Your say: music festival, mass transport, dredging discussions and cinema revival

It’s been a busy week or two, with fury over a festival date, political leaders in town and dredging discussions. See what some readers had to say below.

Do you have an opinion to share? Submit a Letter to the Editor including your name and suburb via: news@sunshinecoastnews.com.au.

Festival feedback

I support Bob Carroll’s comments about Caloundra Music Festival. 

The financial focus on this one event by Sunshine Coast Council sucks potential funding from other worthwhile projects, I have always wondered if similar funding is made available to promote other tourism precincts across the region.

I think not.

Maggie Third, Mount Coolum

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Festival love

I cannot disagree more with this gentleman.

The venue for Caloundra’s Music Festival is perfect. I’ve been twice and enjoyed myself immensely.

A million dollars of investment in a cultural event that puts Caloundra in the hearts and minds not just of Sunshine Coast residents but of Australia is good truck for the buck, I reckon!

Keep on promoting our community with this iconic event Council!

Jeff Tuttle, Caloundra

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Music support

Interesting to read Mr Carroll’s take on where and when we should host the Caloundra Music Festival.

Not sure what self-interest has prompted these comments, but as regular attendees at the CMF we have found it family friendly, a great boost to our district and a beautiful place to host the event.

It’s not always about money.

Thank you Council for going your own way.

Peter Murphy, Caloundra

Transport ire

Primarily, I agree that much attention must be given to transportation needs of our ever growing and near always congested area! However, opposition leaders whinging about not having it dominate government’s meeting may be more about sour grapes than an issue Queensland and Feds say is on track.

Jeff Tuttle, Caloundra

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Perhaps if Albanese and co. spent more time in Canberra actually working for the people instead of prancing around the country and overseas, we would see more results.

Margaret Johnson, Maroochydore

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Heavy Rail or Light Rail, both subjects are in the never never, which brings me to the question, Sunshine Coast Council is imposing a transport levy on all rate payer notices and has been doing so for many years – why is this so?

Transport is the responsibility of State Government. not local council?

Ratepayers are being ripped off.

Colin Boyle, Marcoola

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After the debacle of Ted O’Brien’s $1.6 billion pre-election rail promise which assumed, without prior consultation, that the Qld Government would cough up a similar amount based on nothing more than an un-costed 20-year-old plan, the LNP continues to beat the drum about the CAMCOS branch line.

There is no doubt that this would be of some benefit to the Olympic Games – for about a month in 2032 – and might help the Sunshine Coast to become a ‘dormitory’ for Brisbane commuters, but it is of limited value in easing traffic congestion over the rest of the Sunshine Coast, which will double its population by 2040.

It is a pity that the LNP can’t get behind the metro-bus/tram proposal that would deliver three to four times as much public transport as one 19th Century heavy rail line.

The Sunshine Coast could maintain its de-centralized ‘village’ structure, served by regular trackless tram services, allowing all regions of the coast to participate in the inevitable population growth, instead of creating a ‘corridor of congestion along the rail line.

John Saint-Smith, Buderim

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Dredging debate

No need to go as far as Spitfire Passage for sand (Technique to be trialled in effort to to protect beaches).

Plenty in Pumicestone Passage to remove and solve another problem before the northern end of the passage stagnates.

Why is it ok to trial this approach at Maroochydore but not another at Caloundra? (Left high and dry by dredging decision).

Greg Clutton, Pelican Waters

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For two decades I’ve witnessed many storms destroy the Mooloolaba beach and then watched nature return the sand that it had taken away.

On I think two occasions a dredge removed a sandbank that all but closed the Mooloolaba harbour, which is the only haven for yachts and watercraft in a storm between Moreton Island and behind Fraser/Bundaberg Island in severe weather.

I have watched sand scoured from the spit beach being dumped by the water movement to the north of the two groynes and inside the rock walls, building sand bars restricting vessels using the harbour.

I spoke with Hall Engineering, suggesting that extending the ‘thumb’ on the western groyne, towards the surf club building, by fifty to a hundred meters would backfill the corner with sand that was scoured from the beach during a storm.

This will neutralise the sand from travelling north along the groyne and minimise the deposits of sand across the harbour entrance and between the two groynes. Computer modelling would identify the feasibility of such an idea, which could be a solution for ongoing dredging, and enhance the safety of entering and leaving Mooloolaba harbour as well as enhancing the beach.

I believe the state government needs to initiate a hydrography solution and test this theory I put.

Maybe lobbying by the Council and the boat owners of the region as they pay boat licensing fees imposed by the government for Mooloolaba Harbour to be upgraded to all-weather access as a priority.

Robert Buick, Mountain Creek

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Threat to flora and fauna

Dr Helen Cooke, Caloundra

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Cinema revival