an inspection last week identified 340 locations where repair work is required, including the landslip along Lighthouse Road and the adjacent boardwalk, pictured right. ‘The boardwalk fell as a result of the ground beneath
it shifting,’ said Mr Lee on Monday. ‘We are having an on site meeting with a geotech company today to get some advice on how to proceed. We have also arranged for a demolition company to inspect the site in order to assess how to best remove the damaged sections of the boardwalk. ‘We are also working closely with National Parks continued on page 2
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festival tickets sold out in just one hour, and after bans on ebay sales, punters were arriving hopeful that they would be able to buy a ticket in Byron. It was certainly a profitable weekend for ticket scalpers, withsome tickets selling privately for almost triple their original cost. While the mood within the festival was described as mellow, there were reports of a few threatening incidents outside the festival site. Apart from a number of young revellers peaking too early, if the number of shirtless young men in Jester hats is anything to go by, a good time was had by all. Although those over 30 did complain they came away feeling they needed an urgent dose of botox.