North Burnett councillors question $300k disaster management position

North Burnett councillors are concerned over how funding from a million-dollar grant will be distributed, including a 14-month role worth $300,000.

About $80,000 will be allocated to reviewing evacuation centres and equipment. Photo Brandon Livesay/Central & North Burnett Times

Councillors have raised concerns over how a million-dollar disaster management grant will be administered after almost a third of the funding was allocated to a fourteen month long project officer position.

The North Burnett Council discussed how it would distribute funds received as part of the Local Recovery and Resilience Grant administered by the Queensland Reconstruction Authority.

Eleven key projects were submitted for council approval to be funded by the grant including drainage, water depth indicators and evacuation centre projects.

About 300,000 was allocated to the appointment of a disaster management project officer who would oversee the completion of projects under the recovery grant and other disaster recovery grants received by the council.

Councillor Robbie Radel expressed concerns over how much of the grant’s funding would go to the appointment of a project officer.

Many of the disaster management projects are aimed at keeping citizens safe and educated during flooding events. Photo: Emily Smith/Central and North Burnett Times

“I acknowledge there is a need for a project officer, it just concerns me it will cost us one-third of our grant to put on someone to manage this project,” he said.

“$300,000 could go a long way to other project that are actually tangible, that the community can see.”

He felt the wider North Burnett community would struggle to see the value in such a large portion of the grant being appointed to the employment of one staff member.

CEO Margot Stork confirmed for Cr Raddel the appointed officer would be expected to manager several grants, and this would benefit the council long term.

“Local governments often face challenges when we receive wonderful amounts of money to put towards specific projects and then we struggle to deliver because we don’t have the staff,” she said.

The council was given a short timeline to approve and submit possible projects to the Reconstruction Authority, with a March 30 deadline outlined.

All projects submitted by council are expected to be completed by June 30, 2024.

The council chose to vote in the 11 projects presented and submitted under the grant.