Bathurst Regional Council candidate questionnaire: Warren Aubin

PRIORITIES:

HEALTH. I will keep working hard with my Health Service Action Group to achieve better health services for the people of Bathurst. Our community needs and deserves a bigger slice of the Local Health District budget, and I will be doing what I can to achieve this end. Bathurst has for too long, been the poor cousin to Orange and Dubbo when it comes to Health Services, and we should not be sent to other Hospitals for minor treatments that could and should be done here in Bathurst.

ROADS. I am determined to bring in a better way of repairing and patching damaged roads. The technology is available, so Council has to move in the direction of using machinery which is a one man operation for repairing potholes and using a Hotmix seal for a better and long lasting repair.

Water Security. Along with the Stormwater Harvesting infrastructure, pipelines are the way to effectively move water. Council should be looking at utilising the pipeline route to be used by Regis gold mines, who are building a pipeline from the Lithgow mines to Kings Plains, which runs through the Gormans Hill area very close to the Water Filtration Plant. This water is plentiful and could basically drought proof our community.

BIMC: The Bathurst Integrated Medical Centre has my 100% full support. The Medical centre will attract a high number of Specialists to Bathurst which will have a flow on effect to our Public Hospital. The economic boost that will be created will greatly benefit businesses in the CBD to the tune of millions of dollars per year and will generate new business to fill up empty shops which are in desperate need of tenants. As well, the development will create over 300 new jobs for Bathurst.

The associated multilevel carpark is something that the community has been wanting for quite some time, and with 900 car spaces to be created, it will basically treble the number that is there now.

The BIMC building has to be built to the specified height to be a workable unit, and I fully support the height exemption for this building. Please note that the height exemption is only being granted to a Medical Centre, so if it doesn't go ahead the exemption is scrapped.

WATER SECURITY: Council should be investigating the possibility of putting a pipeline into the same trench that Regis gold mines will dig for their own water pipeline to Kings Plains. This proposed pipeline runs close by our Water Filtration plant and could be used to top up our water supply .

Council should also get serious about putting a pipeline in place from Chifley dam to our Water Filtration plant to lessen the amount of water that is lost coming down the Campbells River. Council is well on the way to starting to build Stage 1 of its Stormwater Harvesting project. Once Stage 2 is commissioned it will see a yield of about 50% of Bathurst's annual water useage under Level 4 restrictions. This is an excellent development for Water Security in Bathurst.

RIVER CROSSING: I am fully supportive of an additional road and river crossing from Kelso to Bathurst. There are already plans being evaluated with several options of entry points into Bathurst, but land acquisitions and Aboriginal Heritage are major hurdles to be faced as well as the approx. $150m pricetag would have to be found.

AMBULANCE STATION: I feel the best way to gain maximum benefit from this beautiful building is to put out an Expression of Interest to the Marketplace to see what ideas are feasible. Council has to think outside the box and maximise the potential of this building and its surrounds as it is right at the entrance to the city.

GO-KART TRACK: I have already brought a notice of motion to the Council to explore the possibilities of a Kart Track at this location. Acoustic testing is being put in place as we speak and if all goes well, Council could apply for funding of the project through Grants and Commercial sponsorships

RATES CAP: A special rate levee has been talked about for at least the past 10 years, but has never been applied for. Bathurst would have to be in a very poor financial state,and all other measures exhausted, before I would even consider a SRL.

BUSINESS COMMUNITY: If there is a problem then obviously communication is the key. If any business or group of businesses feel they are not getting the support they need from Council, then they should come in and sit around the table with Councillors and Senior Staff, and work out any problems they have. Council is always willing to sit down and listen and come up with a solution for a better relationship.

WOMEN'S VOICE: Women ARE underrepresented on Council, probably because of the low percentage of females who actually stand for election. In saying that, it doesn't matter if you are male or female, if you have a complaint or you have a fantastic idea, Councillors are always available by either email or phone to be contacted and have that conversation.

COUNCIL DIVISIONS: We live in a democracy where people can agree or disagree on any particular subject. In Council we often debate items that see councillors having different views, whether it be political or personel, and one should accept the others point of view, even if not actually agreeing with it. The argument should be left in the chamber and after the meeting, go out to the kitchen, grab a beer and a sandwich and be friendly to everyone, especially the councillor you may have debated against on the floor.

FUNDING: I fund my own campaign out of my own pocket and have never been given donations from a person or a Political Party. I feel that accepting funding from anyone means that you would be obliged to take on their agenda which may not be what you might have set out to do.