Bellvista Shopping Centre

This sign appeared recently calling for leases for the new shopping complex on the corner of Lomond Crescent and Rawson St here on the Bellvista Estate. We can only assume the liquor licence has been obtained for the proposed Tavern too.

There is gossip going around the town that the IGA and Service Station on the corner of Caloundra Rd and Latcham Rd has been sold and will become a BP Service Station and a Fast Food outlet. So news of the new development here on our estate is timely as many residents use the local IGA for emergency and incidental shopping supplies.

Community and Aviation Forum

Bellvista Community Association had been invited to join the Community and Aviation Industry Forum by the Sunshine Coast Airport General Manager Peter Pallot. The purpose of the forum is to:

• Enhance co-operation and understanding between the airport community and general community by providing a forum for dissemination of information


• Residential amenity issues


• Information exchanges


• Business and development opportunities.

Other community groups attending:

• Halycon Park Residents


• Golden Beach Progress Association


• Parklands Community Group


• Caloundra City Ratepayers and Residents Association


• Sunshine Coast Enterprise

There will be representatives from the Aviation Industry, Airport Management and Local Government.

Minutes of this meeting will be posted on this blog.

Our draft response to the Caloundra South Paper

Here is our draft response to the Caloundra South Paper:

To whom it may concern

We are writing to Council today on behalf of the Bellvista Community Association inc (BeCA) to provide feedback with regards to Sunshine Coast Regional Council's Caloundra South Position Paper.

Part of our objectives as a Community Association is to listen to our members and provide a cohesive voice to represent the aspirations, needs and issues of our unique community in a non-partisan manner and to maintain a strong, independent voice to lobby, liaise and advocate for the Bellvista community’s interests with all levels of government.

As a community we are generally supportive of the overall outcomes proposed for Caloundra South. The possibility of a district activity centre with up to 12,000m² of retail and commercial uses (similar to Currumndi Market Place) within a short drive is something we are looking forward to as we believe it will complement our community nicely.

We are concerned with the timing of the duplication of Bellvista Boulevard and would like to see this completed prior to any further development which may increase traffic in and out of the estate. The two main reasons for duplication are:

1.We believe that by 2010, Unity College will have 1200 students. 75% of these children will come from outside our estate. Bellvista has only one access road so the traffic at school busy times is a problem. This is complicated by the roundabout onto Caloundra Road not operating as planned. With heavy transport coming in and out of the estate to develop any new release of lots and the traffic during school drop off and pick up times, we see it as imperative that Bellvista Boulevard is duplicated as a matter of priority;

2.Currently, as Bellvista only has one way in and out, the risk of emergency services being denied access to the estate as a result of an accident along Bellvista Boulevard is real and increasing. The consequences of this if someone is in urgent need of medical attention could be fatal. Our retired community in particular sees this as a real problem not just something which may happen someday.

We would like to thank Council for meeting with BeCA representatives' to brief us on the position paper and look forward to providing any further community input which may arise in the future.

Regards

BeCA

New Information Site

New Information Site
For thoes of you who used to follow the "Information Service" blog, please note it is no longer in use. The SCRC now use a web site called " Whats happening, http://www.whatshappening.com.au/ Try this site, it is full on information.

Community Grants

Community groups and individuals interested in applying for funding under Sunshine Coast Regional Council’s Grants Program or the Regional Arts Development Fund can attend both free information sessions and application clinics beginning in August.

Council’s Grants Program provides a range of grants to community groups and individuals for various programs, projects and events.

Additional arts development funding is available to locals through RADF – a partnership between council and the Queensland Government to support the development of quality arts and arts practice in the region.

Council is running a series of free information sessions on both programs from 4 to 13 August at Landsborough, Cooroy, Nambour, Noosa, Kenilworth and Kawana, at which community groups and individuals can find out all about the programs.

In addition, grant application clinics will be held at Nambour, Noosa and Caloundra from 24 August to 2 September. Potential applicants can give themselves the best chance of success by making a booking to meet with a council grants officer and work through their application.

The next funding round for both programs closes on 15 September 2009.

The previous round of council’s Grants Program provided funding for 86 projects around the region.

For more information visit the “For Residents” section on council’s website at www.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au or call 5475 7272.

Is this really for Safety?

As seen by the photo above the Council have started pulling out our gardens and replacing them with mulch. They say it's a safety issue, but why has it become a safety issue only now when the council have taken over the maintenance for Bellvista. Is this to become the norm? Is this going to happen all around Bellvista as a cost cutting measure? Do we want the gardens or are we happy with the mulch.

Here is some of the text from the letter we received from the Council: "The reasoning behind this is removing the understorey planting will promote a healthier street tree as there is less competition for water and nutrients. Also being a growth area we will start seeing more pedestrian traffic so this will allow for better site lines for both vehicles and pedestrians as well complying with the MUTCD and creating a safer work environment for our staff, and in my opinion a better aesthetic appeaI."

Is this is an issue with you, contact us and join the "Landscaping Sub-committee" and help us make our point with the Council. Or send Cr. Grossskreutz an email and let her know your opinion: anna.grosskreutz@sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au
If you wish to join our landscaping sub-committee email me on mohrie@bigpond.com

School staff car park

Construction is well underway for the new Staff Car Park at Unity College. With an expected enrolment of 1200 students, any addition to the available parking is very welcome.

Time to act

In 2010, Unity College will have 1200 students. 75% of these children will come from outside our estate. Bellvista has only one access road so the traffic at school busy times is a problem. This is complicated by the roundabout onto Caloundra Road not operating as planned. Stockland has plans to develop 500 homesites on the other side of this roundabout. With heavy transport coming in and out of the estate to develop the new release and the traffic during school drop off and pick up times, BeCA will be arguing for the road in to be duplicated before the new development begins.
Cr. Grosskreutz and Ron Piper will be at our AGM on the 7th. September. We will need all your support at the meeting to show the SCRC we mean business when we say "Bellvista Bvd. must be duplicated before any further construction takes place in or around Bellvista".

AGM Monday 7th September 09

At the AGM coming up in September all positions on the committee will be up for election. If you would like to nominate for a position you are required to submit a nomination form to the Secretary 14 days prior the meeting. Nominations close 7:00 pm Monday the 24th. August 09.
You may obtain your nomination form HERE

Bus stop seating

I have just received news from SCRC that they are going to place some seating at the bus stop near the retirement village. It has been approved and will be added to the capital works program for this year.

Ron Piper to address AGM

Good news, I have just received a letter from Ron Piper accepting our invitation to address our AGM. Ron is the Project Director- Urban Development for the SCRC. he will bring us all up to date on the Caloundra South project.

Web Site

Our new web site is just about finished and should be commissioned in a week or two. Our only interim site you may view at the moment is:
http://bellvistacommunityassociation.50webs.com
Please take a bit of time to visit the site and give us a bit of feed back,as it will be easier to change things now, if required. please send comments to:
mohrie.mohr@gmail.com
Have fun.

Caloundra South Position Paper

• Caloundra South Proposal

  BeCa was invited to attend a briefing at the Caloundra Council Offices on the “Caloundra South” proposal.
  
  The meeting was attended by 6 people, 3 SCRC representatives, 2 from BeCA and one from Golden Beach Progress Association.
  
  Here is the link to the Sunshine Coast regional Council page on the Caloundra South Proposal:

  http://www.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au/sitePage.cfm?code=caloundra-south&pv=1

  Copies of the Caloundra South Position Paper and maps can be downloaded from the links below:

  • Caloundra South Position Paper [PDF 1.3MB]
  • Map 1.1 Structure Plan Area [PDF 1.4MB]
  • Map 1.2 Surrounding Land Uses [PDF 1.3MB]
  • Map 1.3(a) Significant Biophysical Constraints (Flooding) [PDF 1.6MB]
  • Map 1.3(b) Significant Biophysical Constraints (Ecologically Important Areas) [PDF 1.7MB]
  • Map 2.1 Caloundra South Preliminary Land Use Concept Map [PDF 1.3MB]

  These maps (downloaded from the above links) show the area for development, the flood levels, the environmentally sensitive areas and the proposed development areas. There is also a lengthy 'Fact Sheet" and a feedback form. During the briefing some time was spent going through the flood and environmental maps. Flood and environmental concerns means 40% of the proposed area is unsuitable for development.
  
  It will be completed by 2050.

  cal_sthmap2_1.pdf (above) shows the plan for 2050. This development is planned to accommodate a further 50,000 people, the size of the previous Noosa Council area. Note its proximity to Industrial areas (seen more clearly on the downloadable maps). It is expected that the industrial areas and the shopping complexes will provide employment for 10,000 people.
  
  The new town centres are shown as blue circles. The town centre to the south of Bellvista (the smaller light blue circle) would be a shopping area similar in size to Currimundi Markets. The larger dark blue circle would be a major shopping centre. The blue line represents the proposed rail link. Two major roads will connect Nicklin Way (south of the proposed rail line) and the new road (Sunshine Coast Motorway) at the roundabout near Corbould Park race course.
  
  There will be a link road between Bellvista and the smaller shopping complex to the south. However this road is designed as a connection road, not a thoroughfare for traffic heading to Brisbane from the Sunshine Coast.
  
  We raised the concerns our community has of Bellvista Blvd and construction traffic when the two new areas are to be developed. Duplication was seen by us as a 'must do'. SCRC informed us there will be a traffic count trigger point when this would happen. Our concern was resident safety prior to the trigger points being reached. The traffic problems created between the school traffic as well as construction vehicles using Bellvista Blvd between the hours of school arrival and dismissal times was mentioned.
  
  The SCRC mentioned that the roundabout (Bellvista Blvd and Caloundra Rd) would need to be reconfigured sometime as it was not working effectively.
  
  One of the SCRC representatives there was Ron Piper, a former Lensworth employee. When talking about the future of the Land Sales Office it was his impression that the building was to be handed over to the then Caloundra Council as a part of negotiations between Lensworth and the Council. He was quite surprised to hear it was still the subject of negotiation.
• Our Next General Meeting
  All local residents are invited to attend this General Meeting!
  Our next General meeting will be held on Monday September 7th at 7 pm at the the Land Sales Office. This meeting will be the Annual General meeting where all Committee positions will be declared vacant and an election will occur for the next 12 months. All are welcome, you may join the Association on the evening. Come and have your say on matters that affect our community and meet with other residents. Further information will be available from the Secretary Email mohrie@bigpond.com or Phone 0407546311. Nomination forms are available here or from the secretary for Committee Membership. Keep your eye on the BLOG for nomination forms.
• Election Of Committee Members
  All local residents are invited to attend this General Meeting!

  (1) A member of the management committee may only be elected as follows -

  (a) any 2 members of the association may nominate another member (the candidate) to serve as a

  member of the management committee;

  (b) the nomination must be -

  (1) in writing: and

  (ii) signed by the candidate and the members who nominated him or her; and

  (iii) given to the secretary at least 14 days before the annual general meeting at which the

  election is to be held;

  (c) each member of the association present and eligible to vote at the annual general meeting may

  vote for 1 candidate for each vacant position on the management committee;

  (d) if, at the start of the meeting, there are not enough candidates nominated, nominations may be

  taken from the floor of the meeting.

  (2) A person may be a candidate only if the person -

  (a) is an adult; and

  (b) is not ineligible to be elected as a member under section 61A of the Act.

  (3) A list of the candidates names in alphabetical order, with the names of the members who nominated

  each candidate, must be posted in a conspicuous place in the office or usual place of meeting of the

  association for at least 7 days immediately preceding the annual general meeting.

  (4) If required by the management committee, balloting lists must be prepared containing the names of

  the candidates in alphabetical order.

  (5) The management committee must ensure that, before a candidate is elected as a member of the

  management committee, the candidate is advised -

  (a) whether or not the association has public liability insurance; and

  (b) if the association has public liability insurance - the amount of the insurance.

• Landscaping Sub-Committee
  As areas of our Estate are handed over to SCRC for maintenance, BeCA needs to ensure Bellvista remains well maintained!
  The landscaping sub-committee will be elected at the next general meeting on June 13th. If you have an interest in this issue please come and join, we will have more information on this at the General Meeting..
• Naming Local Parks
  Our Local Parks Don't Have Official Names!
  This will be finalized at the General Meeting on June 13th.
• Future of Stocklands Sales Office:
  The former Land Sales Office would be a wonderful asset for this Estate!
  At the first BeCA general meeting Cr Anna Grosskreutz said she was in discussions with Stocklands on this issue. It was decided to write to Anna to see what has developed since that meeting.
• Where To Next For Bellvista?
  Exit roads, further development....
  Stockland's Marc Wilkinson (Project Director for Caloundra Downs) will be discussing plans for the future development in our area by Stockland with BeCA representatives shortly. The BeCA blog page will carry the latest news on this soon after it has happened. This meeting has now been postponed until a mutually convenient time can be arranged.
• SCRC News
  Council's latest
  BeCA invites the Local Councillor Anna Grosskreutz to address each Public Meeting. If unavailable, Anna supplies a written report.
• BeCA Newsletter
  Delivered Up To 8 Times Per Year
  The next BeCA Newsletter should arrive in your letterbox in August. Watch out for it and then visit BeCA's Blog Page for all the latest news! Download the latest newsletter Bellvista Connector (June) here.