Councillor Rob Richardson’s explanation (Letters to the Editor August 1, 2012) that it was purely Armidale’s weather (fog and low cloud) which caused the International Aviation College (IAC) to eventually reject Armidale as suitable site for its facility raises as many questions as it answers.
Why, for example, was such an obvious factor not singled out as a preliminary point for decision by the parties, before Council wasted its time and money “working closely” with the IAC and spending ratepayers’ “valuable resources to make sure that the development was dealt with appropriately”? In legal cases it is standard practice that, if there is a factor on which an entire case will succeed or fail, this is dealt with quickly as a preliminary point to save time and costs of preparing the whole matter. Surely the limitation of fog and low cloud at our altitude for a flying school would be an obvious one?
Similarly, two years of working with a “consultancy group” on the question of opening up more industrial land raises the question of why Council is still only “close” to developing the “highway users” 4b industrial zoned council land next to the Armidale Airport?
Council has known since 2010 that Wickhams Transport was desperate for such a facility. Meanwhile Council has been planning boom gates and fees at the airport car park to make sure our air commuters and car pool people using the airport car park get slugged a bit more for the privilege of trying to use the airport facilities to earn their living out wide, while continuing to live in Armidale.
What voters are saying to me is that they want a council that will aggressively hunt down new business opportunities for Armidale Dumaresq. What I have been saying is that building a broader economic base for Armidale Dumaresq means not only selling our city and surrounds to new players, but pulling down the existing infrastructural and cultural barriers to their arrival and survival. Barriers such as the prohibitive air fares set by Qantas, the fact that we have no highway users’ industrial land ready for a road to air transport hub, and the out-dated mindset that is content to see all our development eggs perched precariously in the “education” basket.
Margaret O’Connor,
Liberal Endorsed Candidate
Armidale Dumaresq Council Elections
