By JONATHON HOWARD
IF there has been one news story that has sparked the most debate, controversy and outrage across Noosa this year, it would have to be the proposed re-boundary bid to include Eumundi, Doonan, Verrierdale and Weyba Downs into Noosa Council.
The EDV Residents Group has been working for years to try and bring these suburbs into Noosa and until this year they had little opposition to the move.
It wasn’t until the pro-Sunshine Coast Council group The Sunshine Coast Alliance burst onto the scene that the views of those opposed gained traction with the local media.
EDV president Johanne Wright has been a passionate campaigner for the re-boundary bid.
“The issue we are focusing on is whether this change is what the residents want,“ she said.
Ms Wright said a poll in 2004 showed more than 80 per cent of the residents living in the EDV area supported joining Noosa – a claim that’s refuted by the Sunshine Coast Alliance.
Mrs Wright said the group continued to send information out to residents in the lead-up to another poll to gauge opinion.
“Some of us passionately want this change and a small number might be against it, but there are so many that aren’t sure,“ she said.
“This is what democracy is all about.“
Meanwhile, the Sunshine Coast Alliance, made up of fourth and fifth generation residents, formed to oppose the EDV bid.
Organiser, chairman and local businessman and property owner Steve Bennett said the group was now made up of business people and land owners concerned about what Mr Bennett described as Noosa Council’s stringent conditions on business.
He said there were also heritage, cultural and historical links to the Sunshine Coast Council that were strong and dated back more than 100 years.
Mr Bennett has demanded that any vote to shift the boundaries to encompass the three districts should be inclusive of all Sunshine Coast residents.
“We are so disgusted at what they are trying to do,“ he said.
Sunshine Coast Council has indicated it does not support the change, while Noosa Council says it would support the change should locals vote in favour.
This is an issue to watch in 2015.
