The event continues to go from strength to strength. It was only a couple of years ago that I remember thinking Steampunk would need to go to a two-day format to accommodate the ever-increasing popularity and I am pleased to see this now occurring. This year’s theme is ‘The only limit is your imagination’ and the event will incorporate more activities, more market stalls and more live entertainment than ever before.

I look forward to seeing you there over the weekend!

I am sure by now that most of our readers would have heard about the NSW Police Firearms Registry’s requirement for a range danger area over the council’s Waste Management Centre. I want to assure the community we are working with the rifle range users and firearms registry to find a solution, but I also want to clear up some of the misinformation that was going around at the start of the week.

The council is not a consent authority for this ‘range danger area’ and it is not a requirement we have put in place. This is not a regulatory function of council; we are being requested for our view as a land owner and neighbour of the Rifle Range. Our decision needs to be based on our ability to continue to operate the Waste Management Centre if it is in a ‘range danger area.’

We wrote to the Firearms Registry in June 2018 following discussions with the Goulburn Rifle Club to support the club’s view that the large hill and distance to our landfill was an effective buffer to reduce the size of the Range Danger Area. Unfortunately this was rebutted by the Firearm Registry, who said there was a specific design requirement determined by the Department of Defence that cannot be amended for Range Danger Areas.

As a neighbour of this facility, our first responsibility is to ensure the safety of staff and community who use the Waste Management Centre. The good news is we had a productive meeting on Tuesday afternoon with NSW Police Firearms.