THE BYRON SHIRE
National Recycling Week
Volume 23 #23 Tuesday, November 11, 2008 Mullumbimby 02 6684 1777 Byron Bay 02 6685 5222 Fax 02 6684 1719 editor@echo.net.au adcopy@echo.net.au www.echo.net.au 22,700 copies every week
November 10-16 See pages 18-19
LEST WE FORGET
over No greater thrill than teacups at high speed Concern Splendour DA modifications Public submissions to a Section 96 application to modify consent conditions for the Splendour in the Grass festival (DA 10.2007.462.1) at Yelgun close on Thursday November 20. Some proposed modifications have concerned residents, including extending the music cut-off time from midnight to 2am, and introducing ‘moveable dwellings’ into an area allocated for primitive camping. The modifications would also see the deletion of consent conditions to include fauna culverts under Jones Road and to upgrade a crown road for emergency evacuation. Submissions can be made to council@byron.nsw.gov.au or The General Manager, Byron Shire Council, PO Box 219, Mullumbimby, NSW 2482.
Splendour grants
Scarlett Donovan (12), Lily Gregory (13) and Phoebe Tieman (12) have way too much fun on the teacups at the Mullumbimby Public School Spring Fair on Friday. All three girls are students of Mullumbimby Christian School and Lily and Scarlett were previously students of Mullumbimby Public. The fair is an annual fundraiser for the school and also included entertainment, stalls and a fireworks finale. Photo Lou Beaumont.
Song and ceremony part of Beggars Banquet Byron’s third annual Beggars Banquet will be celebrated with song, ceremony and merriment on Saturday December 13 at Railway Park, say organisers. Coordinator Ian Leggo says, ‘The traditional concept of a Beggar’s Banquet is a feast in which all members of the community come together in a spirit of equality, friendship and celebration. We are all beggars asking for fairness, respect and compassion. These sentiments are particularly important to embrace leading up to Christmas.’
The Banquet will feature a free community feast, accompanied by a smorgasbord of music, performance and dance, with some of the shire’s best-loved acts all lining up to be on the bill. This is an all-ages, multicultural and family-friendly event. The previous two Beggars Banquets resulted in donated items being distributed to the needy, and financial donations ‘used to facilitate the resolution of issues surrounding homelessness within the Byron Shire’. Lockers have been purchased for the Byron Youth Service, for a trial of a
storage facility for homeless youth in the region. All proceeds from this year’s Banquet will go towards supporting a drop-in centre in Byron. Organisers are inviting the community to give generously: donations of food for the Banquet, cash or goods for redistribution or a raffle are welcome. All those wishing to volunteer can contact Ian on 6680 7304 or 0403 178 451. Photographers and filmmakers interested in documenting this event please contact Harsha on 6680 7380 or 0434 490 737.
The Beggars Banquet is a community cultural initiative of the Byron Neighbourhood Resource Centre and is supported by Byron Youth Service, St Vincent de Paul, The Salvation Army, Byron Anglican and Uniting Churches, Byron Community & Cultural Centre, Byron Environment Centre, Byron Emergency Accommodation Project, BCCC Homeless Breakfast, Community Incubator Youth Crew, with insurance from Island Quarry and financial assistance from Byron Shire Council.
In related news, applications for the 2009 Splendour in the Grass Community Grants Program have opened. Community groups have been invited to lodge submissions for the festival’s next round of grants, with the eight previous Splendour In the Grass festivals seeing a total of $205,000 distributed through the grants program. The $35,000 raised through this year’s program went to Byron Bay Hospital Auxiliary and WIRES Northern Rivers. In 2007, the same amount was directed to the Byron Youth Service. Previous recipients included the Belongil Restoration Project, the Youth Activities Centre and Byron Environment Centre. With the event’s move to the new site at Yelgun/Wooyung, organisers expect to dedicate over $40,000 to the 2009 grants program. Money is raised for the program via a $2 contribution per ticket sold. Interested parties can email the Splendour general manager for more information at answers@splendourinthegrass.com. Applications close Friday December 12.