Buildings that are paid for with the public purse should not become council profit centers. The new community centre in Port Douglas has been the subject of several attempts by myself to lower the rental price. Whilst one reduction was successful, the cost should be reduced by a further 30%. Cooling and ventilation is needed for Mossman’s charming but sweltering old community hall.
At Diwan, the plan to build a decent, community facility and meeting place is budgeted to be funded, but part of the funding, from of what is hinted at being a Federal Liberal Party grant, needs follow through, as does the whole project need follow through, as it will fall to the CRC to deliver it. If any community in Division 10 needs a bit of community generosity and care, it’s the community north of the Daintree.

When the Tsunami struck the Sri Lankan coastline on Boxing day a few years back, I was straight on the phone, then on a plane and after 4 trips and 12 weeks of my time and after spending about $12,000 of my own on airfares and the like, we delivered a great result to the suffering in Sri Lanka. After helping in managing a Wave of Aid fund raiser, which drew $80,000 generous dollars from of our community: every cent of this fund went to building a big community hall in a small southern village in Sri Lanka called Tallala. It was hard work, but it was one of the most rewarding projects I have ever helped with. The hall doubled as as school and tech college,  has a library, kitchens, seating for about 400, and a computer training centre. It was a great result. I still maintain relationships with my team there and last month I donated one and half wheels of a $4000 3 wheeler to the last local man, “Blacky” that had lost the lot, where I could get no NGO support, so I just paid half myself. Call me, if your ever need a taxi in Sri Lanka. The DSC did not pay my expenses and made it tricky when they backed off from their initial $60k support and the promises of a  large donation from most of the councillors themselves never materialised, but with help from other locals like the Ray Group, we got the project built. Judge for yourself who you can perform when it comes to real deal compassion, where the rubber hits the road. But don’t vote for me based on it. I had huge personal learning from the weeks I spent doing Tsunami Aid and now have a project devoted to similar causes in www.trybrid.org

It was Rod Davis who lobbied and won the recent $25,000 for DAB’s shed extension in Mossman and the art community needs a candidate to ensure theses projects for which I have lobbied for, are completed. The sale of the vacant $2 million School of Arts block in Macrossan Street should not be delayed further and the art and cultural centre as per Arthouse’s Andy McPhee’s plans should be built with the sale proceeds.
In any future development of community halls or sport facilities, we need to build in capacity for these buildings to double as cyclone shelters.

CONTACT ROD DAVIS: vote@roddavis.org

MOBILE: 0418 235561 or HOME: 0740 994434

MAIL: PO BOX 714, Port Douglas, 4877.