60 new GPs
The government has announced a new plan that will see the addition of 60 new general practitioners in regional South Australia, including the Limestone Coast. The new Single Employer Model (SEM) will support up to 60 additional GP and rural generalist registrars training in the community at any one time – potentially quadrupling the state’s existing cohort as the program scales up over time.
Elective surgery chopped
Stakeholders: What’s going on with health services? Booked for an elective surgery at a public hospital, you might have to look for other options. Elective surgery has been cancelled at all hospitals across the state, including the Naracoorte Hospital. Reason, the health system is heaving under an illness load, with a large number of Covid and flu cases in the community resulting in staff shortages...
Lovegrass threat
It’s scary and a superspreader. That’s how a Keith farmer and elected councillor of the Tatiara District Council has described the situation involving the spread of African lovegrass in the Upper South East ... Lovegrass (Eragrostis curvula) is a long-lived tussock-forming grass usually growing 30 to 120cm tall.
New learning centre for Naracoorte
If all goes according to plan, Naracoorte will have a new early learning and childcare centre by mid-to-late 2025. Work on the $2million facility located at the unused former TAFE building is set to commence this September.
Investment in education
A South Australian education union has slammed the 2024 Federal Budget for failing to deliver the much-needed investment in education. SA Branch of the Australian Education Union says public schools, including the ones in areas like Naracoorte Lucindale District, are not currently funded to the minimum school resourcing standard. “The current resourcing agreement for South Australia is set to expire at the end of this year…”: branch president Jennie-Marie Gorman.
Dirt roads
Serious concerns are being raised about the deteriorating condition of our dirt roads and the Naracoorte Lucindale Council’s ability to maintain them. The [Naracoorte Community] News visited some of the dirt roads in Naracoorte to see for itself their deteriorating conditions.
World-class race track: Bordertown Speedway Club asks for a $150,000 loan
Major upgrade works have begun at the Bordertown Speedway to make the facility a “world-class” race track. Once completed, the project aims to put Bordertown on the map, with a facility big enough to attract all types of racing. While the project has hit many speedbumps, the Bordertown Speedway Club says budget has been a big factor.
Moving ANZAC Day service
A moving Anzac Day dawn service was held in Naracoorte to remember fallen soldiers and service people on April 26. Mayor Patrick Ross described the service as "amazing”.
Vital tourism
Is Naracoorte-Lucindale District a competitive tourism destination, and are we doing enough to leverage from the region’s visitor economy? Tourism is critical to the region’s growth ... According to the Naracoorte Visitor Information Centre, 1738 tourists visited the district in the first two months of the year, with the majority being interstate and intrastate guests.
Wrong and rushed
Wrong, rushed, and transactional. That’s how councillors Abigail Goodman and Damien Ross of the Naracoorte-Lucindale Council described the council’s recent decision to drop the prayer and replace the Acknowledgement of Country with a shorter and more “inclusive” two-line statement. During the council’s March meeting, a motion for a revised code of practice for council and committee meeting procedures, which includes the new welcome statement, was put up for endorsement.
