Undoubtedly, an engaged and extremely good-looking electorate eagerly awaits the emergence of more candidates in the upcoming September 14 Byron Shire Council election.
While other candidates may emerge, now is the time to start applying some pressure to the localised comfortable political class, of whom four are seeking reelection.
There are three incumbent tickets on offer so far. They are led by Labor’s Asren Pugh, the Greens’ Sarah Ndiaye and independent mayor Michael Lyon (his team includes Cr Mark Swivel).
While all candidates emit a fairly similar tone, luckily there are fresh faces among all tickets.
To be fair, it’s a difficult task managing the needs of long-term residents, the tourism industry, developers, and environmental protection while also acting on behalf of the NSW government and bowing to their army of Sydney-based bureaucrats.
Voter behaviour
Several factors could influence voter behaviour on September 14 – one is whether residents feel they are being listened and communicated to.
Are these elected reps responsive to the needs of their community, or are they tone-deaf and put bureaucrat interests before community?
And given this local government area is almost entirely reliant on the feds and state government for infrastructure funding – how effective are the councillor incumbents at securing funding?
If you are one of the 5,888 registered businesses in Byron Shire (according to economy.id.com.au), you may be concerned about the economic uncertainty ahead.
Clearly visitor numbers have not returned to pre-Covid levels, and there are many government obstacles which hinder innovation and start-ups. Is localisation important, for example?
Or perhaps it’s the lack of affordable housing, something which has now become a cruel joke for those locked out of the market.
While not everyone was impacted by the 2022 floods, many in the north of the shire were. How many house-raising/buyback/retrofits have these elected reps secured via the NSW Reconstruction Authority?
Mullumbubble
The biggest little town of Mullumbimby contains roughly 2,732 voters of the shire’s total of 27,505, yet Council’s plans unfolding for its inhabitants are quite significant.
They include abandoning the town’s locally-sourced water supply for a Rous connection, and increasing housing while the traffic problems continue. And then there’s an odd plan for a $50 million pool on flood-prone land next to the skate park.
Outside the Mullumbubble, there’s big projects which have stalled over many years after Covid and floods – Byron’s bio-energy plant and the Dingo Lane solar farm are two examples. The rail trail v train showdown is likely to be thrashed out in this election, too.
Other issues to consider include what reform has been introduced to ensure that our precious biodiversity is not just maintained, but enhanced.
Has there been any reform to contain the ever-increasing height and bulk increases in Byron’s CBD?
As for compliance – or ‘community enforcement’ – are these staff members being carefully guided to reflect community expectations?
Will the next elected Council be clearing more endangered frog areas for non-affordable homes?
Hans Lovejoy, editor
News tips are welcome: [email protected]
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
