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Speaker 1: The much anticipated swimming, Wellness, Events, leisure and Lifestyle Precinct

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Speaker 1: has officially opened in Palmerston. The almost twenty million dollar

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Speaker 1: facility both a fifty meter swimming pool as well as

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Speaker 1: a two story water obstacle course, splash zones and a

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Speaker 1: basketball half court. Now hundreds have flocked out for the

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Speaker 1: grand opening, and I reckon there's been plenty more out

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Speaker 1: there since. Joining us in the studio right now is

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Speaker 1: the Mayor of Palmerston, Athena Pasco Bell.

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Speaker 2: Good morning, Athena, good morning.

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Speaker 1: Good to have you in the studio. It looks awesome

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Speaker 1: out there. Tell us a bit more about SWELL.

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Speaker 2: It's absolutely amazing. So it's a complete REFERB nineteen point

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Speaker 2: four million dollars and we are very thankful to both

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Speaker 2: the Northern Territory and Commwealth government for funding part of

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Speaker 2: it as well as well as our rate payers obviously.

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Speaker 2: But yeah, as you mentioned, it is complete REFERB. There's

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Speaker 2: a twenty meter program pull which will be heated in

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Speaker 2: the dry season, so it's good for exercises acuaobic swimming

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Speaker 2: less and those sorts of activities. The two level adventure

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Speaker 2: play zone is the first of its kind in Australia.

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Speaker 2: So it is a harnessed high ropes obstacle course and

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Speaker 2: it is wet as well, so there's buckets tipping on you.

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Speaker 2: People can shoot at you from little cannons on the side,

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Speaker 2: so while they're waiting to have a go, or your parents,

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Speaker 2: like my husband and I had to go with our

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Speaker 2: kids while they're up there. Yeah, so it's a great

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Speaker 2: lot of fun. The basketball court's very very popular with kids.

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Speaker 2: Those that have had enough of swimming for the time

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Speaker 2: being can grab a basketball and shoot some hoops.

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Speaker 1: And perfect timing, you know, for the school holidays. So

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Speaker 1: the grand opening was on the weekend, wasn't it.

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Speaker 2: That was on Sunday and we had just over two

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Speaker 2: thousand people attend. On the opening day, there was a

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Speaker 2: small shutdown we had a wild storm come through, but

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Speaker 2: then it reopened after that and there was a total

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Speaker 2: of seventy eight people who went on the Adventure Zone

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Speaker 2: on the first day. So you need to book for

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Speaker 2: that though. So ok, if you get onto the Swell

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Speaker 2: Palmerston website and there's some details there about how to

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Speaker 2: book those sessions. I think I haven't wondered fifteen people

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Speaker 2: at a time.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, I had wondered that because I thought otherwise you're

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Speaker 1: just going to end up with hordes of kids lined

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Speaker 1: up waiting and waiting for ages. So that makes sense.

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Speaker 1: So you've got a book online to get into that part.

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Speaker 1: Now tell me how many people of you sort of

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Speaker 1: had go through now over the last couple of days,

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Speaker 1: has it been really busy?

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Speaker 2: I haven't had any updated figures. So Sunday was obviously

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Speaker 2: the opening and we know that two thousand people went

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Speaker 2: through there. But it is the school holidays, so we're

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Speaker 2: expecting that there's going to be quite a lot of

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Speaker 2: people there. The Youth Center is open as well, so

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Speaker 2: there's activities running all through the school holidays in that area.

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Speaker 2: I think Parbor the Palmerston Regional Basketball Association are running

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Speaker 2: activities there as well. But yeah, it was a great hit.

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Speaker 2: It will remain free as well, so if you're looking

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Speaker 2: for something to do with the kids and you haven't

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Speaker 2: got a lot of cash, Swell is open for free

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Speaker 2: and it will be for free until twenty twenty six

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Speaker 2: at least, and then the council at that time will

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Speaker 2: make a decision about it about whether it's charged out

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Speaker 2: or not. It was developed with the entire community in mind.

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Speaker 2: So I know there's been some conversation about the toilets. Yes,

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Speaker 2: I can assure everyone that there are your traditional male

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Speaker 2: and female toilets, but there are two new elements. So

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Speaker 2: besides the disability toilet, there is an adult change facility,

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Speaker 2: which is what they call a changing places, So if

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Speaker 2: you have older children or adult children with disabilities, there

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Speaker 2: is a dedicated change room there, complete with an adult

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Speaker 2: change table so similar to the baby change table, very

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Speaker 2: much larger, and a hoist to help lift them up.

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Speaker 2: Careers who would be aware of this would be trained

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Speaker 2: in how to use hoists and they'd have a special

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Speaker 2: key so they can access that. The other element is

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Speaker 2: a change village, and this is new, So what is different.

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Speaker 2: It's a space where families can go to change their children.

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Speaker 2: So if you're like me and you've got one of

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Speaker 2: each sex, yeah, you know you don't want to go

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Speaker 2: into the men's toilet as a mum with your son

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Speaker 2: and there comes an age where he's a bit too

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Speaker 2: old to go into the women's toilet, or you want

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Speaker 2: to change them all at the same time. So the

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Speaker 2: change village is really designed for families who can feel

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Speaker 2: comfortable in a space where they can change the kids,

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Speaker 2: the kids can go to the toilet, and you're not

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Speaker 2: stressing outside of the men's toilet or outside of the

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Speaker 2: women's toilet wondering what's going on in there with your child.

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Speaker 2: You can take them into the change village and they

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Speaker 2: can use the showers and toilets and change facilities in there.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, and I think that's fair enough, because you know,

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Speaker 1: sometimes dad might take the you know, the kids, and

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Speaker 1: them may have a daughter and not actually you know,

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Speaker 1: not feel comfortable taking his daughter into into the men's

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Speaker 1: toilets or vice versa. So that is something that had

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Speaker 1: been raised with that somebody had been in contact and

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Speaker 1: they were concerned that all of the toilets were unisex,

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Speaker 1: and no they're not, so they're not. So I'm pleased

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Speaker 1: to hear that. And I did read that out throughout

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Speaker 1: the week because you had contacted me and let me

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Speaker 1: know that that wasn't the case, because I know even

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Speaker 1: you know, sometimes I like you sort of think to yourself,

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Speaker 1: you don't want then intern your daughter's sort of going

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Speaker 1: into a unisex toilet on their own. You do feel

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Speaker 1: more comfortable with them going to a girl's toilet and

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Speaker 1: feeling like they're going to be you know, like it's

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Speaker 1: a safer environment for them in some ways.

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Speaker 2: And this just gives families the option. So if you

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Speaker 2: are just with daughters, and of course you can use

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Speaker 2: the women's change room and toilets yep. But if you

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Speaker 2: have you know, daughters and sons and you don't really

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Speaker 2: want to leave one outside or you don't want to

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Speaker 2: take you know, into the other sex toilets, then there

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Speaker 2: is the change Village which is open to families and

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Speaker 2: everyone to go in news.

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Speaker 1: Which is fair enough. Now tell me it was obviously

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Speaker 1: quite an expensive, quite an expensive project to conduct. Was

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Speaker 1: there any sort of did you go over budget in

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Speaker 1: any way.

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Speaker 2: At this stage?

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Speaker 1: No? Good stuff.

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Speaker 2: Yes, we're very very impressed actually with our staff and

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Speaker 2: the contractors because they did say it would be fourteen months,

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Speaker 2: and it would be the construction would have been finished

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Speaker 2: in November, and we did receive that certificate of occupancy

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Speaker 2: in November. So I can't thank our staff and the

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Speaker 2: contractors enough for actually delivering it when they said they would,

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Speaker 2: and rite in time for the school holidays this year.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, good stuff. Now, what's on the horizon for you guys?

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Speaker 1: For twenty twenty four out there in Palmerston.

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Speaker 2: Anything exciting, I've told the counselor I want to take

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Speaker 2: the foot off the pedal and have a slightly slower year.

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Speaker 2: But no, we are progressing with a whole range of projects.

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Speaker 2: So we're still looking at further developing the Zacholi Community Hub,

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Speaker 2: so stage two will be delivered this coming year with

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Speaker 2: a skatepark and pump track and also some walking trails.

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Speaker 2: But ultimately we are looking to put a community center

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Speaker 2: there and also a children's library, so that will involve

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Speaker 2: some lobbying hopefully we can get some more government government funding.

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Speaker 2: But it also put out a few months ago a

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Speaker 2: plan for the redevelopment of Driver Community Center as well.

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Speaker 2: It's an old childcare center currently, so it's complete with

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Speaker 2: baby change rooms and miniature toilets throughout the throughout the center,

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Speaker 2: but it doesn't really work for our community and it

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Speaker 2: would never be used as a childcare center because it's

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Speaker 2: just too small to operate effectively. So we're looking at

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Speaker 2: demolishing that and reconstructing that. It will be around a

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Speaker 2: three million dollar project, so we're seeking funding for that

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Speaker 2: as well.

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Speaker 1: And I know that the Christmas Wonderland. It's still underway

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Speaker 1: at the moment, isn't it to get us through to Christmas?

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Speaker 2: It is. Christmas Wonderland is open every night from five

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Speaker 2: till nine up until the twenty third of December. This

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Speaker 2: year we've expanded it and the Tactile Arts Darwin have

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Speaker 2: got thirty stalls inside the rec center, so while you're

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Speaker 2: visiting Christmas Wonderland, you can take a little bit of

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Speaker 2: a break and head over to the rec center which

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Speaker 2: is air conditioned, so if it is hot, you can

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Speaker 2: go in there and cool off, have a look at

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Speaker 2: all the awesome handicraft there available for sale. So last

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Speaker 2: minute Christmas gifts is always a good idea or for

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Speaker 2: yourself good stuff. There is art and craft in the

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Speaker 2: community rooms in the rec center, so kids can make

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Speaker 2: Christmas cards and that sort of thing. There is a

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Speaker 2: quiet room as well, so if you have one of

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Speaker 2: those kids that gets a bit stressed when there's a

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Speaker 2: lot of people around, you can just take them into

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Speaker 2: the quiet room. And Santa is at the library, so

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Speaker 2: you'll see the doors there. We have a brass band

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Speaker 2: and there is the Darwin Corraal singing carols as well.

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Speaker 1: In Palmerston absolutely, I love it. It sounds great. There

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Speaker 1: does sound like there is so much happening, and we're

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Speaker 1: actually getting a lot of messages of support for you

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Speaker 1: this morning. I've got one here that says, awesome work

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Speaker 1: Athena Palmerston is for sure the place for the people

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Speaker 1: and things have moved quickly under this council's operation. Another

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Speaker 1: one that came through from John and it's said a

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Speaker 1: big congratulations to Athena and her City of Palmerston Council

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Speaker 1: for them awesome swell and Christmas wonderland. And this person says,

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Speaker 1: I live in the Darwin area and I'm actually super

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Speaker 1: impressed by what the City of Palmerston is delivering their residents.

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Speaker 1: So people are really happy, I think, by what is

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Speaker 1: happening out there in Palmerston. So good on you guys

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Speaker 1: for getting all that stuff going and for making sure

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Speaker 1: that there is things for families out there. I think

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Speaker 1: that's so incredibly important.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, thank you very much, and Merry Christmas to everyone

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Speaker 2: you do.

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Speaker 1: Hope you have a lovely Christmas with the family, and

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Speaker 1: no doubt we'll talk to you again in the new year.

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Speaker 1: Thanks for all your time this year.

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Speaker 2: Thank you, thank you,