Reflections from the past

In its letter, the shire council said it had been advised that the Country Roads Board does not favour the Heygarth St alignment for the proposed new bridge.

It expressed a wish that a further meeting should be held between the two councils and suggested representatives of the Country Roads Board and the Department of Main Roads be invited to a meeting to discuss technical aspects concerning the location of the bridge.

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Transport regressed to days gone by when a horse-drawn wagon took to the highway between Echuca and Rochester.

The five horses and wagon, laden with wool, were on a trial run for a marathon journey to be made to Melbourne about June.

Echuca Rotary Club is trying to establish a timetable for the trip which is to promote the club’s steam rally and vintage car display and the official opening of Rotary Steam Park.

The annual rally and display is held on the Sunday of the Queen’s Birthday weekend and usually attracts thousands of people from all parts of Australia, including a number who travel by special steam trains.

The Rotary Club has a four man ‘’wagon wheels’’ committee of Kevin Rowlands, Cr Les Garraway, Mrs Les Fehring and Brian Wearne, president, organising the trip.

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Echuca Red Cross Darwin Disaster Appeal has closed with a total of $4704 contributed.

The branch president, Alma Glanville, praised the public for their generous support of the appeal.

She described the amount of money contributed, together with the amount of clothing donated, as an outstanding achievement.

It showed the concern of the resident for the less fortunate people of Darwin, which was hit by Cyclone Tracy on Christmas Day.

25 years ago January 2000

Tourism operators in Echuca-Moama will now have better access to information in the case of a blue-green algae outbreak.

The Echuca-Moama and District Tourism Association will now play an active role in the algal response group, which is activated in the case of a high-alert bloom.

The response group, which is under the control of the Murray Regional Algal Coordinating Committee, includes representatives from councils, water and environment bodies and health groups.

As the recent blue-green algae bloom had the potential to impact on tourism to Echuca-Moama, Visitor Information Centre manager Maureen Bennett said the industry needed to be part of the response process.

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Murray Human Services has recently changed over one of its fleet cars, but the organisation is now unsure how this process will work after the introduction of the GST on July 1.

The not-for-profit organisation currently buys or leases its fleet of eight cars and eight buses free of sales tax, turning them over every 40,000 kilometres or two years, whichever comes first.

Chief executive John Paton said the turnover process has seen the organisation made a profit between a few hundred dollars to a few thousand on each vehicle.

With MHS facing the prospect of paying the 10 per cent GST on its car sales, which can be claimed back, and a projected drop in used car prices, the organisation may need to look at other options for its fleet.

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Preparations are under way for a visit next month by a delegation of 21 from the shire’s sister municipality, Shiroi-Machi in Japan.

The visit coincides with the Riverboats, Jazz, Food and Wine Festival, a popular event which delegates from Shiroi enjoyed last year.

May Cathie Halliday said this was the third year delegates from Shiroi had visited Campaspe since the friendship agreement was signed in February 1998.

10 years ago January 2015

Simplot’s 130-strong Echuca workforce may only have a few months left on the job.

The company admits it has been ravaged by global economics and for Echuca’s plant to become more competitive it needs a significant investment in modernisation to increase productivity.

And a massive cut in costs, including wages.

In recent weeks, Simplot workers throughout Australia have accepted pay cuts to keep their jobs.

Negotiations with the workforce at the Echuca plant will start in three months and it would appear savage pay cuts may be the make or break for the plant’s future.

A Simplot spokeswoman said apart from its age, the biggest challenge for the future of the Echuca plant is it lacks scale when compared with the big sauce plants globally.

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As far as rodeo riders go, Lee Kimber reckons he has had a pretty good run.

He has repeatedly broken his arms. And his legs. And the occasional rib, or five. And punctured the odd lung.

‘‘So yep, I’ve been pretty lucky,’’ the laconic rider turned Lockington farmer said.

‘‘But these days, I concentrate on the time events after bull riding sort of retired me back when I was still in my 20s, when I had maybe one or two injuries too many.’’

But going from an all-events guy to a specialist paid almost immediate dividends.

Lee collected the national team roping crown in 2000 and again in 2004.

The next year, he added the steer wrestling title to his burgeoning trophy cabinet.

And just to prove the old boy has still got it, he has just come back from Carrieton in South Australia where he picked up a double in the individual timed event.

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Getting to Echuca train station can be a bit of a hassle in peak hour, but for many of Frank Delorenzo’s friends, it can be next to impossible at any hour.

For mobility-impaired people, the footbridge across the rail line is a nightmare, and the alternative of walking 500m to Pakenham St is scarcely better.

‘‘Calling the situation a disgrace is being kind,’’ Mr Delorenzo said.

‘‘There’s nothing wrong with the station itself, but the footbridge is a big problem for disabled people.’’

The problem does not end at the last step of the bridge — Mr Delorenzo said the western side of the rail line was also dangerous for people in wheelchairs and high heels.