Araluen NewsRobyn lambley MLA Member for Araluen November 2015

As the former NT Minister for Health I worked hard to find funding for a much needed Palliative Care Hospice in Alice Springs. I was lobbied by dedicated members of the local Central Australian Palliative Care Association (PCA) and it was my absolute privilege to put my energy into making this important facility a reality.

Through some "creative accounting" we were able to divert Federal funds to a Hospice for Alice Springs. This involved some tough negotiations over an extended period. But we finally got there just prior to a major reshuffle in December 2014 in which I lost the health portfolio.

I would like to acknowledge and thank those from the PCA who did all the ground work for getting this project off the ground. They are an incredibly dedicated group that have been lobbying for a Hospice for many years.

They have put enormous work into the concept and the philosophy

behind such a purpose built hospice. Their focus has always been maximising the comfort of the dying person and their family during the final stages of life.

Darwin has a beautiful purpose built Hospice in the grounds of the Royal Darwin Hospital. Tastefully and practically designed and fitted out, this facility typifies what all Territorians should ideally be able to choose as an option for their end of life care. We all wanted a Hospice for Alice Springs based on the same best-practice model.

We have been patiently waiting for the NT Government to announce the $5m - $6m funding I was able to allocate for this project. I understand that work is currently underway on the design. This will also be a major infrastructure project for the town bringing jobs and economic benefit.

Knowing we will have a first class Palliative Care Hospice in Alice Springs should definitely provide some peace of mind for all residents.

Hello from Robyn

The NT Government changed the restrictions on the number of poker machines in licensed premises as of 1 July 2015. This will mean more poker machines in Alice Springs, with the number of machines possibly doubling and tripling in some pubs and clubs.

In 2013 Territorians gambled more than $611m on poker machines. For a population of less than 250,000 people that is a lot of money. It equates to more than $2500 for every man, woman and child.

I wonder if this is an issue that hits the radar of Araluen residents. Are you concerned about gambling in Alice Springs? Do we need or want more poker machines in Alice Springs? Should we be doing more to address problem gambling in our community?

Please email me with your thoughts: electorate.araluen@nt.gov.au

What do you think about alice Springs getting more poker machines?

2015 Young Achiever Award winners and Alice Springs residents, Cherisse Buzzacott and Tara Liddy. It was an honour to launch the Awards recently.

neW alice Springs Palliative Care Hospice

So please stop for a chat if you can. I am interested in everything that is happening around town.

Over Christmas be safe, recharge the batteries and enjoy your festive season!

This is the last Araluen Newsletter for 2015 and my opportunity to wish you all a wonderful festive season. Come December we all seem to get super busy with Christmas celebrations and end of year events, so I thought I would get in early with my 2016 calendar and Seasons Greetings.

One of the most enjoyable things I have been doing lately is setting up a “Mobile Office” most weekday mornings. Between 7 am and 8.45 am I have been sitting beside the road with my signs saying “Stop for Chat” at different spots around the Electorate of Araluen.

Although people are usually busy on their way to work and school, it is a great opportunity to catch up with people for a few minutes and to remind people that I am here for them. A good politician should be available to residents, not just there for the formal events and functions, but there to listen and assist people.

It’s always a pleasure to donate to the the Alice Springs Animal Shelter and catch up with Manager, Jill Hall.

It was great to see so many generous people at the Butterfly Connection’s fundraising event at the Golf Club.

Goodbye to Carley Carley Plume, my trusted and

capable Electorate Officer has decided to move on after working with me for almost 5

years. Carley needed a change of scenery after her time

immersed in the cut and thrust of NT politics.

I know many of our regular visitors to the Araluen Electorate

Office and the very many people Carley has helped over the years, will join with me in

wishing Carley all the very best in her new endeavours. She will

be sorely missed.

The search for a replacement for Carley is currently underway.

Many of you would be aware of the “Build a Bridge” campaign. This is a campaign to build a bridge across the Todd River, possibly replacing the Taffy Pick Crossing. Now is the time with the NT Government literally flushed with cash after the sale of TIO ($424M) and more recently the 99 year lease of the Darwin Port for over half a billion dollars.

The Government promised that flood mitigation was a priority for the allocation of the proceeds from the sale of TIO. So there will never be a better time for Alice Springs to demand a bridge or a significantly upgraded crossing, to replace the Taffy Pick Crossing.

As more information comes to light it seems that it is inevitable that the Taffy Pick Crossing will be removed. It is a low level bridge that acts like a dam during flooding, blocking the flow. Even now if you drive across

the Taffy Pick Crossing you can see the build-up of sand and vegetation around the crossing. The Council is charged with regularly clearing this build-up of sand and debris. To perform this flood mitigation work of deepening, widening and clearing the river in this area is a major cost to ratepayers.

The Alice Springs Town Council has it in their sights to address the problem of the Taffy Pick Crossing and is considering “other options”. A bridge will be difficult to build but not impossible. As with the Stott Terrace bridge, built almost 40 years ago, a bridge resolves all the problems that this part of town faces during flooding.

It would provide all weather access, except for major floods. A bridge would not impede or disrupt the flow of water and debris during floods. A bridge provides virtually unlimited access,

with Council not having to undertake the scale of flood mitigation work that is currently required.

To replace the Taffy Pick Crossing with just another causeway (like the Tunks causeway) would be a backwards step, effectively reducing accessibility rather than improving access. We need a bridge.

I challenge the Council and the NT Government to take Alice Springs into the modern era of bridge building. There is most certainly a bridge design that can take into account all the limitations and obstacles that this project presents.

I urge the bureaucrats to think laterally and quickly, before the funds dry up!

Please come into my office and sign the petition. Or else you will see me on the side of the road in the mornings and at the Todd Mall Markets.

build a bridge Campaign

Visiting with Teacher In Charge, Jenny Cooper, staff and children at Gillen Preschool recently.

Gillen preschool’s wonderful playground area and beautiful garden.

Enjoying the 2015 Beanie Festival with former Araluen Arts Centre Director, Tim Rollison.

Robyn LambLey mLaMember for Araluen Shop 1 Helm House, Cnr Bath St & Gregory Tce

PO Box 2654, Alice Springs NT 0871 Tel: 08 8951 5588 Fax: 08 8953 8029 Email: electorate.araluen@nt.gov.au

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