THE race for Liverpool Plains mayor is heating up as an experienced hand has opted to throw his hat in the ring.
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Councillor Ian Lobsey will join Paul Moules and Doug Hawkins in the race for the role, which will be vacated by current mayor Andrew Hope at this month's council meeting.
The mayor and deputy mayor roles will be decided at Wednesday's meeting, with the successful candidates serving a 12-month stint before next year's council elections.
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Cr Lobsey said his 10 years of being Liverpool Plains mayor held him in good stead to take on the role again.
"I believe I am in a good position to do it again," Cr Lobsey said.
"I was the original mayor when the Liverpool Plains shire was formed and I was mayor for 10 years, so I'm confident I can handle the role.
"I believe I have got the experience, I've certainly got the desire and I have the political connections needed to face the challenges of the next 12 months.
"We have got a fairly new management team that is really eager and if elected, I would certainly be looking forward to working alongside them."
Cr Lobsey said securing funding for key infrastructure projects would be among his top priorities, if elected.
"We have some major projects on the go and arguably the biggest one is the upgrade of the Quipolly water supply," he said.
"It will run a pipeline to Werris Creek and to Quirindi, drought-proofing both towns in the process.
"That project is up to $30 million, so it is huge and the council will have to put up quite a bit of funding for the project, so obtaining some of the funding that's around at the moment from the governments will be vital."
"It will also offer us the option of piping water from Werris Creek to Quirindi or vice-versa if the dam runs dry," Cr Lobesy said.
"The project started 12 years ago, we've had $10 million from each of the state and federal governments, so hopefully we can get on with the job soon."
Initially slated for this month, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the council elections to be postponed a year. However, Cr Lobsey said the 12-month term would be "just as challenging" as a two-year term.
"We've got the library upgrade of about $1 million and a $2 million upgrade of our showgrounds," he said.
"So it will be a very busy period for the council, but I am very confident we can mange it, regardless of who is elected."
Billy Jupp
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
