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Speaker 1: A few people messaging through with questions for our next guest,

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Speaker 1: the Mayor of Palmerston, Athena Pasco Bell. Good morning to you.

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Speaker 1: Good to have you in this studio. Thank you very

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Speaker 1: much for your time. Now, first off, I will just

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Speaker 1: ask you about this story that ran in the int

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Speaker 1: News a little earlier in the week. It was being

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Speaker 1: reported that the peak body for developers, the Urban Development

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Speaker 1: Institute of Australia's Northern Territory branch, reportedly writing to the

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Speaker 1: local government Minister Chancey Paike asking for an administrator to

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Speaker 1: be appointed. The letter outlining more than a dozen areas

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Speaker 1: which developers say the Palmeston Council is continually moving the

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Speaker 1: goalposts and raising concerns that planned projects may not go ahead.

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Speaker 1: What is the situation here?

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Speaker 2: Unfortunately the UDIA hasn't put their allegations in writing to

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Speaker 2: the council, so there's nothing we can do until they

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Speaker 2: provide that to us.

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Speaker 1: So they haven't written to you, no. So they've written

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Speaker 1: to the Minister and provided that detail by the look

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Speaker 1: of it, to the p but they've not been in

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Speaker 1: contact with you no. So what I mean, are you

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Speaker 1: concerned or are you worried about the issues that they're raising.

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Speaker 2: No, but the council is actually very furious that they

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Speaker 2: didn't contact us before writing to the minister, and so

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Speaker 2: we've asked them for a copy of that letter and

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Speaker 2: to provide any information and evidence that they have of

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Speaker 2: wrongdoing and then we can look at it.

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Speaker 3: But until they do that, we can't do anything. Yeah, right,

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Speaker 3: So a like trying to discipline a staff member and

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Speaker 3: you've got nothing to go on.

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Speaker 1: So it feels like for you, are you happy enough

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Speaker 1: to try and work with them on their concerns if

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Speaker 1: they do raise them with you, If.

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Speaker 2: They raise them with us, then yes, we'll have a

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Speaker 2: look at it. But if they don't, there's just literally

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Speaker 2: nothing we can do.

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Speaker 1: Could it be a situation where they feel like if

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Speaker 1: they raise them, they're going to get stone walled, or

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Speaker 1: they're not going to be listened to.

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Speaker 2: I don't know their reasoning, you know, So there's just

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Speaker 2: nothing really, it's really is just nothing until they provide

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Speaker 2: it in writing.

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Speaker 1: I know that you know that it has also been

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Speaker 1: reported that you know that a number of different staff

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Speaker 1: have left. Is what they have have raised as concerned

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Speaker 1: as well or developers losing confidence in the City of

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Speaker 1: Palmerston due to that high staff turnover there, saying with

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Speaker 1: one source telling the paper that they've dealt with thirty

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Speaker 1: different planning offices in less than three years. This is something.

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Speaker 1: The staff leaving is something that's that we've had listeners

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Speaker 1: get in contact with us about. Is that the case.

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Speaker 3: It's not true.

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Speaker 2: We've only got three staff that deal with development and

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Speaker 2: we haven't had a turnover of thirty of them to

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Speaker 2: have been there for the last three years.

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Speaker 1: So it sounds like you're a bit perplexed by the

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Speaker 1: whole kind of the whole situation.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I just don't understand what it's about, and I

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Speaker 2: can't make any sort of judgment on it until we

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Speaker 2: get it in writing.

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Speaker 1: So at this point in time, I mean, is is

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Speaker 1: your door open for the Urban Development Institution.

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Speaker 2: I actually had to reach out to them, which I

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Speaker 2: find really offensive as well, and speak to their chairperson

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Speaker 2: and ask for their complaint in writing.

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Speaker 1: It does seem odd that if there are a lot

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Speaker 1: of concerns that they've not also raised them with you.

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Speaker 1: I guess to play Devil's advocates, they might be thinking, well,

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Speaker 1: you know that the council may ignore them, and that

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Speaker 1: they're better off going to someone else.

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Speaker 2: But the Minister wait and do anything until the complaints

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Speaker 2: come through the council. And I'd made that very clear

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Speaker 2: to their chairperson that I am the chair of our board,

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Speaker 2: you know, the chairperson of the council, so their complaint

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Speaker 2: should have come to me first, or if they didn't

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Speaker 2: feel comfortable with me, to one of the other elected members.

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Speaker 3: There are eight of us, so there's.

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Speaker 2: Really no excuse for not following the appropriate pass.

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Speaker 1: Well, look, we might wait and see what else comes

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Speaker 1: out of this situation because we've got quite a few

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Speaker 1: listeners getting in contact with us about other things.

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Speaker 3: That they're concerned about.

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Speaker 1: This morning Athena, I've got a message that's come through

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Speaker 1: from Margo from Marlow's and she said, could you please

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Speaker 1: ask the Mayor of Palmeston about the makeshift camps and

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Speaker 1: the mess being left behind opposite Bunnings. Margo says it's

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Speaker 1: disgraceful and shouldn't be happening. The first thing to receive

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Speaker 1: as they come into Palmerston, and it's not just there.

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Speaker 1: The council needs to get on top of this. Is

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Speaker 1: there rubbish in that area? And I mean, is it

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Speaker 1: something that the council goes around and sort of checks on.

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Speaker 2: It depends on where it is exactly on private property

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Speaker 2: we can't do anything about. And remembering too that the

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Speaker 2: main roads in and out of Palmerston are actually Northern

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Speaker 2: Territory Government so it's actually there, So it's not council's

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Speaker 2: responsibility to pick up rubbish on government roads. If it's

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Speaker 2: on a council road, then yes, it is our responsibility.

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Speaker 2: If it's on council property, it is our responsibility.

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Speaker 1: But is it frustrating for you then if it gets

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Speaker 1: left there because it is pretty gross.

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Speaker 2: There is a Yeah, there's a very fine line between

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Speaker 2: counts then intruding on someone else's property. You know, it'd

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Speaker 2: be like us walking into your backyard and starting to

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Speaker 2: remove stuff out of here.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, what about somebody?

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Speaker 1: What about the government land if it doesn't get cleaned

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Speaker 1: up quickly? And that is what we're.

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Speaker 3: Hearing as well.

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Speaker 1: Actually it's just behind Yarrawonga there that it's a bit

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Speaker 1: in some locations along the footpath. We've been contacted about

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Speaker 1: that last week by or actually earlier in the week

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Speaker 1: by Deb in Pineland. She contacted us about that footpath

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Speaker 1: area where apparently there are people that have been camping

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Speaker 1: and leaving rubbish there. But I wonder if that's government

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Speaker 1: land behind I reckon it is, Yeah.

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Speaker 2: I think that's Crown land. So again it has to

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Speaker 2: go through that process. If there are ongoing concerns. The

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Speaker 2: most I can do is raise it with Dipple and

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Speaker 2: the Minister and say can you go and what.

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Speaker 1: Do you recommend that locals do if they see areas

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Speaker 1: like that and support it, but not to council.

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Speaker 2: Government and Council have got their own reporting mechanisms on

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Speaker 2: Ouncil's website.

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Speaker 3: You can you can use our app. You can also

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Speaker 3: go onto our website.

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Speaker 2: Pick the road and if it's a council road, it

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Speaker 2: should direct you to our page of lodging an inquiry

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Speaker 2: or a complaint. Otherwise it will list the government roads

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Speaker 2: and it will direct you to their page.

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Speaker 3: So it's just I know, it's tricky.

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Speaker 1: Is it frustrating for you? If it's if it is

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Speaker 1: government land? And I mean, you know, I would imagine

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Speaker 1: you're a pretty proud mayor of Palmerston and then when

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Speaker 1: you see rubbish and stuff around, does it frustrate you?

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Speaker 2: Look, it is a bit annoying, but I need to

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Speaker 2: be made aware of it too, so yeah, you know,

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Speaker 2: and sometimes it's not even inside of our boundary, so

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Speaker 2: that yeah, cycle way I'm pretty sure is in Litchfield,

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Speaker 2: even though it's right at the back of Bunning's there.

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Speaker 2: So right, there's jurisdictional issues as well, so it's you know,

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Speaker 2: finding who is actually the responsible party and then making

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Speaker 2: sure that they're aware of it. Yeah.

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Speaker 1: Well yeah, so the one sorry Crystal, is just making

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Speaker 1: sure I've got that up to date info. So it

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Speaker 1: is concerned about the footpath, so she has apparently reported

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Speaker 1: it and no one seems to want to address it.

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Speaker 1: There is rubbish around the place, so we'll find out

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Speaker 1: exactly where it is and we might just pass that

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Speaker 1: on to your fair if that's all right Athena. Now

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Speaker 1: I want to move along. We know that the Dahwin

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Speaker 1: Festival we spoke about this last time you're on, but

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Speaker 1: a bit more detail, I guess about what's going on

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Speaker 1: out in Palmerston. Tell me we're not that far away

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Speaker 1: really from all that stuff happening at in Palmerston with

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Speaker 1: the Dahen Festival, are we?

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Speaker 3: Yes, not too far away.

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Speaker 2: It's on the sixteenth and seventeenth of August. The festival

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Speaker 2: will be coming out to Goida Square for that middle

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Speaker 2: weekend of the festival. The sixteenth is a free family

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Speaker 2: fiesta and the markets will also be on, so they'll

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Speaker 2: be roving artists, music and entertaining performances for the whole family.

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Speaker 1: Good stuff.

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Speaker 3: And Saturday the seventeenth is for adults.

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Speaker 2: It's a comedy night and it will mc will be

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Speaker 2: Merrick Watts.

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Speaker 3: Who's He'll be good. He's funny, so yeah.

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Speaker 2: Two performances of Laugh Out Loud Saturday Comedy headlined by Dilrock.

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Speaker 1: Good stuff. Much else happening out in Palmeston that we

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Speaker 1: should be aware of at the moment.

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Speaker 3: There is so much going on. It is an awful lot.

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Speaker 2: We have our our municipal plan consultation is still on

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Speaker 2: so that's until the.

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Speaker 3: Tenth of June.

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Speaker 2: I think we spoke about that last time, so if

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Speaker 2: anyone's interested to jump onto the website. Our animal management policy,

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Speaker 2: so our new by laws will be coming into effect

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Speaker 2: on the first of July.

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Speaker 3: First of July, so the.

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Speaker 2: Policy is out for public consultation until the fourth of June.

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Speaker 2: We've just opened up the Palmerston Youth Festival competitions, so

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Speaker 2: the Youth festival will be on from the sixth to

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Speaker 2: the twelfth of July. There's pre registration for some of

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Speaker 2: the competitions now, including Cosplay, Ultimate Smash, Ultimate Super Smash, Brothers,

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Speaker 2: Parmy's Got Talent. There'll be twenty five thousand dollars worth

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Speaker 2: of prizes over the seven day festival. So yeah, if

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Speaker 2: you're into those things, get in early and sign up

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Speaker 2: now for those.

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Speaker 1: And they can jump online. Head to the Palmerston Palveston website,

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Speaker 1: can't they yep?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, Bumstont dot gov dot au and look for the

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Speaker 2: Palmerston Festival competition link and you can register there. We

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Speaker 2: also have the Palmeston Street Art Festival coming and this

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Speaker 2: is very close now, the seventeenth to the twenty ninth

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Speaker 2: of June. We've partnered with Activate Darwin and Proper Creative

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Speaker 2: who'll be running the Darwin Art Festival. They have been

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Speaker 2: running it for several years. Over fifty percent of the

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Speaker 2: artists come from Palmerston and there will be lots of

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Speaker 2: activities leading up to that and some workshops and things

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Speaker 2: as well.

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Speaker 1: Good stuff, good stuff. Well Asena Pasco Belthy, Mayor of Palmeston,

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Speaker 1: good to speak with you this morning. Appreciate your time.

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Speaker 3: Thank you, thank you,