The Northern Rivers Times
November 9, 2023
6 NEWS
Residents raging at Road Runner Village By Samantha Elley !"#$%&"$'(#)&#*+#"%&$,-./#)&+"01#22.0'$3&.'2%$33$%.0'4 5#6&78$'%89&5#*%!:5&;300".'(4&<002#&3$=&-.'=3&+3$'>& 9$'81$/%8"#,&2+#/.?/$33=&%0&#',8"#&%@#&@$"2@&A82%"$3.$'&/3.9$%#4& B8".'(&2/.#'%.?/&%#2%.'()&78$'%89&08%+#"10"9#,&$33&01&%@#&/8""#'%& 3002#&3$=&+3$'>2&0'&%@#&9$">#%4
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Residents of the Road Runner Caravan Park and Village are not happy. They have sent their concerns to the owners of the park who, they say, are not providing them with important information when it comes to changes where they live. Resident Kevin Robson has lived at the park for the last 21 years, along with his wife and in-laws and has seen a number of changes, and not always good, according to him. The biggest issue he and other residents have had has been the new barbed wire fence with double locked gates that was erected after the February 2022 floods. “If there is a fire, they said they will get someone to open the gate for us,” he said. “Before the flood there was an old fence with a turnstyle and single gate. “The fire brigade said there needs to be a single gate for emergency exits but that’s never been done.” In a formal complaint to the park owners, one resident wrote that they had not been notified where the keys are for use in an emergency. The other issue, according to Kevin, is the state of the roads throughout the park. “(The) road is
Residents are not happy about the new fence installed where they live.
dangerous to walk on even with (a) wheelie walker,” wrote a different resident in another complaint. Kevin said many of the residents are elderly and find it difficult to move around on the roads in the state they are in since the floods. Another issue residents have raised is the inability for visitors to gain access to the park. “Elderly people here have cleaners come in to do their homes and they are not able to enter the park,” said Kevin. “There are also tradespeople, delivery drivers and ambulances that can’t get access.” Kevin has outlined all these concerns made by at least 14 residents to the NSW Department of Fair Trading who received a response from the owners, Chris and Samantha Hughes, and the work they are doing to rectify many of the
issues. Samantha Hughes responded to each of the concerns via the Department of Fair Trading, starting with the new fence. “This is a replacement of a damaged boundary fence from the February 2022 floods, which secures the property for all the residents of the park,” she wrote. “In an emergency a staff member will be notified and will open the gate as required. “It is not for residents’ personal use. “We do not need to give residents notice if we are replacing an already existing fence with a better quality fence as it was due for an upgrade.” Ms Hughes also commented that other residents were pleased with the new fence. In relation to the concern about emergency services not
having easy access to the park through the boom gates, Ms Hughes said they have been provided a code for access when needed. Ms Hughes acknowledged the roads in the park were damaged in the February 2022 floods and had spent money cleaning off debris so residents could use them. “As the park sustained most of the flooding in the front part, the roads where (the permanent residents) reside are still in good order,” she said. “(We) must prioritise which parts of the park to repair and maintain and this will take some time and a significant amount of money which will need to be budgeted over time.” Ms Hughes said they have started filling in potholes in the roads and sought quotes ready to fix the worst of these in the near future.
ST JOEYS COMING BACK TO WOODBURN By Samantha Elley
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First item on the well attended Woodburn Business Chamber meeting two weeks ago, was the news that St Joseph’s Primary School would be coming back to Woodburn. Since the February 2022 flood, the school has had temporary facilities at the Catholic Church grounds in Evans Head. Parents and staff had fought for the location at Woodburn to be renovated, despite the Catholic diocese deciding against it, preferring to find a flood-free alternative. “(It is) a medium term solution for the next 5-10 years,” a spokesperson
They are coming home! Photo- Samantha Elley
from the Chamber said. “They still need to work out a long term solution.” The RFS reported that there had been 120 callouts for Woodburn so far this year and the recent fire at the bombing range in Evans Head had an unknown cause. A new spring fed fire pump for New Italy had
also been approved and was on its way. The SES tabled the need for a new evacuation centre for Woodburn as the official place, the Woodburn Memorial Hall, is too small for 600 people and 400 animals and being next to a river, would defeat the purpose in times of flood. A new SES centre
out of a flood area was also raised and a new emergency community radio is being set up that covers Broadwater, Coraki and Woodburn. Plans for the new streetscape were discussed and disabled parking was a concern. Final design for the streetscape should be delivered by the end of the year.
