Paddock holders should not look a gift horse in the mouth.
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That is the message Mount Isa mayor Joyce McCullough made clear when she gave an update on horse paddock lease negotiations last week.
“We are very lucky that the State Government has provided this community reserve for the purpose of recreational horse activities,” Cr McCullough said.
“We are the only council in Queensland that offers this land for horse owners. I have said it before and I will say it again, we are lucky to have this land available.”
Council announced in March that it would be overhauling horse paddock leases and changing rent prices.
Council CEO Sharon Ibardolaza said the new system would restore fairness and equity for local horse owners seeking access to council-controlled paddocks.
Previously horse owners had paid big bucks to secure and repair the paddocks off Jessop Road.
Paddocks will now be taken back by council and redistributed “more equally”.
Ms Ibardolaza said council would begin issuing three-year trustee permits when the current paddock tenures expire on June 30.
“While Council understands some of these paddocks were bought for very large sums of money, at the end of the day this is a community reserve and not real estate,” Ms Ibardolaza said.
There was strong backlash from the horsing community when the new rate structure was discussed earlier this year.
Ms Ibardolaza said council had taken their concerns onboard and were now in the process of reviewing rent prices.
She said the new rent agreement would not be determined until after June 30, when current leases are void.
Ms Ibardolaza said council was not responsible for how much people paid to buy the term of their current lease.
“Council has reviewed the pricing structure to ensure all paddock holders are charged using the same rent formula,” Ms Ibardolaza said.
“There will also be a charge based on cost recovery for re-cycled effluent water.”
Cr McCullough said all the money made from rent went back into managing the land, and council is prohibited from making a profit off the leases.
“Since the whole issue has come about, I believe there is a greater understanding about what council is doing,” Cr McCullough said.
“Some people have had to give back their paddocks because they have not met the criteria," she said.