Marion Council calls for South, Marion and Lonsdale roads to be upgraded by State Government

On a small street in the south-west of Adelaide's CBD sits a blue stone building built in 1889. It's one of 340 mosques in Australia and is one of the oldest purpose-built mosques in the western world. But what do we actually know about the history of mosques in Australia? The first mosque in Australia was built in the South Australian town of Marree in 1861 by Muslim cameleers. "They built that mosque as a transit point really," says Professor Mohamad Abdulla from the University of South Australia. "But the interesting thing is that wherever they went they tried to build a mosque." The mosque fell out of use and was abandoned, but a replica was rebuilt in 2003. The Ahmadiyya community were among some of the earliest Islamic communities to arrive in Australia, and have recently established a new mosque in Adelaide's west. "We want to change the image that Islam has in Australia and around the world," says Waleed Shah from the Ahmadiyya community. "We want the mosque to be a symbol of peace rather than it being a place which people are afraid of." Australia Wide reporter Alina Eacott explores the history of mosques in Australia. Marion Council calls for South, Marion and Lonsdale roads to be upgraded by State Government Holly Petersen Guardian Messenger September 26, 201212:16PM •TELL US BELOW: How can Marion, South and Lonsdale roads be improved? Marion Council is seeking road maintenance on South, Lonsdale and Marion roads as the road is in terrible condition. Lots of potholes, manholes and uneven surfaces on Marion Rd. Picture: Roger Wyman Source: adelaidenow Road safety Does the State Government need to improve South, Marion and Lonsdale roads? Yes No Vote now .. End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar. MARION Council will lobby the State Government to improve South, Marion and Lonsdale roads. Cr Luke Hutchinson, who successfully moved the motion at last night's council meeting to approach the government, said years of neglect and a lack of maintenance had left the arterial roads with uneven and dangerous surfaces. "They have saved money by not raising the necks of manhole covers," he said. "They've left them where they are and when they have sealed the road it's been raised around that." The 2012 AAMI Crash Index Study showed an area of South Rd in front of Castle Plaza had the highest accident rate of any road in Adelaide. Cr Hutchinson told the meeting many residents had expressed concerns about the state of the roads. "The State Government has got its priorities wrong and wasted money on off peak roads," he said. "We need to make sure the right thing is done with the money." The council passed the motion unanimously. The Guardian Messenger is seeking a response from the State Government. A spokeswoman for Minister Conlon said upgrades to arterial roads were undertaken as necessary. "The Department of Planning Transport and Infrastructure maintains all roads under its care and control in a safe condition," the spokeswoman said. "All road upgrades, including major resurfacing works, are planned and programmed to ensure the most efficient use of available funds across the state." =========== Calls for council mergers are 'short-sighted', says Local Government Association CEO Wendy Campana by: Alice Higgins From: City Messenger September 28, 2012 10:41AM Increase Text SizeDecrease Text SizePrintEmail Share Add to DiggAdd to del.icio.usAdd to FacebookAdd to KwoffAdd to MyspaceAdd to NewsvineWhat are these? •TELL US BELOW: What could your council do better? Local Government Association CEO Wendy Campana. Picture: Helen Orr Source: adelaidenow Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar. Local Government Should more SA councils merge? Yes No Vote now End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar. COUNCILS are well positioned to take on a greater role in providing social welfare, battling climate change and promoting water security, Local Government Association CEO Wendy Campana says. But any moves to merge councils would be a "short-sighted" response to tackling service shortfalls, as there was no "fat" in municipal budgets, she said. And ultimately the community would decide what services councils did or did not provide, she said. Ms Campana made the comments during a wide-ranging interview to discuss a major review of all SA councils, announced last month. The LGA is calling for submissions from councils, residents, businesses and community groups to help shape the review in to the future of councils. Ms Campana urged people to start an "intelligent debate" about the best way councils could serve their communities. "I think the environmental management area, locally and regionally, is going to increase (for councils)," Ms Campana said. "Climate change impacts, water security, water provision ... they are some of the areas I think we're going to see an increase in activity (from councils). "There is also a growing expectation that we (councils) are providing a lot more social services." Speaking broadly on issues affecting local government, Ms Campana said: COUNCILS needed to work together to share more services; STATE and federal governments needed to increase funding to South Australian councils; COMPULSORY voting in council elections could lead to party-political dominance, and; RECENT rate rises in the order or 5-9 per cent were needed to pay for services. Ms Campana said the scale of reform needed would be determined by community feedback and she was confident councils would deliver on the need for change. She said councils could be more efficient by sharing services and slashing red tape, but there was no need to cut staff. "I haven't seen evidence of fat at all," Ms Campana said. "Communities want councils to do more, not less." She rejected the idea that creating a handful of "super councils" would reduce costs. "Amalgamations are not the panacea to some of those issues," she said. "The jump to amalgamations as the solution for whatever problems they have is short-sighted. "Amalgamations are there to achieve particular outcomes and no-one has told me the outcomes we're trying to achieve yet." She hoped the review would better define what services each tier of government was responsible for. Review submissions close on Wednesday, October 31. Details: www.lga.sa.gov.au ============