By JONATHON HOWARD
NOOSA pensioner Kevin Driscoll says the fight to save his jetty at the corner of William Street and Gympie Terrace is not over, despite having removed a temporary structure this month.
Mr Driscoll had been taking a one-man stand against Noosa Council on top of the jetty’s pylons.
He claims council is liable for damages to the jetty’s timber decking following a major flood last year, in which the adjacent footpath shifted towards the jetty and impacted several pylons.
Mr Driscoll had stepped up his campaign by chaining himself to the jetty’s remaining pylons and demanding the State Government intervene.
The matter is now with the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection.
“I made the decision to remove the temporary timber decking to allow the State Government to investigate the matter,” he said.
“The Department of Environment and Heritage Protection has thanked me for removing the (temporary) structure and they are working through the matter.”
Mr Driscoll said he was attempting to prove liability on the part of the former Sunshine Coast Council or current Noosa Council.
“Everyone acknowledges that the jetty was impacted by the shifting of the (council owned) footpath,” he said.
“Councillors have seen it and acknowledged it; residents who signed my petition can see it, so why will council not admit the footpath caused the jetty’s pylons to shift and subsequently dislodged the timber decking,” he said.
Mr Driscoll said he had several independent engineers reports which he said proved his theory and he had supplied these documents to the State Department.
Mr Driscoll said he wanted to thank all those local residents who visited him during his protest.
“I’ve had a lot of people ask me ‘where have you gone’ and ‘have you given up the fight’,” he said.
“The answer is ‘no’ I haven’t given up and I’m awaiting feedback from the State Department in the coming days.
“In the meantime, I’d like to thank all those who signed my petition and who continue to support me during this time.”
Noosa Today will update readers on future developments.
