Casino NSW News
NRLX lease won’t get sales back soon
NRLX lease won’t get sales back soon
By Tim Howard
The Richmond Valley Council has voted itself out of the cattle selling business, but it will do nothing to get cattle sales back at the saleyards anytime soon, says Casino auctioneer Matt McCormack.
After more than two months of bitter conflict with Casino cattle auctioneers over a proposed new licence agreement to sell cattle at the council-owned Northern Rivers Livestock Exchange, council voted unanimously to cease management of the saleyards and tender on the open market for a long-term lease.
A public meeting was called for Monday in the Casino Golf Club to discuss issues arising from the decision.
Mr McCormack, the vice president of the Casino Auctioneers Association Inc, was critical of the decision, mainly because it did nothing to help the community by getting cattle sales back in the NRLX “yesterday”.
“After the public meeting (on September 4) the message was ‘get cattle back into the place’ and they say they think it’s going to take three months,” Mr McCormack said.
“The short term is there is no sales in Casino and we need one there yesterday.”
Mr McCormack said an obvious solution would be to begin selling again under the rules that existed prior to the July 1 lockout.
“We’re more than willing to be back there selling under the old agreement,” he said.
Robert Mustow.
But the resolution adopted by the council stipulated sales held between now a new lease agreement, must follow the council’s new guidelines, which rules out local agents.
“We can’t sign that agreement that was put to us,” he said. “And it’s clear nobody else can either, or there would be other agencies there doing it.
Mr McCormack said an unfortunate side effect has been “a lot of business getting shot in the crossfire”.
“There’s a bigger picture than RVC versus the agents,” he said. “It’s affecting the town, it’s affecting people mentally, financially and for what reason, why can’t both sides get in and do a deal?”
Mr McCormack said CAAI members had talked about the possibility taking on the NRLX lease, but they were preliminary discussions and there would need to be more formal talks.
The future of the NRLX, which has been in virtual lockdown since July 1, was the main item on the September 19 council meeting agenda.
In addition to the general manager’s report, which recommended an open market tender process for a long term lease, Mayor Robert Mustow presented a late mayoral minute and two community members, Roger Bailey and Allan Berry, presented delegations.
The decision and the reasoning behind it does not sit well with the community.
Mr McCormack dismissed many of the arguments the council has used to say why the new agreement is necessary.
He said the figures showing an operating deficit of $469,282, a program deficit of $647,303 leading to each ratepayer paying $60 a year to fund the NRLX as “scare tactics”.
Mr Bailey made similar arguments in his deputation to council ahead of the decision.
“Then we come to the most outrageous claim that the NRLX quote: ‘continues to run at an operating deficit of $469,282 and an overall program is in deficit by $647,303’.
That ‘each ratepayer is in effect subsidising this operation at $60 per year for each rateable property’. This is clearly not the case.”
Mr Bailey said the the NRLX, like most local government programs, ran a restricted asset fund, which had a balance of $574,945
“Other programs like quarries, cemeteries and libraries where similar restricted accounts fluctuate too,” Mr Bailey said.
“They exist to support the named program as a bank account would. Funds are also protected, unable to be accessed for any other purpose, except by council resolution.
“I would venture to say that not $1 of ratepayers money has ever gone into that account that wasn’t paid back.”
Councillor Robert Hayes
General manager Vaughan Macdonald confirmed Mr Bailey’s figures were accurate, when answering a question about them later in the meeting.
Mr Berry in his deputation, said the council had ignored the wishes of more than 700 people who attended the September 4 meeting.
“These included that the NRLX be opened immediately under the previous licensing agreement until a long term solution is negotiated,” he said.
“While the general manager acknowledged the impact of the NRLX closure on farming families and the wider community, his short term solution is to persist with the controversial and confrontational 2023-26 agreement, which is already deemed unacceptable.
“The GM’s recommendation fails to show a will to quickly open the NRLX.”
Mayor Robert Mustow presented a late mayoral minute, which he had promised to organisers of the September 4 community meeting, to answer the six resolutions arising from it.
But he also attacked the meeting, saying it “called for council to disregard its new license agreement and allow the stock and station agents to formally trade at the NRLX to walk back in under the old agreement and ultimately take control of the facility.”
He defended the council’s procurement process for the new agreement and savaged the approach of the agents, saying they tried to, “dictate to their landlord how much they are prepared to pay in rent, in which conditions of their lease they are willing to comply with.”
He also brought up issues of animal welfare and staff behaviour, claiming the RSPCA and police had been called to the NRLX to handle breaches of regulations.
“NSW work health and safety legislation is very clear, that council, as the owner and operator of the NRLX is responsible for safety at this facility,” he said.
“Apart from the serious risk of death or injury to workers are members of the public, we also face potential prison sentences of up to five years and fines of up to $3.8 million for not upholding council’s duty of care.”
Cr Mustow said the NRLX dispute was distracting attention from the good work the council was doing in the community and exposing councillors to attacks from the public.
He ended his mayoral minute with a call for unity.
“I ask my fellow councillors to join with me in bringing this stalemate to an end,” he said.
“The bitterness and accusations have gone on for far too long.
“It is time to move forward and find a solution that allows sales returned the NRLX as soon as possible and secures its long term future.”
The recommendation in the general manager’s report was, that council:
1. Reaffirms its commitment to position the NRLX as one of the leading saleyards in NSW, and notes the significant investment in upgrading the facility since 2016, including $10.5m in government funding and $4.5 million by council, including a $3 million loan;
2. Notes the history of negotiations and stakeholder feedback when the issue of operational changes and user fees and charges at the NRLX have been proposed, consulted and determined by consecutive Councils;
3. Notes the detailed procurement process that has been implemented since December 2022 to secure Agent Licences for 2023-26 and the negotiation opportunities that have been offered;
4. Approves an open market tender process for a long term lease of the Northern Rivers Livestock Exchange to an appropriately experienced entity in line with the details in this report, with the appointment of a suitably qualified independent contractor to manage the procurement process;
5. As a short term measure to re-commence sales at the NRLX, continues with the existing open EOI process for interested businesses, including but not limited to previously successful agencies, on terms consistent with the 2023 – 2026 Agent licence agreement and in line with the adopted revenue policy, until a lease agreement is executed;
6. Notes that a further report will be brought to Council to consider the recommendations of the open market tender process and to determine the successful lessee.
There were two speakers for the recommendation and only Cr Patrick Deegan asking questions of the motion.
Cr Robert Hayes led off making his key argument the NRLX was not as many claimed, a council service, but a council-owned business that must be run accordingly.
“The NRLX cannot be classified as a community facility as it is located on operational land and should be classified as a council business operation like our quarries,” he said.
“That was suggested in one of the professional presentations tonight. but it’s like our quarries.
And if it cannot pay its way, we need to consider council’s ownership.
“Council has not afforded any other industry this kind of assistance by purchasing land, constructing and upgrading facilities and applying for grants and taking out ratepayer funded loans to maintain such a complex.”
Cr Hayes said analysis had shown the community benefited from the operations of the NRLX, but this benefit would occur, whoever owned the facility.
He said the council’s new agreement had tried to bring the NRLX into line with modern local government practice.
“This was another important step to achieving important financial results for the NRLX and further attempt to relieve the business of further reliance on ratepayers funds,” he said.
“A further study of other saleyards has made it clear that the NRLX fees will still remain below current industry standards.
“My role as a councillor is to get the best outcome I possibly can for my community.
“The agents chose not to accept the new agreements and wanted to go back into the complex once again, with the ratepayers picking up the deficit.”
He said it would have been unfair to ratepayers to continue the old agreement.
“If the NRLX wants to continue under the old agreements, our rural ratepayers, who are also vendors at the NRLX would be subject to possible passing on of these fees as well as subsidising the NRLX through their rates,” he said.
Councillor Sandra Humphries
“This would not be the same for vendors who reside outside the Richmond Valley Council area and vendor fees would not have increased for six years of a six year period under the new license agreement.”
Cr Sandra Humphries said under the old agreement between the council and agents, ratepayers had been cross-subsidising the NRLX.
“I can understand why some residents might see that as it’s a an acceptable donation to the industry,” she said.
“However, since the inception of Richmond Valley Council, I’m not so sure that all ratepayers in the valley are keen to continue to forgo services in exchange for the facility’s losses, when the projected loss to each rate payer has been calculated as $60 per rate payer.”
She pointed to the fluctuation of costs and charges over the years at the NRLX, while the council’s fee of $1 a head had remained the same.
“Agents receive their percentage commission from the vendors and hence council’s recent move to the percentage commission as per the structure used by the agents with their clients,” she said.
Cr Humphries said it had also been necessary to for council to take control of the NRLX’s cattle handling.
“The requirements under the Work Health and Safety Act are specific, failing to follow the rules places people in the way of injury and death,” she said.
“It is essential for council to have the support of all users of the facility agree to accept the regulations.”
But Mr McCormack said the agents had concerns about the council’s claims RSPCA and police involvement at the NRLX.
He did not dispute there had been RSPCA inspectors called out, but said this had mostly been during the recent drought when cattle in poor condition arrived at the saleyards.
He said the only police matter he could think of was an issue at least four years ago and it was handled in a manner which reflected well on the agents’ management.
But Mr McCormack said there was a current RSPCA matter on foot involving the council not providing sufficient water for cattle arriving at the facility.
Cr Patrick Deegan posed a series of questions to the general manager about the EOI process, the council move to take over cattle handling, what sort of lease agreement the council would seek and the time frame to implement it.
Mr Macdonald did not provide many surprises in his answers.
He defended the council’s handling of the EOI and the aftermath, saying the council made “genuine attempts” to negotiate with the four local agents they accepted, but described it as one sided.
“We’ve been negotiating, we haven’t been getting much back,” he said.
Mr Macdonald said the changes in cattle handling, including using the Byron Bay-based company Spinifex, would not cost local people jobs.
“Just because they’re based somewhere else doesn’t mean that we’re not employing local people,” he said.
Mr Macdonald said the council would offer a long-term lease, which could mean teams of five up to 30 years, but did not provide many details about a timeline for reopening of the NRLX, but volunteered “three months” as a minimum time limit.
“I would expect that it can take up to three months from the time we go through a process of preparing less documents, putting it out the market,” he said.
“You’ve got to have it out to market for a period of time, then you need to assess that, which certainly, as suggested in the report, would recommend that procurement process being managed by an independent group. So we seek appropriate bodies to do that.
Patrick Deegan
“And for us, that would certainly be involved to ensure that the best interests council and ratepayers is considered through that process.”
Cr Hayes queried Mr Macdonald on the $4 million surplus the NRLX account has in the bank, which Mr Bailey mentioned.
He asked if projects, such as repairing the sediment ponds, could erode that amount quickly.
Mr Macdonald said the council was chasing grant funding for that work, but said local government had been told it must fund depreciation of assets.
“We’ve been through it in the past period where we’ve relied on federal and state government funds and loans to fund it,” he said.
“The principles of how local government you know is heading and that government wants us to get to is that we have those money had the funds in reserves to invest in those renewals and new facilities.”
In his right of reply, Cr Hayes said the lease proposal was the only way break the stalemate between the council and agents.
“It is time to move on from the current situation to get sales back at the NRLX,” he said.
“And this recommendation is the first step in the right direction in achieving the best outcome for our entire community.”
For more Richmond Valley news, click here.
DICK AND LEILA BEATTIE – CASINO – Part One
By Helen Trustum
When talking with Dick and Leila on the 6th February 2024 I realised that my initial intention of researching a story from Leila’s early days also required a story that unfolded about her husband Dick.
Richard William George (known as Dick) was born on 22nd February 1932 to parents Stan and Mary Beattie at Stockton. Dick’s Grandfather, Edward Beattie was a boat builder and even in his 80’s still worked building boats, including fishing vessels and ferries. His Great Uncle Gordon Beattie was one of the men that built the passenger ferry that ran between Yamba and Iluka. Dick’s father Stan was a boiler maker with BHP.
Dick went to Primary school at Stockton then on to New Castle Boys High School. He later studied at the University of New England in Armidale before completing his Honours Degree at the University of Sydney.
Family of Stan and Mary’s: Dick and Gloria.
Leila with her calf
Leila was born Leila Madge Roberts in Casino on 10th September 1931 to parents Donald and Madge Roberts who were living on “Manifold Farm”, Bentley.
Family of Donald and Madge Roberts: Eileen, Leila and Nelda. The family lost little Nelda with whooping cough at the age of two and half years.
Donald was born at Cowra NSW and at the age of 14 years moved with his parents to Dunoon. They later relocated to Mongogarie from where Don enlisted in World War 1 in December 1915. He arrived at the Military Camp in Tell EL Kebir, Egypt in May 1916. After training in England, Don was transferred to France where he performed 10 days of training in the infamous “Bull Ring”, training camp on the dunes between Etaples and Camiers, near Boulogne, before joining the 31st Battalion at Armentieres.
Shortly after joining the 31st Battalion, Don was attached to the transport section, where his reputation as an excellent horseman had become known. The 31st transport section contained a number of top horsemen. Alongside Don was Gus Hosking, also from Mongogarie. They were both reputed to be the best. Don and Gus were sent to Abbeville, where the commandant of the riding school, became so impressed that he gave them the honour of leading the column of artillery on parades.
Don and Madge Roberts
Don served with distinction in the unit and was made sergeant shortly after joining it. The work of getting supplies through to the front line, units was difficult and dangerous, most of the hauling being done at night. Don was awarded the Croix de Guerre (Belgium).
Returning from the War, Don married Madge Collison and worked at the Coombell Brick Works before settling on Lot 12 on the Runnymede Soldiers Settlement, calling the property “Manifold Farm”. This settlement came about when the owner of Runnymede Station, James Chester Manifold, gave three thousand acres of rich scrub land on the eastern side of the station, to be developed into twenty dairy farms. The farms were to be made available, by ballot, to ex – servicemen from Tomki Shire (now part of Richmond Valley Shire) and Kyogle Shire. James Chester died in 1918. His son Thomas Chester Manifold inherited Runnymede and keenly supported the scheme. These twenty farms with applicants were required to pay three hundred and twenty – one pounds ($640) for the improvements on the farms. They received a Life Estate Title. Now in 2024 there are five families from the original residents still on their block of ground.
Don also enlisted in the army in World War 11 and was in camp at Goonoo Goonoo Station, near Tamworth. After a while he left the army and returned to Bentley where he organized the local V.D.C. (Volunteer Defence Corps). Since there was a shortage of rifles they drilled with wooden rifles until they were properly equipped. Later a firing range was established on the property at Bentley. While in the V.D.C Don was promoted to the rank of Captain.
House at Bentley
Don was one of the many farmers in the district who had Italian P.O.W.’s working on the property towards the end of the War. He also served as bushfire brigade captain and was involved with the Bentley Hall Committee. Madge supported her husband in his community involvement and took over running the farm while he was away.
In 1929 a school was built on land donated by Charlie Beck, from the Manifold Settlement. The school was called Manifold Public School and is still operating today. Both Eileen and Leila went to school at Manifold. Leila remembers attending school and talks readily about it. On her first day at school Leila arrived with a bunch of flowers for the teacher Mr Charlie Steele. The flowers were from her mother’s garden. Madge excelled in nurturing floral beauty.
Leila rode a horse to school called “Creamy”. The older boys would catch “Creamy” and saddle her and have her ready for Leila to ride home. Leila competed in athletics and interschool sports day. Hockey was played on Becks flat. Hockey sticks could not be purchased so the children had to scout around and find a lantana stick with a bend at one end. A tin can was used as a ball.
Manifold Farm at Bentley
Leila remembers Mr Steele taking the children up towards Boundary Creek into the forest to cut lawyer cane (Calamus Australis). The fibre was used at school, teaching the children weaving baskets. There were over 50 children that attended the school at one time: – All in one room – 1st to 6th class. Long desks and seating stools were used. Children from the families that Leila remembers at the time she attended were Owen Casey, Bob Knapp, Bill Moore, Jack Doman and family names Armstrong, Bulmer, Ball, Doman, Knapp, Hartley, Moroney and Childs. Mrs Steele, wife of teacher Charlie, taught the girls sewing in the weather shed once a week.
Leila has many memories of those days when on Sundays, tennis would be played over on the Moroney family’s property and meeting up with her friends the Moroney girls, Joyce and Clare. Cricket would also be played with a picnic lunch. Leila loved the dances held in the Bentley Hall where Hillary and Leila Doohan from Back Creek would be the musicians playing.
To be Continued
For more rural news, click here.
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