The seafood capital
Port Lincoln sits on the southern tip of Eyre Peninsula, with Spencer Gulf to the East and Great Australian Bight to the West. We are surrounded by sea and national parks; a truly beautiful remote, yet productive area.
Adelaide is half an hour away, through our new airport (owned by the District Council of Lower Eyre Peninsula), with ten flights per day. By comparison, the road north to Whyalla, Port Augusta, then down to Adelaide is a 650km drive.
Port Lincoln is the regional centre for lower Eyre Peninsula; we have a City population of 15,000, serving a regional community of about 25,000.
Agriculture is very important and Port Lincoln exports through our deep-water port, about one quarter of South Australian grain. Eyre Peninsula is very productive and reliable country.
These days we are known for our seafood. Port Lincoln, known as the “Seafood Capital of Australia”, and Eyre Peninsula the “Seafood Frontier”, deliver on that promise. Spencer Gulf king prawns, southern ocean abalone, rock lobster, sardines, King George whiting and a wide variety of fish species make up the wild catch sector. Our strong aquaculture sector consists of tuna, oysters (you may already know of Coffin Bay oysters), mussels and farmed abalone.
Tourism is our third economic driver, with our famous ‘dive with the great white shark’ adventure, plus national parks, empty beaches, good fishing, fabulous surf and great accommodation, which are attracting young and old, national and international visitors.
Providing for the community
From a local government perspective, Port Lincoln is well placed to serve the community. A small, mainly urban area, with well developed infrastructure, established recreation and sporting facilities as well as a quality performing arts centre, provide most of what the community needs.
Council owns and operates a Visitor Information Centre, Gallery, Gallery Shop and Performing Arts Centre, along with the usual Library and sporting facilities.
A major project has been the purchase of a thirty-year-old indoor aquatic centre and sports stadium. The complex was sold fifteen years ago to private interests who had an undertaking to keep the facility operational until 2016. Council investigated building new facilities in a new location, however just a pool was costed at over $17m. Late in our deliberations we were offered the old facility, so with a purchase price of $4m plus a refurbishment of $5m, we will have a pool plus sports hall that will last another 30 years. We applied for and have been granted $4.4m from the Stronger Regions Fund, which will add two more indoor sports courts and much needed outdoor play areas.
The rewards of local government
On a personal note, I am really enjoying my role as Mayor. Halfway through my second four-year term, with excellent staff and a good group of Councillors, life is pretty sweet. I spent six years as Mayor of a newly amalgamated Shire of Warwick in Queensland, and I relished that challenge. I am very proud of what the council achieved.
However, my life changed and I chased a girl in Lower Eyre Peninsula (who is in fact the present Mayor of her District Council) and came to live in Port Lincoln. I never imagined I would return to Local Government, but I sensed the community was ready for change after a longstanding Mayor, so I nominated and won, and survived a return challenge at last election.
Local government is very rewarding in that we are able to do things for people. We can enhance the quality of life and people’s enjoyment.
As president of our Regional Association, I am appointed to the state Local Government of Australia Board. I am Board Member of our very effective statewide Mutual Schemes for Workers Compensation and Liability Insurance, and I play an active role in a range of community-based organisations.
