I have been a volunteer at the Urunga Information centre for 10 years and I am proud to have been part of the centre which had become known as one of the best Visitor / Driver Survivor centres in NSW.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Unfortunately with the new highway by passing the centre, it has become obsolete. The enquiries have dwindled to virtually nothing and only for train and bus tickets; some days it could be zero.
Urunga needs a vibrant Information Centre. The Council have over 100,000 hours of volunteers experience in Urunga, at their disposal.
The (Council) administration however believes Urunga doesn’t need an Information Centre any more. They are so keen to let the present space, that they’re going to ask the new business to keep a few pamphlets.
Is this the typical attitude of the administration?
We have at the moment the ideal site in Urunga for an Information/Visitor Centre – the old bank building on the corner of Bonville and Bowra Streets.
The Council say they can get $500 per week for the shop which has been empty for two years. May I quote Michael Caton in the Castle: “They’d have to be Dreaming”?
Why would the Council think Bellingen and Dorrigo need Information Centres in the heart of town, yet Urunga doesn’t? Is this back to the past? As long as it doesn’t affect Bellingen or Dorrigo, who cares!
At the moment the council have allowed Bellingen Shire artists to occupy the site, I gather, at $500 per week?
The Urunga Information Centre has a bank balance in excess of $40,000. Will this be spent in Bellingen and Dorrigo, or is the Council going to use it in conjunction with Coffs Harbour?
The Council have decided to hold a luncheon to celebrate the closing of the Centre. Inviting the Mayor, councillors, staff, volunteers and anybody else you can think of, at the centre’s cost.
Wouldn’t it be better to hold this function as a “Grand Opening” of the new centre.
With the $40,000 we could set up a first class facility and also maybe invite a different artist to exhibit and even spend time at the Centre, if possible creating and displaying their talent.
We want to know how much input the councillors have had in this decision, because we volunteers have been totally kept in the dark. Or again is the tail wagging the dog.
David Boatfield
Urunga