Murray Bridge's council wants your advice on four odd little issues

The council wants your feedback on its plans to rename a road, preserve railway history, renew stormwater pipes and manage emergencies.

Power to the people. Photo: Miguel Bruna/Unsplash.

The beauty of a democracy is that we get to tell people in positions of power what we think.

The Murray Bridge council is currently seeking public feedback on four projects, none of which is particularly high-stakes.

But in the interests of transparency and people power, Murray Bridge News encourages you to have your say if you’re passionate about road naming, railway history, stormwater systems or emergency management.

Here’s the go.

That little curved bit of road there, joined on to the RSL car park – what should that be called? Photo: Rural City of Murray Bridge.

RSL needs a proper address

If you were giving someone directions to Murray Bridge RSL, where would you send them?

Go across the bridge, bear left and turn onto ... which road?

The club sometimes gives its address as 2 Ross Road, but the service road which its car park joins onto is named after the Old Princes Highway.

Council CEO Michael Sedgman said a resident had suggested changing the service road’s name to RSL Lane, just to make things clearer.

“There is also a section of Old Princes Highway at the top end of Adelaide Road, on the other side of town,” he said.

“Visitors have difficulty finding the RSL if they haven’t been there before, as some mapping apps and GPS systems currently have the road marked as un-named.

“Changing the name to RSL Lane would eliminate some of the confusion and at the same time have the added benefit of honouring one of our local institutions.”

Still, if you think there's a name that would better suit the little road, the council would like to know.

• More information: Visit letstalk.murraybridge.sa.gov.au/streetnamechange.

• Have your say: Visit letstalk.murraybridge.sa.gov.au, email council@murraybridge.sa.gov.au or write to the Chief Executive Officer, Rural City of Murray Bridge, PO Box 421, Murray Bridge SA 5253 before 5pm on June 1.

Are you happy with the way Murray Bridge’s historic railway buildings are being looked after? Photo: Rural City of Murray Bridge.

Railway buildings will be preserved for the community

The road name issue is not the only one on which the council is currently looking for feedback.

Also out for consultation is a draft plan for the historic railway precinct near the Round House.

The plan describes how four buildings in the area – the railway control building, Murray control building, signalman’s cottage and Railway Institute – and the surrounding gardens should be preserved and enhanced.

It was developed in consultation with the Murray Bridge and District Historical Society, which led the buildings’ recent restoration and leases one of them as its headquarters.

• More information: Visit letstalk.murraybridge.sa.gov.au/railwayprecinct, call Sharon Pickering on 8539 1128 or email s.pickering@murraybridge.sa.gov.au.

• Have your say: Visit letstalk.murraybridge.sa.gov.au, email council@murraybridge.sa.gov.au or write to the Chief Executive Officer, Rural City of Murray Bridge, PO Box 421, Murray Bridge SA 5253 before 3pm on June 11.

You might not care much about stormwater pipes, but you will if they stop working. Photo: Rural City of Murray Bridge.

Stormwater network will need replacing, eventually

Across Murray Bridge, almost 100 kilometres of pipes and drains channel stormwater into basins capable of holding 439,000 litres of water at a time.

Most of that network is in good or near-new condition, but some of the pipes are up to 70 years old.

That’s why the council has drawn up a plan to manage its stormwater system over the next four years.

In the spirit of democracy, you’re entitled to have a look and tell them what you think.

• More information: Visit letstalk.murraybridge.sa.gov.au/stormwater, call Rodney Uebergang on 8539 1184 or email r.uebergang@murraybridge.sa.gov.au.

• Have your say: Visit letstalk.murraybridge.sa.gov.au, email council@murraybridge.sa.gov.au or write to the Rural City of Murray Bridge, PO Box 421, Murray Bridge SA 5253 before 5pm on June 11.

Not pictured: anyone panicking in an emergency. Let’s keep it that way. Photo: Rural City of Murray Bridge.

In an emergency, who does what?

A draft emergency management plan for the Murray Bridge district sets out who is responsible for what in case of bushfire, flood, pandemic – there's a timely one – or any other disaster.

It also lists the hazards our communities are most likely to face.

Mr Sedgman said the district-wide plan was intended to help residents and businesses understand what they should do in case of an emergency, and to develop their own household or business plans.

The council plans to hold workshops in some of the more isolated communities within the district, seeking specific feedback.

• More information: Visit letstalk.murraybridge.sa.gov.au/emp1, call Ros Kruger on 8539 1407 or email r.kruger@murraybridge.sa.gov.au.

• Have your say: Visit letstalk.murraybridge.sa.gov.au, email council@murraybridge.sa.gov.au or write to the Rural City of Murray Bridge, PO Box 421, Murray Bridge SA 5253 before 5pm on September 17.

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