Merri-bek BUG

The 2008 Annual General Meeting of the Moreland Bicycle User is to be held this month:

Date: Thursday 23 October
Time: 7:30pm
Venue: Caffe Mingo, 600 Sydney Rd, Brunswick (followed by drinks afterwards at the Edinburgh Castle Hotel, cnr Albion St and Sydney Rd)

Agenda

Under the constitution, the ordinary business of the Annual General Meeting shall be to:

1. Confirm the minutes of the previous (2007) Annual General Meeting
2. Presentation of financial statements by the Committee, detailing the transactions of the Group in the preceding financial year
3. Elect the next Committee of Management
4. Receive and consider the statement submitted by the Group in accordance with section 30(3) of the Association Incorporation Act (1981), covering details such as income and expenditure in its last financial year and assets and liabilities at the end of its last financial year
5. Enact any other business for which required notice has been given in writing to the Secretary
6. Set membership fees for the following year
7. Appoint an auditor of the financial records for the ensuing year

The overall agenda for the night will be:

1. AGM
2. Presentation
3. Drinks at the pub!

Elections

Assuming more than one nomination per position, there will be an election for the committee positions, which are:

1. Convenor
2. Deputy Convenor
3. Secretary
4. Treasurer
5. Three (3) Ordinary Members

I would strongly encourage you to consider helping the BUG by being on the committee. It requires only a small amount of time but has a significant impact on the effectiveness of the group.

Nominations of candidates for election as officers of the Group or as ordinary members of the Committee must be:

1. Made in writing, signed by two members of the Group and accompanied by the written consent of the candidate (which may be endorsed on the form of nomination); and
2. Delivered to me (the BUG Secretary) by Thursday 16 October at 7:30pm. I will accept the nominations in the following formats:
   • Fax: 03 8610 2174
   • Paper: sent to 87 Rae St, North Fitzroy, 3068
   • A scan of the nomination form: sent to gcross@fastmail.fm

Other business

If you have any other business that you want raised at the AGM, please provide notice to me, in writing, by Monday 13 October.

Please note that we require a quorum of ten (10) members at the AGM, so please come!

If you have any questions about the AGM or committee election, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Graeme Cross
Moreland BUG secretary and public officer

Don’t forget that there is a ride leaving Flinders St Station (meet at the mosaic at Clocks TAB) at 10:05am on Sunday 17 August.

We will ride to Beacon Cove along the light rail trail then follow the bay past St Kilda. We will stop for lunch along the way then catch the train back when we have had enough.

Email Ross Millward to register interest (we will wait for you if you haven’t turned up).

Bathers optional.

Tomorrow night we’ll be having an extra-short meeting at Caffe Mingo, 600 Sydney Rd Brunswick from 7:30pm; at 8:30 on the dot we’ll be crossing the road to the Edinburgh Castle Hotel for a celebratory drink or two in honour of our budget campaign win! Love to see you there, and please feel free to invite others along to share in the celebratory spirit.

Kylie Huard, Council’s new Strategic Transport Planner, will be joining us for the meeting to say hello and to outline Council’s plans for a TravelSmart/LAAP grant application.

The agenda for tomorrow night’s meeting:

1. Budget campaign
2. Moreland Station Redevelopment
3. Moreland’s TravelSmart/LAAP applications – Guest: Kylie Huard, Strategic Transport Planner at Moreland
4. Clearways/Sydney Rd campaign
5. Where to from here (a Bicycle Advisory Group perhaps?)

The Draft Brunswick Structure Plan is now out for consultation. The plan is the local implementation of Melbourne 2030. It sets out the long term mud map for the future of Brunswick, it details how the activity centre will develop and what needs to happen to make it a reality.

Toby Archer, from Moreland BUG, has been lucky enough to have been involved in the community steering committee. He is strongly encouraging BUG folks to get along to one of the community information sessions and make a submission to council. Its a great chance to have an impact on what our city will look like in the future. There will also be a Public Debate at the East Brunswick Club (280 Lygon St, East Brunswick) on 25 July.

For more info go to:
http://www.moreland.vic.gov.au/services/brunswickstructureplan-fr.htm

Brunswick Cycling Club, Fyxomatosis and Knog are proud to present round 6 of the Roller Derby at the … Brunswick Clubrooms, Friday 27th June, starting at 6:30pm. A fun social evening of handicapped roller racing kicking off at 6:30pm. Awesome prize packs to be won – $10 to race, spectators free. All proceeds will be donated to St Mary’s House of Welcome on Brunswick St. Fitzroy, which provides targeted services, including day programs, crisis response, information, referral and social support to marginalised and homeless adults.

This month also sees the introduction of the Chooka Challenge! Ride 4 laps in under a minute on a 96″ gear to add your name to the perpetual Chooka trophy, named after Daniel Ceccini Sr. who held the 4 lap record for several years. Bring your track bike with a 96″ gear (50:14) and minimum crank length 165mm.
The Brunswick clubrooms are located in Roberts Reserve, adjacent to the Brunswick outdoor velodrome, Harrison St. Brunswick (Melways 30 B5).

More info here…

Firstly, a huge thanks to everybody who has sent emails and helped with the Council Budget campaign so far. There’s been a constant stream of emails going through to the Councillors, meetings are underway and the local media has been good to us!

The final vote on the budget won’t take place until 21st July, and in the meantime it is crucial that the BUG keeps up the pressure. Please put the following key dates in your diary and I encourage as many people as possible to attend at least one of the Council meetings to ask questions and show support.

1. Written submissions due by 5pm, Thurs 26th June, via post to Moreland City Council, C/- Derek Madden, Locked Bag 10, Moreland 3058
2. Verbal submission hearings from 6pm, Wed 2nd July at the Municipal Offices, 90 Bell St, Coburg. A couple of BUG folk will be making verbal submissions and we’ve been advised that having a lot of supporters present will help our cause.
3. Council Meeting, 7pm Wed 9th July, Fawkner Senior Citizens Centre, Jukes Rd, Fawkner. A strong show of supporters asking questions about the budget at this meeting will be very important – this is the tactic the Coburg Pool campaigners used to successfully get the pool reopened during summer.
4. Council Meeting, 6pm Wed 21st July, Council Chamber, Civic Centre 90 Bell St, Coburg – the council will adopt the final budget at this meeting.

More info:

http://www.moreland.vic.gov.au/news/1consultationpublicnotices-fr.htm

There is a planning meeting tonight (Wednesday, 4 June) to work on the campaigns around:

a) the cycling component of the upcoming Moreland council budget (remember to ask your local councillor why the spend rate on cycling infrastructure in this council is so low compared to other councils; also worth asking them what their stance on cycling will be if they plan to stand for re-election at this year’s council elections), and

b) the state government’s intentions to extend clearway times on Sydney Rd (presumably as part of their visionary plans for celebrating peak oil!)

The meeting will be at 7pm at Paul McKay’s house. Contact Paul or Toby Archer for more information.

The Public Transport Users Association is organising a public forum on transport and climate that may be of interest to cyclists. They are extending a warm invitation to members of BUGs and cycling clubs to attend…

SPEEDING TOWARDS DANGEROUS CLIMATE CHANGE

Public forum: 15 June 2008

Hear what the world’s leading climate scientists are discovering about the speed of climate change, the potential impacts on our way of life, and what we need to do to safeguard our future.

• Sir Rod Eddington has recommended we spend $18 billion on
  transport infrastructure, but says this will have ‘minimal” impact on transport emission trends. Meanwhile transport emissions are forecast to grow by more than 60% over 1999 levels by 2020. Can we do better?

• Government ministers claim freeways offer environmental benefits and getting more ‘clean’ cars on the road is the solution, but are they effective?

Guest speakers include:

• David Spratt – climate-policy analyst and co-author of Climate Code Red.
• Dr Patrick Moriarty – Senior Research Fellow at the Australasian Centre for the Governance and Management of Urban Transport.
• Elliot Fishman – policy advisor, Cycling Promotion Fund.

When: Sunday 15 June 2008, 2.30 – 4:30pm
Where: Supper Room, Melbourne Town Hall, cnr Swanston & Collins Streets, Melbourne
RSVP: office@ptua.org.au

More info: http://www.ptua.org.au

Human Powered Cycles, in East Brunswick, have organised a series of bike maintenance courses. Check their website for more information, including dates and pricing.

The Age has an article on last weekend’s Cyclovia.