Read the May 2020 edition of Best Of Local, Moreton Bay.
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With a fresh new look and greater focus to our online activities for the entire Moreton Bay Region. We hope that you like it. We have some great local stories.
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A century of tradition fades as newspapers across the country halt printing or close their doors altogether due to a steep and sudden Coronavirus related downturn.
As we sit at home and consume more local news than ever, some newsrooms are being forced to close as advertising revenue dries up.
Many papers rely heavily on the real estate industry, with their large pull-out sections as well as pubs, clubs and hotels for regular weekly revenue.
With the current real estate open home and auction restrictions and widespread hospitality business closures, that bulk revenue stream has dried up and the traditional publishing industry, which was already struggling has been pushed to the brink.
Newsrooms are empty across the nation at a time when people are relying on having the news at their fingertips.
Several regional communities have been left shocked at the closure of their only print news publication. The Sunraysia Daily, Mildura’s only daily newspaper, which should be celebrating their centenary this year has announced its’ closure, along with the Swan Hill Guardian, the Gannawarra Times and the Loddon Times in the Mallee region of Victoria.
After 122 yrs in operation, Broken Hills’ only daily newspaper ‘Barrier Daily Truth’ has had to suspend operations due to a collapse in revenue. Thirty staff at the newspaper are now out of work.
Gippslands Yarram Standard, which is 145 years old and Great Southern Star, which was celebrating its 130th year in print have both suspended operations.
Newscorp has announced that it will suspend the print of 60 publications across the country from 9th April, including our Quest Community Newspapers which includes our local Pine Rivers Press, The Caboolture Herald and The Redcliffe Herald.
Other Newscorp publications to be suspended include those published by News Local in NSW, Leader in Victoria and Messenger in South Australia. All will continue to publish digitally during this time.
News Corp’s decision was not taken lightly. According to the company’s Australasia executive chairman Michael Miller, “The suspension of our community print editions has been forced on us by the rapid decline in advertising revenues following the restrictions placed on real estate auctions and home inspections and the forced closure of event venues and dine-in restaurants in the wake of the coronavirus emergency.”
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The Federal Government bailout will cost an estimated $1.6 billion to assist the struggling industry and provide some relief to families, many of whom have taken their kids out of care.
Under the plan, the Federal Government will pay half of the operating costs of Australia’s 13,000 childcare and early learning centres.
Federal Education Minister, Dan Tehan said, “If parents have an existing relationship with a childcare centre, they will get free childcare. We want as many people able to work as we possibly can and we want them to be able to access childcare as they need to make sure their children are being looked after while they are working and helping us deal with the Coronavirus pandemic.”
“We want to ensure your childcare centre will remain open so that where you normally take your child to get cared for, that will be there for you so you are not looking to have to go to a new centre.”
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The University was officially opened by Federal Education Minister Dan Tehan, and Peter Dutton, Federal Member for Dickson and Minister for Home Affairs.
More than 400 invited guests attended this historic occasion at the entrance to the impressive, three-storey building that has 16,000 square metres of floor space, state-of-the-art technology, and already accommodates more than 1,200 students.
Among the speakers today were Federal Education Minister Dan Tehan, Queensland Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Yvette D’Ath, Federal Member for Dickson and Minister for Home Affairs Peter Dutton, Acting Moreton Bay Mayor Mike Charlton, USC Chancellor Sir Angus Houston AK, and USC Vice-Chancellor Professor Greg Hill.
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk sent her apologies and was not at the opening as she was attending the Hannah Clarke family funeral. Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Yvette D’Ath, spoke on her behalf.
The USC Moreton Bay foundation building on Moreton Parade, Petrie, spans 16,000 square metres over three storeys.
It was designed by Hassell Studio and built by construction firm Hansen Yuncken over 18 months on Moreton Bay Regional Council land at Petrie, and was funded through a Commonwealth Government loan of $121 million.
The building has a huge central atrium that will be suitable for community events, and has been designed to cater for rapid growth of the student population (up to 3,600 students) over the campus’s first three years.
There is a 460-seat lecture theatre, state-of-the-art learning technology, nursing simulation labs, engineering labs, a ‘makerspace’ and library facilities.
USC Moreton Bay offers almost 50 undergraduate degrees including Business, Education, Health, Computer Science and Mechatronic Engineering.
More than 1,200 students have enrolled to study at USC Moreton Bay this semester, with the most sought-after degrees so far being Nursing Science, Animal Ecology, Psychology, Biomedical Science and Social Work.
The campus is tipped to grow significantly over the next decade, with an anticipated student population of 10,000 by 2030.
It will become the centrepiece of Moreton Bay Regional Council’s ‘The Mill at Moreton Bay’ development, which was declared a Priority Development Area by the State Government in 2016. This development will include commercial and residential areas, as well as large areas that will be returned to nature.
The building was designed by Hassell Studio and built by construction firm Hansen Yuncken over 18 months on Moreton Bay Regional Council land at Petrie. It was funded through a Commonwealth Government loan of $121 million.
The USC Moreton Bay foundation building has been built on land adjacent the former Petrie Paper Mill site. It is also next to the Petrie Train Station, providing excellent access to public transport for students and staff.
