News

The next stages of work in the ongoing project of completely re-surfacing the northern bypass will begin in the coming weeks, following the awarding of the next stage of work worth $1.8 million.

Orange City Council Infrastructure Committee chair, Cr Glenn Taylor is delighted to see more progress.

“Weather permitting it’s expected that by the time that work is completed during April and May, more than half of the total length of the bypass will have been re-surfaced with hot mix,” Cr Glenn Taylor said.

The next stages of the project are :

• Northern bypass from Escort Way to Mitchell Highway (1.4 kms)
• The roundabout at the intersection of the bypass and Leeds Parade (to tie-in with the upgrade of a section of Leeds Parade for the new Bunnings development) , including 100 metres of the bypass west of the roundabout
• The remaining section of the roundabout at the intersection of the bypass and Ophir Road (Part of this roundabout has already been re-surfaced.)
• From Astill Drive to Astill Drrive (This 450 metre section of the bypass is between either end of this U-shaped street which runs through the Narrambla industrial estate)
• From Ophir Road to Icely Road (1.4 kms)

PROGRESS : Orange City Council Infrastructure Committee chair, Cr Glenn Taylor is pleased with progress on re-surfacing the bypass.

Work is continuing on re-surfacing the 2 .1 kilometre section of the bypass between the Mitchell Highway and William Maker Drive. For operational reasons work may begin on the new sections before this stage receives its final layers of hot-mix.

“There’s been some very positive comments from local residents who are already noticing the improvements in the bypass,” Cr Taylor said.

The works has been awarded to State Asphalt Services. The company has established a temporary asphalt plant at the East Guyong quarry to supply raw materials for the re-surfacing work.

Orange drivers who over-stay a parking time-zone limit will be facing an increased likelihood of picking up a parking fine, now that the month-long trial of the new number-plate (NPR) recognition system has come to an end.

Over the last month hundreds of drivers who have over-stayed a time-parking limit have received a warning note under their windscreen wiper, instead of an actual fine.

From Tuesday (29 March) parking patrol officers began issuing tickets instead of warnings.

City of Orange Traffic Committee chair, Cr Russell Turner believes the month long trial has been successful.

“Simply having a very visible signed car out on the streets of Orange is making a difference in the way drivers are parking,” Cr Russell Turner said. “Shopkeepers and other business owners are reporting much more turnover of vehicles in the main street. It looks like all-day parkers are choosing to park a block or so out on the fringe of the shopping area where there’s no parking limits.”

“There’s a significant but not huge rise in the number of tickets that would have been issued, so it seems drivers are responding to a higher visibility of the parking rangers, as much as the higher likelihood that they’ll get a ticket.”

MOBILE : Orange City Council's Mobile Parking Patrol car is ready to roll. (l. to r.) Parking ranger Lee Snell is pictured with Cr Russell Turner and ranger Ray Coleman.

Before the NPR system was introduced, Orange City Council’s team of three parking patrol officers, working on foot, would write around 20 tickets a day, while it’s estimated under the new regime (foot patrols and NPR) will result in around 35 tickets a day are being issued.

During March, rangers continuing with foot patrols issued around 10-15 tickets a day, while the new system resulted in around 20 warnings being issued.

“The new system actually detected around 50 cars a day were over-staying a parking time-limit, but by the time rangers had completed procedures such as returning to each car, checking comparative images and looking for mobility stickers, more than half those drivers had moved on.”

“The important thing is not that Orange City Council might miss out on some parking fine revenue but that drivers now know they have to move their car more often.”

“Drivers have also learnt that the parking patrol officers are covering a much larger area every day. Before, an officer on foot writing chalk marks on tyres, might cover only a few blocks, it takes the same time in take the car to cover most of the CBD.”

The offence of parking in an area longer than allowed carries a $106 fine.

“Orange City Council is not looking for increased revenue, but instead a fairer and more efficient use of the available parking spots”.

Teams of staff employed by contractors J.R.Richards & Sons are continuing to deliver new red and yellow bins to around 16,000 households across Orange. Because of the sheer numbers to be delivered sometimes there will be a gap between the time the new bins arrive and when they can be used for the first time.

It’s important that residents read through the booklet that comes with the new bins and that they don’t use them before the new contract starts.

Across the Orange community there’s a vast range of differences between the current condition of the old red and yellow bins. While some are still in good condition, others have been patched together by residences to try to keep them going until there’s a replacement.

It’s much more efficient to start a new ten year contract with every household getting new red and yellow bins and having them all delivered at once, rather than trying to replace some bins and not others.

There are no electronic identification tags in the new bins.

The change also lets better technology be introduced to the pick-up arm on the side of the collection truck. The new arm that will be used once the new contract begins, is designed to prevent damage to the new bins.

The council has heard some reaction from residents who have tried to use the new bins and not had their waste collected.

Residents should call the Waste Hotline on 1300 725 415

If residents can transfer rubbish to the old bin then an old truck will be re-routed to pick-up that bin.

If residents cannot transfer the rubbish, an early arrived new truck with the new lifter can be despatched to pick up that specific new bin.

Residents should also think about whether they want to keep their old bins or not, once the new contract starts.

Residents who don’t want to keep their old bins should place them empty and upside down on their usual bin night during the week beginning 10 April. The plastic from the old bins will be recycled into new products.

Work has begun on the next stage of Orange City Council’s plan to completely re-surface the northern bypass.

Work started Tuesday 8 March to re-surface the 2 .1 kilometre section of the bypass between the Mitchell Highway and William Maker Drive.

Orange City Council’s Infrastructure Committee chair, Cr Glenn Taylor said he’s delighted that residents will soon be enjoying the smoother hot-mix surface on another section of the bypass.

“There’s been a lot of positive feedback when residents have used one of the sections of the bypass that’s already had the hot mix applied,” Cr Glenn Taylor said. “There’ll be some delays and they’ll need to be patient in the coming weeks while this work is done, but I know they’ll be pleased when the work is done.”

“There’s no doubt that sections of the bypass up the slope towards Hill Street needed some work. I’m delighted the next stage of this project to transform this key road for Orange can begin.”

Work began at the Molong Rd/Mitchell Highway end of the bypass today. The section through to Burrendong Way including the roundabout will be completed before the road crews move on to the next section towards William Maker Drive.

Weather permitting it’s expected to take around 6 weeks to complete this stage of the project. Crews will be removing the former bitumen gravel surface and replacing it with two layers of hot mix asphalt. Crews will be working on one lane at a time, so that one lane of the road will always be open for traffic.

Council staff are currently finalising tender arrangements so the next parts of the re-surfacing project at the Icely Road end of the bypass can begin.

“Weather permitting it’s expected that by the time that work is completed during April and May, more than half of the total length of the bypass will have been re-surfaced with hot mix,” Cr Glenn Taylor said.

The announcement of the latest progress in rolling out the NBN to the streets of Orange has been welcomed by Mayor John Davis.

“Residents have been watching with keen interest as crews have begun to roll-out the cabling and installing the new ‘node’ cabinets in local streets,” Cr John Davis said.

“Day by day, online access is becoming more and more a part of the everyday lives of residents and businesses in Orange,” Cr John Davis said. “The speed and capacity obstacles that people have faced in the past are set to face some serious improvement as the NBN comes on line in Orange.”

“Whether it’s a new smart TV, some other electrical appliance that comes with WiFi, or a new option in health monitoring, the NBN is going to be the infrastructure that that will underpin so much of how modern Australians communicate.”

Orange City Council’s Employment and Economic Development Committee chair, Cr Jeff Whitton said the NBN delivers the framework to let businesses grow and prosper.

“A good fibre connection will let businesses in Orange choose the download speed and connection capacity they need,” Cr Jeff Whitton said. “Whether it’s an engineering firm transferring huge mapping or design files, or a graphic artist working with clients overseas, a good connection can let people work from a regional centre like in Orange in ways they’ve not been able to before.”

“Orange is already streets ahead on lifestyle, soon we’ll be competitive when it comes to download speeds.”

“With the NBN, residents too will be able to have multiple providers. As well as a standard internet service provider, a family can access services such as health monitoring and security alarm systems at the same time without loss of capacity."

Orange drivers who over-stay their welcome by exceeding the parking time-limit in the city’s main shopping area will be much more likely to get a ticket now that a trial of the ‘number-plate recognition’ (NPR) system has begun (29 February).

The good news: Drivers will only find a warning on their windscreen, if their car is detected by the NPR system, and they won’t have to pay a fine while the two week trial lasts. (During the trial, infringement notices issued by rangers on foot patrols will incur a fine as usual.)

Orange mayor John Davis said the new scheme is about sharing the available parking spaces fairly.

“We have time-limited parking zones so that the available parking spaces around our shopping districts can be shared fairly between all shoppers,” Cr John Davis said. “By making sure we have a steady turn-over of parked cars, that will keep a steady stream of customers coming through the doors of local shops and make parking more convenient for shoppers.”

“There’s a popular myth that this change is about raising more money from parking fines. I’d be happy if the drivers of Orange learned that they now had almost no chance of getting away with over-staying the parking time-limit, and that the revenue from parking fines dropped to zero.”

“The big change is that it will be much more likely that a driver who over-stays the parking time-limit will be caught,” Cr John Davis said. “The council has three parking patrol officers who previously had to cover the entire CBD on foot marking car tyres with chalk. It’s estimated that the new NPR system will be able to monitor more than a thousand parked cars an hour.”

The City of Orange Traffic Committee chair, Cr Russell Turner said the next two weeks will be the chance when some drivers will need to explore new places to park.

“When Orange drivers find a warning note under their windscreen wipers in the coming weeks, it will be the trigger that their parking habits will have to change,” Cr Russell Turner said.

“For all-day CBD parkers, I hope they’ll be starting to look further afield to find new places to park. There are a number of under used car parks on the fringes of the CBD such as the Little Summer St car park behind the fire station or the railway car park in Peisley Street. There are many streets a block away from the CBD with no time limits.”

“When Bathurst City Council introduced this system two years back, there was a sudden jump in the number of parking fines, but over time the number of tickets has reduced where now there are far few parking fines in Bathurst, compared to Orange.”

Orange City Council is using the ‘PInforce’ NPR system, which was installed earlier this month by Sydney-based firm DCA. The technology is also known as a ‘License Plate Recognition’ (LPR) system.

TRIAL : Traffic Committee chair, Cr Russell Turner checks out the new mobile parking patrol car with parking patrol officers Lee Snell and Ray Coleman, together with Mayor John Davis.

Find out more at : www.orange.nsw.gov.au/parking

The Orange Regional Gallery is the winner in the latest NSW Government art funding round, with $54,500 for the refurbishment of Orange Regional Gallery, to be matched dollar-for-dollar by Orange City Council.

Member for Orange Andrew Gee congratulated Orange City Council on their success in accessing the funding program which supports capital works projects and equipment.

The project includes improvements to flooring, main reception and removal of furnishings to create greater exhibition space. The refurbishment coincides with the launch of the neighbouring Orange Regional Museum and increased visitation to the precinct.

Mr Gee said he was proud to once again present funding to a local, passionate art organisation that is working hard in the community to keep Orange on the map as a go-to arts and cultural hot spot.

UPGRADE : For the first time in its thirty year history, the Orange Regional Gallery will be renovated in a program jointly funded by the NSW Government and Orange City Council. Member for Orange Andrew Gee made the funding announcement along with Orange mayor John Davis.

“Arts and cultural facilities are the lifeblood of many regional communities, providing opportunities for people to engage with a range of art forms and local history,” Mr Gee said.

“This funding will help the Orange City Council deliver exhibitions of international significance as well as ongoing programs for young people and people with a disability. It will also provide an improved visitor experience for both tourists and its local audience.

“I am very excited for Orange City Council on their success and am proud the NSW Government is partnering with it so more people in our community can enjoy and utilise its services.”

Orange Mayor John Davis has welcomed the NSW Government funding.

“The gallery opened in 1986 and after thirty years it’s time for a major internal refurbishment,” Cr John Davis said.

“It’s been good that we could time this upgrade to coincide with the construction of the new museum and eventually with the opening of the new Visitors centre and café.

ON-SHOW : Art teacher at Canobolas High School, Gabrielle Lindsay pictured with a ceramic art work and a four-panel painting which she’s entered for the 2800 show which opens on Friday night.

Art teacher at Canobolas High School, Gabrielle Lindsay is one of more than a hundred Orange residents, excitedly looking forward to seeing her work on the walls of the newly-renovated Orange Regional Gallery when it re-opens on Friday night.

‘The 2800 Show’ is the first exhibition in recent years to exclusively feature the work of people who live in the Orange postcode area.

There was a constant stream of residents at the gallery earlier this week as the blend of professional and amateur artists turned up to unload their prized paintings and sculptures.

“It’s important for us to be getting some exposure with our own work,” Gabrielle Lindsay said.

“It’s good for us as practising artists and teachers. That’s really, really important.”

“It gives local artists a chance to exhibit their work at somewhere like a regional gallery in a way they wouldn’t necessarily get the opportunity to do.”

Because of space constraints, the exhibition was limited to a maximum of three art-works per person. “It was hard to choose three,” Ms Lindsay admits, who eventually opted for one painting as well as a ceramic work and a small sculpture in the shape of a book.

Gallery Director Lisa Loader admits there were more entries than were expected.

"Even though we're very aware that there is a real passion for the visual arts in the Orange community, we had not anticipated there would be such a large number of artists submitting works,” Lisa Loader said. "There is a huge variety of work being produced in the region and it is well represented in this show.”

After months of construction work , the landmark grass roof has been installed on the roof of the new Orange Regional Museum.

Staff members from Orange firm, Botanic Landscapes, were hard at work this week unrolling more than a thousand rolls of turf onto the specially-prepared roof.

In recent weeks, crews from Junglefy, the Sydney firm supervising the green roof project, installed the framework to hold the soil, before the 400 mm layer of dirt was added.

Then, Rene Reimers and his the team from Orange firm Botanic Landscapes stepped in to roll out the turf.

Twenty-four pallets of freshly-cut turf from Green Acres Turf in Bathurst was lifted by crane into the roof. Each pallet contained 50 rolls of turf which each cover around a square metre of grass.

Orange City Council Museum Community Committee Chair Cr Neil Jones said he’s excited to see the long-awaited grass in place.

“The grassed roof is one of the key aspects of the building that the people have of Orange have been talking about, and now local residents are very excited to see the turf installed,” Cr Neil Jones said.

“It’s the same blend of Tall Fescue and Kentucky Bluegrass that’s been installed on Parliament House in Canberra,” Cr Jones said.

Rene Reimers said he was pleased to be involved in this landmark project for Orange.

“As well as roll out the turf, we’ve pegged the grass down to help hold it in place while it gets established on the sloping section of the roof,” Rene Reimers said.

“The rolls of turf also help hold the grass together, fitting together like bricks.”

ROLL-OUT: Rene Reimers, from Orange firm Botanic Landscapes, roll out the turf onto the roof of the new Orange Regional Museum.

A free screening of the newly released film The Suffragettes, alongside the opportunity to listen to a key speaker, will be the highlight of International Womens Day (IWD) celebrations in Orange this year.

The screening will be held on Tuesday 8 March 2016 (5.45 pm for 6.30pm movie) at the Odeon Cinema, 43 William Street Orange.

The free movie screening will be made possible by funding from ClubsGRANTS NSW and Orange City Council.

As well as drinks and finger food, the event will include a presentation from a local woman working in a predominantly male-dominated environment.

While the event is free, ticket numbers are limited. Bookings are essential and tickets can only be obtained from Orange City Council’s Home and Community Care (HACC) centre at 286 Lords Place, Orange.

Orange City Council’s Services Committee Chair Cr Ron Gander said the event will be a good way to acknowledge the history of International Women’s Day.

“Australian society has come a long way since the days early last century when International Women’s Day was first conceived,” Cr Ron Gander said. “I’m told this is a fantastic movie which captures the atmosphere and turmoil of the times in England when the first group of women began to agitate for the right to vote.”

“Despite the progress that’s been made since then, there can be still a significant gap in the way men and women are treated.”

The official theme for this year’s International Womens’ Day (IWD) is ‘Pledge for Parity’.

The IWD website encourages men and women to take the pledge to help achieve equality and fairness on the basis of gender parity more quickly.

Everyone can take a part in pledging to:

• help women and girls achieve their ambitions,
• call for gender-balanced leadership, respect and value difference,
• develop more inclusive and flexible cultures and
• eliminate workplace bias.

See more information about the Pledge for Parity at:

www.internationalwomensday.com/Pledge-For-Parity

Orange households will continue to have their red-lidded bin collected every week, following a unanimous decision by the latest Orange City Council meeting to set the terms of a new ten year waste management contract.

After a community debate lasting many months over an earlier proposal to consider a fortnightly red bin waste collection, the 16 February meeting considered a report that under the new contract it would only cost households an extra $18.75 a year to keep their current weekly collection compared to the expected costs of the proposed fortnightly service.

The council also heard the results of a three month trial and waste audit which found that while around 70% of Orange residents could manage with having their red bin collected every two weeks without major changes, there would be significant problems for households where more than five people lived and where there were a number of younger children in nappies.

Mayor John Davis said the council was aiming to get the balance right as it managed a significant change for local households.

“It makes good environmental sense and it’s in line with the long term council commitment that we to have to be putting less and less waste into landfill,” Cr John Davis said. “The original proposal to move to a fortnightly red bin was all about encouraging residents to sort their waste more and use their recycling bin and kitchen and garden waste bin more.”

“The trial showed that while two-thirds of us are ready now to make that change, around one-third would find it difficult. All the councillors have heard the response from the community and all the councillors have been very active in trying to find the best way forward.”

“The council has listened closely to that solid opposition and we’ve decided to put more resources into a comprehensive and ongoing education campaign.”

The council has also set a five year target for Orange residents to be meeting the State Government’s target of diverting 70% of all waste away from landfill.

Currently more than half (57%) of Orange’s total waste is being diverted into recycling or compost production. The council decided that if that if that proportion hadn’t reached 70% in five years’ time, or if the NSW Government imposes a levy on local councils that put waste into landfill, the current waste contract should include the option of re-visiting a fortnightly red-bin.

Based on figures from other councils that already pay a waste levy, Orange City Council could begin by paying around $410,000 a year to the government. The amount would rise to around $3 million a year if the levy is implemented in Orange as it has been in other areas of NSW. This could add between $25 and $200 top the annual household waste bill.

The new 10 year waste contract is due to begin in early April. The council meeting set the terms of the new contract that will see households will have a weekly red (general waste) and green (organic waste) collection as well as a fortnightly yellow (recycling) bin collection.