Greater Geraldton an obvious choice for Growth Plan

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The Mid West Development Commission has welcomed the announcement by the Minister for Regional Development Terry Redman today that Greater Geraldton is one of the four regional centres chosen to share in $7.5 million to develop a plan to guide economic growth.

MWDC Chair Murray Criddle said Geraldton’s strategic position between Perth and the growing cities in the North West, and its a symbiotic relationship with region’s hinterland, including inland SuperTown Morawa, made it a front runner. 

“As we found in preparing our Mid West Regional Blueprint, there are a number of growth drivers for Geraldton, from its role in servicing and supporting the region’s economic activity, to its connection to external markets via its port, airport, rail and arterial road network, “ Mr Criddle said. 

“Geraldton is already connected to the NBN and further investment and developments in telecommunications and broadband facilities could yield significant growth off the back of information and communications technology, with transformation already underway into a creative and innovative regional centre. 

“The region’s unique biodiversity, renewable energy resources, aquaculture and geology could provide niche opportunities for investment in higher education and research and development. 

“Water resources around Geraldton can support growth in agricultural and horticultural industries. 

“Further investment in tourism will unlock unique tourism potential provided by Abrolhos, Kalbarri, biodiversity, geology, outback experiences, conservation areas,” Mr Criddle said. 

The Regional Centres Development Plan will assist in addressing three important elements in attracting and retaining people and investment; Health, Education and the revitalisation of the Geraldton Central Business District. 

“The creation of a growth plan will help to help leverage regional innovation through public-private collaboration and to ensure a strong and sustainable future for the Mid West,” Mr Criddle said. 

 “A focus on CBD Revitalisation is extremely important to reflect Geraldton’s position as a major regional centre, “Mr Criddle said. 

July School Holiday Fun

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Looking for something to do these school holidays to keep the kids entertained? The City of Greater Geraldton has got you covered with a number of activities happening across the region for kids of all ages.

The City has worked with several local organisations, such as the PCYC and the WA Museum Geraldton to create an exciting calendar of events for the July school holidays.

City of Greater Geraldton Mayor Ian Carpenter said the community had expressed concern that there is not enough for young people to do, particularly in the school holidays.

“We have listened and have tried to address these concerns by working with local organisations to facilitate a number events and activities to take place across the two weeks of the holidays in Geraldton and Mullewa,” the Mayor said.

“Some of the events include Hip-hop dance and singing workshops at the Queens Park Theatre, basketball clinics and competitions, beach excursions, as well as a number of workshops and activities at the Museum and Geraldton Regional Library. And youth in Mullewa have been well catered for with a range of activities and events.” 

For a full run down of events and activities over the July school holidays visit www.cgg.wa.gov.au

First Geraldton premises hit NBN copper cut-off D-Day this week

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iiNet reports that the first premises in Geraldton this week hit a Deadline Day for disconnecting their copper telephone lines as part of the compulsory migration to the NBN.
 
This Friday, July 10, about 1900 homes and businesses in Geraldton and Beachlands reach the copper disconnection deadline. This means anyone who has not placed an order for an NBN service will have their phone lines disconnected within 10 working days. To date, Perth and Mandurah are the only WA locations to reach the disconnection deadline.

iiNet is a national provider of NBN services, with more than 60,000 customers already using the NBN.

iiNet NBN Product Manager Rachael McIntyre

iiNet NBN Product Manager Rachael McIntyre said the 1900 homes and businesses in Geraldton and Beachlands were the first premises in the town to reach the disconnection deadline. “Consumers need to act quickly," she said.

"While their phone and Internet services may not stop working on that date, they will within days, so it really is time for people to upgrade to the NBN. Households or businesses still relying on the old phone network need to choose either to switch across to the NBN or to go mobile-only.

“Already iiNet has more than 60,000 residential and business customers using the NBN, enjoying much faster Internet access speeds and competitive prices, so there’s nothing scary about making this move.”

Since May last year, NBN has progressively announced areas in Australia that have reached the deadline for ageing copper telephone networks to be disconnected permanently as part of the move to the NBN. More than 140,000 premises throughout Australia have reached the disconnection deadline so far this year - more than twice as many as in all of last year.

Rachael McIntyre said people who had not yet moved to the NBN needed to make decisions. “Firstly, they must choose whether they want an Internet access service, a phone service or both,” she said.

“Secondly, if they use services such as faxes, monitored security alarms, Priority Assistance Services or EFTPOS terminals, they need to speak to the providers of these services to confirm they work on the NBN.

“The third step is to select the NBN Retail Service Provider, like iiNet, that best meets their needs, in terms of product, pricing and customer service. People do need make the choice. We really want to ensure they don’t risk losing their phone and Internet service before they get the NBN connected.”

Click here for answers to frequently asked questions about the NBN copper cutoff deadline

Hope brings Geraldton to the world stage

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On July 1 Hope Community Services’ experience in Western Australia was featured  as an international best practice in a panel on social enterprise at the World Expo in Milan. The panel discussed the topic of social enterprise in rural areas and exploring diverse themes such as alternative development, social enterprise start up, permaculture, quality assurance and certification of  “socially conscious” products.

Monica Luppi, Public Relations and Media manager for Hope Community Services, spoke about the unique challenges and opportunities for social enterprise in Western Australia, specifically using the example of Hope Springs Community Farm in Geraldton as an example. The farm was launched almost a year ago and has been collaborating with local non profits and community members  to provide a variety of benefits to the local community, including vocational and life skills training to people in recovery from drug and alcohol issues. Other innovative solutions to complex social issues that were presented included a project that converted illicit crops in northern Thailand into profitable agri-businesses focused on coffee and macadamia and a permaculture farming project in impoverished areas of Brazil.

“It’s a real honor to represent the Midwest on an international level, as a region with a strong sense of community and caring, a forward thinking place with a real knack for innovation”, explained Ms Luppi. “Geraldton is home to a strong network of amazing community organizations, local residents and has such a rich variety in terms of expertise, we are just glad to be able to share  what have accomplished and learnt so far”.

The World Expo is held every five years, the 2010 edition held in Shanghai. The Milan edition’s theme, “Feeding the Planet, energy for life” explores themes around agriculture and sustainability, including social, environmental and economic aspects. A total of 144 countries had pavilions at the event, which runs from May through October. 

Geraldton showcased on WA Weekender

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Channel 7 and GWN7 will be screening the Geraldton episode of WA Weekender this Sunday.

Local businesses paid money to GWN7 to have the episode filmed.

The show airs on Sunday at 5.30pm on Channel 7 and GWN7 and will be seen by an audience of about 72,000 people from across the Western Australia.

That's almost one tenth the number of people who watch House Rules.

But City of Greater Geraldton Deputy Mayor, Neil McIlwaine, said the upcoming episode will put Geraldton on the map as a coastal City instead of a ‘wild west town’.

“Geraldton has been in the spotlight of late being called a desert town in the middle of nowhere but this episode of WA Weekender really showcases what our City has to offer tourists and locals alike, so tune in and see if you recognise someone you know,” he said.

Though it was Seven that said Geraldton is a Wild West desert town... so...

Temporary closure of Francis Street carpark bays June 5, 2015

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The City of Greater Geraldton wishes to advise the public of the temporary closure of an area within the Francis Street carpark.

Parking bays will be closed to facilitate works on the new Multi User Facility and Youth Precinct and are expected to close from Wednesday 10 June, 2015, until Sunday 31 July, 2016.

For further information contact the City of Greater Geraldton on 9956 6600 or via council@cgg.wa.gov.au.

Opinion: Regarding the job losses at the City of Greater Geraldton

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You may have come across some headlines about jobs being axed at the city. 

I think axing is a terrible metaphor to use in this case. It implies the use of a tool with little precision and a lot of brute force. 

At first glance you might think nearly 50 people will be sacked. 

But dig a little deeper and you’ll get a different picture.

The process the City of Greater Geraldton undertook wasn’t simply that of slashing jobs until a magic dollar figure was reached. The process included a fair amount of restructuring, which resulted in the elimination of 73 positions and the creation of 27. 

Here’s a breakdown:

73 positions gone
27 new positions created

net loss of 46 positions

12 of these positions didn’t have anyone employed in them, due to the hiring freeze the city had already implemented
17 of these volunteered for redundancy already

This leaves 17 people who will have the choice of requesting a redundancy package, or asking to form part of a redeployment pool. If they're unable to be redeployed, they may be forced to take a redundancy. 

I had a chat with City of Greater Geraldton CEO Ken Diehm this afternoon about the situation, and his message to staff and the community at large. 

“The hardest challenge for me at the moment is to allow the people that have been impacted to feel that they’ve been treated with respect and dignity. 

"But if you’re one of those people that’s in one of the positions that’s being made redundant, it (does feel) personal, because the message that they feel is that we don’t value the work you do."

"But it’s not personal at all."

"This isn’t about people, it’s about positions."

"We’re hoping to re-employ as many people as possible.”

Mr Diehm shared his concerns regarding the perception behind the changes and the inevitable online discourse. 

“My concern about social media is that people need to realise that those people that are impacted from this are members of our community. They have mortgages, they have car repayments, they have credit cards, they have kids in school, and their future is suddenly very uncertain in their minds. And on top of that, they don’t feel valued. But the majority of them have been loyal, hard working, dedicated, faithful public servants to this community for quite a while.”

Mr Diehm went on to stress that any redundancy, whether by choice or, if it came to it, force, wasn’t due to performance. 

——

While no-one celebrates at the news of a fellow resident losing their job, the moves to reduce staffing levels is a clear sign that Ken Diehm and team have been listening to community feedback, and are doing what they can to see that future rate increases are lower than earlier estimates, and that services in Geraldton are not cut to the point of making the city unliveable. 

You can still expect future rate increases to be a little higher than the CPI due to state and federal government funding cuts to the tune of $3.7M, the multi generational problem of our accumulation of assets that now need repairing or replacing, and the ongoing rises in water and energy costs which form a large part of the CGG's expenses. 

But Mr Diehm says with savings they’ve already found, the restructuring in staffing, and the many “quick wins” found by staff at the city with things like vehicle reductions and car pooling, they’re on track to keep future rises below the 5.2% rate that had been projected. 

——

There are other changes worth mentioning in the restructure. They certainly don’t mitigate any discomfort felt by those who may be out of a job, but do seem to be positive moves by the city in the name of clarity. 

Three of the four departments have had name changes;

Creative Communities becomes Community Services
Sustainable Communities becomes Development and Regulatory Services
Community Infrastructure becomes Infrastructure Services
Corporate and Commercial Services remains the same

Mr Diehm said the name changes better reflected what the departments actually did, rather than use terminology that meant very little to the average resident. 

——

If you’re new to Geraldton, and want a bit of background… 

Over a long period of time, Geraldton, as well as many other councils around the state, had been accumulating new infrastructure without ensuring sufficient funds were available to renew those assets. 

Laws changed such that local governments had to adopt accounting practices that showed the true replacement costs of its infrastructure. For example, a swing at a park might have originally cost $100. Council estimated that it would need to be replaced in ten years. They do the sums and think "sweet, we can afford $100 in ten years." Except in reality a new swing doesn’t cost $100 any more. It’s $400. Oops. 
So we were budgeting for a $100 swing in ten years, but really should have been budgeting for a $400 swing. Once that changed a truer picture emerged of the state of Geraldton’s finances and pending financial problems, and there was a large rate increase of around 27% in 2012. 

That didn’t go over well with the community, and the following two years' rate rises under new CEO Ken Diehm were kept to the relatively low figures of 2.25% and 3.6%. 

At the time of the last budget it was planned that the next ten years would see rate increases of 5.2% each year. 

Recent audits found the problem of assets that needed fixing to be even greater than what was originally thought, revealing essentially a $25M backlog of urgent maintenance work that needed doing. 

However, the feedback Mr Diehm says he’s had from the community is that Geraldton wants future rates increases to be lower than 5.2% if at all possible, hence the staff reductions, restructuring and cost cutting. 

- Jason Smith is the Managing Editor for Everything Geraldton.

I knew what I wanted to do before I left school ; A conversation with the new CEO of NACC

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I caught up with Richard McLellan a couple of weeks ago about his new role at NACC (Northern Agricultural Catchment Council), his past, and the future of the organisation he now heads. 

Richard is from a long line of farmers. He hails from Kellerberrin in the middle of the wheat belt where his family grew wheat and sheep. 

He told me as he was growing up on the farm he would notice they had a lot of degradation and bush dying off. He says he went to college in Perth, and every time he came home he would see change. 

Bad change. 

"So that was the time I decided I wouldn't go back on the farm, I'd go and do environmental science instead."

So it was off to uni to do a bachelor of science with advanced environmental studies. 

After university Richard McLellan couldn't find the job he wanted with Greenpeace or WWF. So he went and did things like education training and worked in the media. 

Eventually he wound up working at Murdoch University and found himself back in the conservation sector. He later started his own business involved with native vegetation management. About 15 years ago he landed a position with WWF, where he has been up until recently. 

As Richard recounted his past what kept spinning in my mind was his knowledge at such a young age of what he wanted to do with his life; namely conservation work. 

This guy wasn't in the industry because he was indoctrinated by weed smoking hippy parents, or couldn't find a job anywhere else, or got abused by a right wing conservative once and decided to spend his life fighting capitalism.

He had grown up surrounded by farmers, but had observed his own family's property change for the worse as he returned each school holidays.

He knew the problem was widespread, and he set about equipping himself with the skills he would need to make the positive difference he knew was needed. 

I wish I could claim to have been so conscientious during my teens. I wanted to be a pro basketball player because they made a lot of money and I loved playing basketball. But I would have settled for being a rock star. 

As Richard recounted the rest of his story and his strategies working with different stakeholders, I was struck with his insight into how to collaborate with people who saw the world different to him. 

So much conversation I observe on any matter of importance is just people with opposite opinions trying to discredit the other; Richard's approach felt like a breathe of fresh air. 

He spoke of how he would survey land and bush near farms, and then let the land holders know what unique species of spider, or rare plant, existed on their property. Invariably the farmers then voluntarily became stewards of that fauna and flora, taking responsibility and looking for ways to protect the valuable treasure they previously were oblivious to. 

Richard recounted: "I've seen some guys who wouldn't want to be called greenies, but are as good a conservationist as you'd meet anywhere."

Speaking about NACC and his hopes for it into the future:

"I hope that NACC in the future is recognised for what it does, it doesn't get recognised fully for what it does now with the important role it plays.

"And I hope that we continue to be progressive on how we use communications to promote our work and to engage our constituency, if you like, in our work.

"NACC is a member organisation. It developed from being a small community organisation to where it is now. It is still a member based organisation and I hope that everyone who lives in our region is prepared to become a member, effectively, and support NACC."

So just Joe Bloggs up the street can become a member?

"Yeah."

Okay. Does it cost money to become a member?

"It costs nothing.

"But all it takes is for you to have a common belief that you want to have a sustainable future here. And NACC is a vehicle that can help achieve that. And so I would hope that everyone knows about NACC and says I want to be a member of NACC and I want to ensure that the values that NACC has for this region are the values that I want to have personally. So whether that's looking after our beaches, or looking after our water ways or looking after other natural resources and making sure that they are managed in a sustainable manner so that future generations that live in this area have those same assets."


Okay, so you don't have to be a major landholder or key stake holder or any of those to be a NACC member. What practically is there to do? Come in and sign a form? 

"Exactly, yeah."

Why would a member of the public need to call NACC? Do people reach out to you to ask questions about a weird species they've found or they've got a snake in their backyard? What are some other reasons the public would want to contact NACC?

"Ok so, what is always wanted is information. We have a huge amount of information both within the staff here but also within our system from having been out there operating doing stuff for the last decade or more.

"Another one is help. 'I'm an individual and I'm trying to control a weed outbreak on a creek line adjacent to my property. I can't do it by myself, can you guys help? Or can you direct us to someone who else who can help.' It might be about funding; 'I'm in a small group. We need some funding to help us do some coastal restoration, can NACC help us with funding?' Or it might be about voice, 'we are one small group, we've got this issue, and no one is listening to us, can you help us reach key constituents to get that voice made louder?' And another one might be 'we're thinking about doing this, is that a good idea? Are other groups are doing that. What are neighbour groups doing, what is the federal government think we should be doing about this?'

"And then there's other groups that don't have environmental stewardship as part of their mandate. They might be saying 'maybe we should partnering with NACC, to say that while we are doing a development proposal we can be talking to you about what needs to happen in terms of environmental stewardship.'"

There are still people that are turned off by anything that might be considered "greeny". How does NACC help bring those people on board?

"I guess the obvious one is through dialog, to demonstrate that nothing is never an us and them situation, everything is always 'what do we have in common here?'. 

"And you can go to someone who's saying 'I want to fish or hunt here.' 

No problem. Let's make sure you can fish and hunt in the future too, so let's find ways to do it sustainably.  

"So how do we make sure that no matter what we're doing, we're doing it in a sustainable manner so that things are around in the future? 

"You look for commonalities there; it's all about 'Well I want to keep doing what I'm doing' or 'I want my kids or grandkids to be able to grow up and be able to fish or hunt or whatever'.

"So I think that's where everyone wants the same thing."

NACC is located at 201 Lester Avenue. Drop in if you're interested in learning more or becoming a member, or call them on 9938 0100.

Murder charges: Reputable Geraldton businessman Mark Pendlebury charged with murder in Phuket

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Pic: Kritsada Mueanhawong

Former Geraldton resident and well regarded business person Mark Hamilton Pendlebury has been charged with murder in Phuket following an altercation outside a nightclub early Wednesday Morning 11/3/15. 

According to Phuketwan Mark Pendlebury was on his way home from a Rotary club meeting. He was with champion Danish surfer, Frederik Aakerlund, 48. 

From local tourism news site Phuketwan:

"Mr Aakerlund, who lost both legs in a military action in 2007, now does his best to inspire disabled children and competes against able-bodied surfers. Two months ago in Patong, he was attacked by thugs in daylight. He has just left hospital."

Mr Pendlebury had planned a boat trip for the handicapped Danish man following his brutal attacked to assist in the man's recovery. 

Regarding the incident, Mr Pendlebury is quoted as saying:

''An Indian and an Australian had been fighting inside and were being thrown out,'' Mr Pendlebury, 59, said from his cell at Kathu Police Station, where officers oversee Patong, the popular nightlife hub on Phuket's west coast. "I pulled out my camera to record what was happening and a security guard tried to stop me doing that. Before I knew it, I was being badly beaten up. I pulled out my knife and waved it back and forth to defend myself. A couple of Indians jumped in and with their help I was able to escape a little distance down the street. If the Indian tourists hadn't rescued me, I reckon I would be dead.'' 

Mr Pendlebury and the security guard were both taken to hospital. A short time later the security guard was pronounced dead. 

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, local business people on the Island are in shock. 

The Phuket Gazette has quoted Col Sutthichai from the local police force as saying: “He confessed to us that he was the one who stabbed Mr Sanya.”

Everything Geraldton spoke with a former employee of Mr Pendlebury. "He had a great reputation in the community," she said. Noting his work as Director of the Geraldton Regional Community Education Centre Association, the former employee mentioned he was well known for all the work he did in Geraldton with many different community organisations. "He had pretty much retired, bought a boat, and became Captain Mark," referring to Mr Pendlebury's work in Phuket running a sailing tour business.

Mr Pendlebury's business Phuket Sail Tours rates very high on Trip advisor (click here) with reviews claiming Mark is quite a character, focused on safety, and having a good time. 

Mr Pendlebury is a former board member of the Mid West Development Commission, and was involved with Rotary. He has also served as President of the Rotary Club of Phuket in Thailand. 

Mark Pendlebury is the father of Sea Shepherd member and environmental activist Glen Pendlebury, who in 2012 boarded a Japanese ship and had to be retrieved by the customs ship Ocean Protector.

Kritsada Mueanhawong from the Phuket Gazette said Mr Pendlebury was being held at Patong Police Station for 48 hours before being brought to the court. 

News.com.au reports that Australian consular officials from the embassy in Bangkok are providing assistance to Mark Pendlebury.

Video footage

Security footage of the incident has emerged, which, despite being quite grainy, appears to support Mr Pendlebury's version of events. 

According to PhuketWan (link)

The video shows:

  • Among others passing by, Mr Pendlebury appears on the opposite side of Rat-U-Tit 200 Pi Road, pausing and looking on as a melee develops outside Taipan.
  • Mr Pendlebury appears to lift a camera or mobile telephone and begin filming or taking photos from the far side of the road.
  • The Australian waits for several tuk-tuks to pass then crosses the road to go closer to the swirling mass of people that appears to be growing outside Taipan.
  • A figure emerges from the melee and seems to confront Mr Pendlebury, who is several steps away from the action.
  • Still on the road surface, Mr Pendlebury backs away and retreats along the line of waiting tuk-tuks, followed by about six figures. 
  • At least one vehicle is double-parked in the road the whole time, with emergency lights flashing. 

Allegations that Mr Pendlebury was drunk at the time of the incident have been rejected by people who were with him earlier in the night at a Patong Rotary meeting according to PhuketWan. 

Phuketwan is calling for those who witnessed the incident and may have footage or images to come forward, and stating that lawyers aim to apply for bail today for Mr Pendlebury. 

Free mammograms for women in Geraldton

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Local women aged 40 or over can access the free screening mammography service in Geraldton from February 12 to March 1.

BreastScreen WA’s mobile service will be located at the Geraldton Regional Hospital carpark off Milford Street from next week.

According to research, having a screening mammogram (breast x-ray) every two years significantly increases the chance of a woman surviving breast cancer and reduces the amount of treatment required.

More than 75 per cent of breast cancers occur in women over the age of 50 and research shows that screening is most effective for this age group.

City of Greater Geraldton Mayor Ian Carpenter, urged women to take advantage of the free service.

“We are privileged to have this extremely important service visit Geraldton,” he said.

“Statistics show that screening mammograms may detect up to 90 per cent of breast cancers so we would encourage local woman to use the visiting service.”

Early detection is your best protection. Ring 13 20 50 to make an appointment.

For more information about the free screening visit www.breastscreen.health.wa.gov.au

Abrolhos Islands now named under Greater Geraldton district

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The Houtman Abrolhos Islands have been moved from the Shire of Northampton and now fall under the City of Greater Geraldton

In a big announcement for local tourism, the Houtman Abrolhos Islands have been moved from the Shire of Northampton and now fall under the City of Greater Geraldton.

The Department of Local Government and Communities announced that the Minister for Local Government had approved a recommendation to the Local Government Advisory Board to amend the boundary between the district of Greater Geraldton and district of Northampton wherein the Abrolhos Islands now fall entirely under the district of Greater Geraldton.

City CEO Ken Diehm said that this announcement means the City of Greater Geraldton has a seat at the table in terms of contributing to opportunities for the tourism and fishing development of the islands and can play an immediate role in relation to disaster management for the region.

“This boundary change came about due to our great relationship with our neighbouring shire Northampton and we thank Northampton for this extremely positive outcome,” he said.

“Ultimately it is all about the protecting and promoting the Abrolhos.”

The City of Greater Geraldton had advocated for the movement of the boundary as there are a number of service organisations including response units which serve the cluster of 122 islands directly from Geraldton.

This means easier management of disaster events as all service organisations are based in Geraldton.

A special cabinet committee have been working with the Department of Fisheries regarding the management of the Abrolhos and although the City isn’t involved in this committee, we have a significant vested interest in the management of the Islands.

“We want to be more involved and have our voice heard when it comes to the future of fishing and tourism at the Abrolhos,” Mr Diehm said.

“We are proud to have the Abrolhos fall under our district and we will do our utmost to preserve and promote the beautiful islands which hold a very rich history for our community.”

Video: Wildflowers of the Midwest

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Check out this wonderful 4 minute video about the Wildflowers of the Midwest
The Wildflower Video is being primed for the tourist season and has been produced by Cineport for the City. It showcases the colours and beauty of Wildflowers within the Mid West Region.
 

Video: Life in Geraldton 1966

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A 19 minute From the Film Australia Collection. Made by the Commonwealth Film Unit 1966. Directed by Christopher McCullough. The final episode in the Life in Australia series Made by the Department of Immigration in the mid 1960s to entice immigrants from Great Britain and Europe to Australia, this film shows an idyllic picture of life in the West Australian town of Geraldton. via NSFA

Videos showcase what's great about living in Geraldton

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Congratulations to the team behind the successful Showcase Geraldton event at the QPT on the weekend. We can't remember seeing the QPT that packed. 

Attendees were treated to a fantastic video of life in Geraldton in the 60's, complete with indoor smoking, seatbelt-free kids, and suspension-free prams, all to the delight of the audience. Geraldton's population at the time of the film was just over 12,000, but many of the things that made Geraldton so appealing back then are still relevant today. It was quite a treat getting a glimpse into Geraldton life  circa1966. 

The large number of hands that shot up when asked if anyone recognised themselves or others in the video was also a pleasant surprise. 

A wonderful wildflower showcase video was also shown. The video was beautifully filmed and edited, and will be an absolute weapon as a promotional tool for the region. It really sold the wildflower experience and Geraldton in a very appealing way. 

Wildflowers of the Mid West Region.

The main feature of the event was a new episode of a show called Our Town. CGG CEO Ken Diehm pointed out that normally when Channel 7 come to town to offer to do the show, they accept payments from a handful of specific local businesses who then get featured heavily in the episode. Ken wanted to sell Geraldton as a whole, and the council chose to contribute the funding for the episode, along with several other stakeholders in town. 

OUR TOWN - Geraldton

The video does a great job of promoting Geraldton and all it has to offer, both to tourists, and people considering living or investing in the city and region. 

Also featured during the afternoon was this short music video below.  

"This short presentation is a fun celebration of life in Geraldton today. The music was written and recorded by Dave Clare and is intended for people to share online."

Geraldton showcased on the big screen

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Imagine the changes that have transpired in our City from the 1960’s through to today? Well imagine seeing it right before your eyes on the big screen! 

The Geraldton community is invited to ‘Showcase Geraldton’ on Saturday, January 17 at 4:15pm at the Queen’s Park Theatre, to enjoy a late afternoon of films celebrating life in Geraldton.

Channel 7’s ‘Our Town’ episode focusing on Geraldton will premier, which showcases the best in the region and encourages people to move, live, work, study or invest here. 

Our Town is a half-hour documentary series focusing on ten WA towns and Geraldton was chosen to be one of them. 

The film crew hit Geraldton last year and had their hands full interviewing local people, filming tourist attractions, businesses and our education facilities. 

City of Greater Geraldton Mayor, Ian Carpenter, said the opportunity to have Geraldton showcased to such a wide audience was an extremely unique and exclusive opportunity.

 “We have so much to be proud of here in Geraldton and it’s great that we can shine a light on our way of life and what makes Geraldton great,” he said. 

“I think the community will get a real kick out of seeing this new documentary as well as the Life in Australia Geraldton film, which will also be shown, a snapshot of Geraldton in the 60’s.

 “I’m sure that many of our local residents will be able to spot someone they know whether it is from the new brand new documentary or the one which dates back over 50 years.”  

 As well as the showing of Our Town, a feature wildflower film will play as will Life in Australia Geraldton.

 Life in Australia Geraldton is a 20-minute film capturing Geraldton in the 1960’s when the population was around 12,000. Now part of the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, the film was originally made by the Department of Immigration to entice immigrants from Great Britain to settle into a new life in Australia.

 The film proves to be a truly nostalgic trip down memory lane for many but is a good reminder of the journey that Geraldton has made to become the vibrant City it is today.

 Filming has been made possible thanks to financial assistance from the City of Greater Geraldton, Mid West Development Commission, Mid West Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Geraldton Ports Authority, Durack Institute of Technology, Geraldton Universities Centre, WA Museum – Geraldton, plus in-kind support from Ocean West and Geraldton Air Charter.

 The wildflower video is being primed for the tourist season and has been produced by Cineport.

 Reserve your free seat for Showcase Geraldton now by calling the Queen’s Park Theatre Box Office on 9956 6662 or dropping into Council offices or the library.