Toodyay Herald

Mr Roberts resigned from the committee later that day “so as not to cause the elected representatives any embarrassment of drawn-out mediation or litigation”.

Former Men’s Shed vice chairman and “Shed Boss” Fred Fellowes failed a month later to secure a committee vote of no-confidence in the Secretary and Chairman.

The vote was lost 5-2 with only Mr Fellowes and Steve King voting in favour.

Mr Fellowes then tabled a note signed by nine Men’s Shed members that required a special general meeting of all members to be called, prompting the five who voted against his no-confidence motion to resign.

A special general meeting called by Mr Fellowes for May 7 elected Mr Jeff Roberts as Secretary, Phil Roberts as Chairman and former Toodyay shire president Brian Rayner as Vice Chairman.

At last month’s Northam court hearing, Mr Jeff Roberts and Mr Webb accepted the magistrate’s view that the restraining order sought by Mr Roberts should not go to trial.

Neither side was understood to have been represented by lawyers, and the pair agreed to sign a “mutual understanding” provided by the court for them to sign this month.

Mr Jeff Roberts wrote in this month’s Men’s Shed column on Page 12 that “gaps” had been filled after a “glitch” in the “normally smooth running of the organisation”.

An interim committee had been formed.

Mr Roberts said later that he knew of only five Men’s Shed resignations in April.
One of them – former Men’s Shed chairman Graham Hill – now chairs Moondyne Men.

Mr Hill said Moondyne Men had been incorporated as a not-for-profit association and had 18 new members – mostly from the Toodyay Men’s Shed – who meet weekly at the new Toodyay RSL Hall in Clinton Street.

Former Men’s Shed committee member Colin Bird was new Moondyne Men Secretary, and Barry Squires Treasurer.

Mr Hill said Moondyne Men raised $1100 in last month’s Moondyne Festival clean-up and donated it to Toodyay Locals Care.

Members meet at the RSL Hall on Mondays and Thursdays from 9am to noon, and for breakfast on the last Saturday of the month from 8.30am.

The Stirling Terrace facility provides a range of community services for local residents, including printing, laminating, secretarial support, office services, events and workshops.

It helps people to access online government services on computers provided at the centre.
It also rents out a conference room and meeting space for use by other organisations.

Ms Coleman said the State Government contributed $106,000 a year in quarterly instalments under a five-year deal that runs until June 2027.

This paid for just over half of the centre’s operating budget, she said.

Other revenue came from fees and charges for services, fund-raisers such as raffles, membership fees and donations.

The centre has asked the Toodyay Shire Council to provide a total of $10,000 to help pay for the town’s annual Christmas Street Party and School Holday Program.

The request will be decided at the next council meeting starting at 1pm on Wednesday June 22.
Ms Coleman said the requested funds were for annual one-off community events and did not cover the $10,000 needed to cover the centre’s budget shortfall for everyday operating expenses.

The centre had 115 financial members, including some small local businesses, who paid between $15 and $50 a year depending on their membership category and circumstances.
Staff numbers were recently cut with the departure of an administration officer, leaving three others to keep the centre open.

Ms Coleman said the centre had no money to pay for a replacement.

However, she was heartened by the public response after the centre posted a recent plea for help on a local Facebook community page.

“We just need $10,000 to keep going,” Ms Coleman said.

“I don’t think anyone in this town would like to see us close.”

If you can help, please call 9574 5357 or email admin1@toodyaycrc.com.au.

Punters will also be deprived of traditional post-race entertainment by Tod Johnstons’ popular Perth band Peace/Love.

The shock decision to cancel was made after recent heavy rain leaked through the ageing roof into the tote area and bar, wrecking a new 104cm (55-inch) TV and soaking other electrical equipment.

It is understood concerns were also raised about the poor condition of the Toodyay race track after two unseasonally dry summers left insufficient grass on the surface.

The Toodyay Race Club says it has spent thousands of dollars on maintenance over several years but has no money to pay for major repairs.

A large aluminium roof that spans the main betting area and bar has been patched many times and needs replacing at an estimated cost of at least $100,000.

Gutters are rusted and broken, and showers need to be installed for female jockeys who feature strongly on country race cards.

Model aircraft enthusiasts are the only regular visitors to the shire-owned racecourse which is used only once a year for the annual running of the Toodyay Cup.

A decision to move the Toodyay Cup to Belmont instead of Northam follows years of financial friction between the two neighbouring Avon Valley race clubs.

The Toodyay Race Club leases the track and buildings from the Shire of Toodyay, which said four or five years ago that it would upgrade the facilities but failed to allocate budget funds to pay for it.

Shire President Rosemary Madacsi alluded to it in this month’s President’s Pen report when she suggested community input on how best to manage all shire-owned sport and recreation facilities.

Toodyay Race Club Chair John Prater said the main roof had been patched every year for the past 15 years and was now beyond repair.

“All the gutters are rusted and don’t work,” he said.

“Water leaks into the bar and tote.”

Mr Prater, a former Toodyay shire deputy president until 2013, said tickets would be sold for buses to Belmont for the running of this year’s Toodyay Cup in Perth.

The town’s security cameras were upgraded under the direction of former shire CEO Stan Scott in 2019 after years of delays.

The new cameras – some with advanced vehicle number plate recognition technology – were understood to be incorrectly earthed.

“There was no written agreement and to the best of our knowledge, the cameras were installed by the shire without Western Power approval,” a power utility spokesperson said.

“Western Power inspectors were alerted to the cameras and upon inspection deemed them unsafe and disconnected the power.”

Toodyay police say there are 14 shire-owned video security cameras in the central business district, including two at Duidgee Park.

Video camera display screens inside Toodyay Police Station have been blank for months and the viewing software is frozen.

Police have been unable to trace the occupants of wanted or suspicious vehicles by using number plate recognition to check if potential offenders have been in Toodyay.

Some shire cameras are installed on Western Power light poles and the rest are mounted on other supports.

The shire installed six security cameras in Stirling Terrace in 2019, including five on light poles.

Acting Shire CEO Tabitha Bateman said a search of shire records had failed to find any evidence of a written agreement with Western Power in 2019 to mount cameras on light poles owned by the State power utility.

She said the problem was raised with Western Power last year but the shire had yet to hear back after being promised a response by February.

It is understood Western Power discovered that its light poles were being used without permission when a work crew was called out last year to check a report of water spouting from one of its Stirling Terrace light poles.

It resulted in all shire cameras on Western Power light poles being disconnected because they were ruled to be unsafe.

The power utility said its engineers had since designed and developed new equipment to make the fittings safe.

“This connection type has been specifically designed for this type of application so that local governments and other customers will be able to use this design to mount a range of products, including safety cameras, weather stations and other sensors,” the spokesperson said.

“Testing has now been completed with the first set of permanent installations expected to be completed by July.

“The original prototype testing was scheduled earlier but was delayed for six months due to global supply chain issues.

“Western Power will complete the work, including the mounting of the equipment.

“Maintenance and operation of the cameras will be done by the shire.

“Costs for this project are yet to be finalised.”

Western Power said one other WA local government authority had a similar problem.

The dogs were unregistered and the ranger reported that the animals were being kept in poor conditions.

Puppy farming is tightly controlled in WA after new State laws were adopted last year.

It followed complaints of unhygienic conditions and animal cruelty.

Breeders must be approved and comply with strict local government local laws and State legislation to protect puppies’ health and buyers’ rights.

Shire of Toodyay local laws allow no more than two dogs to be kept on a property unless councillors vote to approve additional animals up to a maxmimum of six.

No application was made to keep more than two dogs at the Julimar property.

The shire ranger reported the discovery of guns and crossbows to Toodyay police while the shire started searching for suitable alternative accommodation for the 35 dogs.

There was no room in the shire dog pound at the West Toodyay recycling depot for so many animals.

The matter was reported to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) in Perth in a bid to to help find alternative accommodation.

The shire ranger returned to the property with Toodyay police a few days later to find that all the animals and been removed and the adults gone, leaving the house empty.

The ranger attached a $250 shire infringement notice for an alleged breach of local health laws to the front door.

Investigations are continuing into other potential breaches of local and State laws.

It is thought that the puppy farm owners may have abandoned a similar operation in Joondalup before moving to Toodyay.

Shire authorities fear the puppies may have been shifted to another secret location – possibly also in the shire.

Northam Hospital declined to provide case numbers but it is understood some Toodyay residents may have sought treatment there.

School students who tested positive or those with close classroom contacts were required to isolate at home with their families for seven days, causing local businesses that employ parents to shut or reduce hours due to staff shortages.

Toodyay police warned that at least three fake exemption certificates had been used by people trying to gain illegal entry to local business premises, an offence that carries an on-the-spot fine of $1000 (see Police Beat column).

The town’s two hotels remained open but sales were affected and staff hours cut.

The Toodyay Community Resource Centre closed for two days after a case was reported at the “View from the Magpie’s Nest outdoor music and art event (pictured right) that it co-presented in Stirling Terrace last month.

No resource centre staff tested positive for the virus but Toodyay Shire President Rosemary Madacsi said she felt unwell after attending the event and later tested positive, causing her to miss last month’s council meeting while isolating at home for seven days.

President Madacsi said she felt ill and tired “in waves’ after testing positive at home on her second attempt following an initial negative Rapid Antigen Test result.

Severity of symptoms has varied, with normally healthy people reporting a more severe illness than they expected while isolating at home.

One Shire of Toodyay employee tested positive last month and returned to work after recovering.

Two more returned to work after isolating for seven days following close contact with others who tested positive.

Ten shire staff were working from home on rotational shifts to limit disruption in case others in the office tested positive, which would require all close contacts in the workplace to isolate at home for seven days.

Several local businesses joined the shire in splitting their workforces into home-based rosters to avoid closures.

Others, such as Toodyay Fairytale Farm, were forced to shut because of COVID-19 among family members but said on Facebook that they hoped to re-open for Easter holidays.

Toodyay Tyres was also forced to close for a few days at the end of last month and has since re-opened.

Supplies of food and other household items were generally returning to normal at Toodyay’s IGA store after shortages caused by widespread flooding in January halted eastern states’ rail deliveries.

IGA store owner Dean Carter said there were still shortages of some items such as canned pet food at the start of this month because of a shortage of ingredients imported from China.

“We have plenty of fresh food but a lot depends on whether suppliers have to shut down for seven days if their workers test positive,” Mr Carter said.

Lots of local businesses were “feeling the pinch” and trade was down at the Victoria Hotel.
“Business at the restaurant and bar has been pretty diabolical and we have had to reduce staff hours,” Mr Carter said.

“However, we are seeing a lot of tourists and things are starting to pick up.

“We’re all in the same boat and by Easter it should be full-on.

“Pubs everywhere have taken a bit of a hit and are a lot worse off in Perth, so we’re not complaining.”

Freemasons Hotel owner John Pearce said his pub was similarly affected by “Covid hesitancy”.

“There’s a new word for it – ‘HOGO’, the Hassle Of Going Out,” he said.

“Covid is here to stay, and our town’s business survival depends on getting through this week rather than worrying about what might happen next week or next month.”

The State Government is expected to ease isolation and close contact rules as the virus becomes more common in the community, though the emergence of new variants may cause restrictions to return.