Many of you would be aware of the saying ‘the only things which are guaranteed in life are death and income tax.’ However, I would throw a third one in there; change. 
 
Change is inevitable, and currently in our region we are experiencing change on a number of different levels and on a number of different fronts.  
 
In particular, over the last couple of weeks, I have had a number of discussions with residents around the Gympie bypass. 
 
While this project has been some time in the making, it is now upon us. For some, this brings with it feelings of anxiousness, scepticism and sometimes even fear. These feelings are of course completely understandable, particularly if you are a business owner or rely on highway traffic for one reason or another. 
 
The truth is we don’t know what impact the Bruce Highway bypass will have on our town but the data is encouraging. More and more regional communities around Australia are advocating for their towns to be bypassed.  
 
The reality is for us, the bypass will mean greater connectivity for our northern residents to the coast, it will mean greater connectivity for Sunshine Coasters to our region, and for Gympie locals it will mean a safer passage through the region and less heavy vehicle traffic. Much of which drives straight through town anyway. 
 
The Cooroy to Curra project is in full swing and from next week there will be some road closures around the region.  
 
To prepare for construction of the new Penny Road interchange, a section of Penny Road will be closed from Monday 8 March 2021 for about 18 months. The Department of Transport and Main Roads are doing a great job in keeping residents informed. If you are chasing more information on this, I would encourage you to head to their website www.tmr.qld.gov.au/cooroytocurra.  
 
For the record, I am excited for the time ahead and looking forward to, with you, embracing the positive change which is before us. 

Mayor Glen Hartwig