
Meeting of mayors’ minds in Maryborough
MAYORS from neighbouring regions united to share plans for tackling the issues they all face.
Fraser Coast Mayor George Seymour last week met at the Brolga Theatre with five other leaders of nearby communities.
Discussions during the meeting including plans for bettering the Bruce Highway and ensuring water security.
Gympie's Glen Hartwig, North Burnett's Rachel Chambers, Cherbourg's Elvie Sandow, Bundaberg's Jack Dempsey and South Burnett's Brett Otto joined Cr Seymour for the meeting.
The impact of COVID-19 was raised but that was more an issue for the regions and Queensland Health to manage, Cr Seymour said.
Cr Seymour said it was vital the community's leaders stayed in touch about issues that affected all of their regions.
He said it gave councils the chance to campaign together on issues such as road funding and water management.
"We know we will be in competition for some things, but most of the time it's about co-operating for the good of the whole region," Cr Seymour said.
He said he regularly travelled to the other council areas, as did the other mayors, as it was valuable to learn more about neighbouring communities.
Cr Seymour said looking at another region's public spaces, library programs or how they encouraged businesses into the CBD could all be valuable.
"We can then see how we can incorporate that here," he said.