Minutes of Robertson Heritage Railway Station Inc (RHRS) Annual General Meeting of 2015
Held in the Fettlers Shed on Thursday, 24 September 2015 at 7.00pm
Present: Steve Carey (Chair), Anne Wilson, Helen Tranter, David Tranter, Neil Harvey, Marion Harvey, Russell Bailey, Frances Bailey, Sandra Wallace, Ian Wallace, John Pearce, Andrew Bosa (part of meeting)
Apologies: John Hopkins, Ron Middleton, Dennis Robertson, Greg Oehm
Chairman Steve welcomed all attendees to the RHRS 2015 AGM and announced that Marion Harvey had agreed to act as returning officer for the election of office-bearers soon to take place.
Minutes of last AGM: Steve read out the Minutes of the 2014 AGM held on Thursday, 4 September 2014. It was moved by Neil and seconded by Anne that the Minutes as read be accepted; this was agreed unanimously and they were signed by Chairman Steve as a true record of the 2014 AGM.
President’s Report: This was circulated to members prior to the meeting and was tabled at the meeting. It was moved by Steve and seconded by Anne that the President’s Report for 2014/2015 be accepted, and this was agreed unanimously.
Secretary’s Report: This was read out by Ian as it had only been circulated to members that day; it was tabled at the AGM. It was moved by Ian and seconded by David that the Secretary’s Report be accepted and this was agreed unanimously.
Treasurer’s Report: Anne circulated the Financial Statements for the year ended 30 June 2015. As at 30 June 2015, net assets were $9,607.19 compared with $11,777.41 at 30 June 2014. Total income for y/e 2015 was $16,659.46 compared to that of $28,951.43 for y/e 2014, the difference being mainly the $15,400 Community Building Partnership grant we received in y/e 2014. The main expenditure item in y/e 2015 was the printing of the new RHRS booklet, which is viewed as an investment. The Excess Income to Expenditure in y/e 2015 was ($2,170.22) compared with ($4,595.55) in y/e 2014. Anne tabled “The Independent Auditor’s Report to the Members of Robertson Heritage Railway Station Inc”, which was favourable and signed by Glenn Shelton, Chartered Accountant.
It was moved by Anne and seconded by Steve that the Treasurer’s Report for 2014/2015 be accepted, and this was agreed unanimously. Steve then thanked Anne for her hard work as Treasurer and for her detailed report.
Safety report: Neil advised that we need to look at the range of work/activities we do and compile a thorough risk analysis and risk management strategy in undertaking a review of the RHRS Safety Management System, which he proposed for early in the new year. It was moved by Neil and seconded by Ian that the safety management report be both approved and adopted. This was agreed unanimously.
Gallery report: Anne noted that RHRS staged two main exhibitions over the last year and made more profit than last year. She also noted that RHRS has received six more bookings for the next year from the Australian Sewing Guild. It was moved by Anne and seconded by Helen that the Gallery Report be accepted, and this was agreed unanimously.
Publicity & promotions report: Neil remarked that Marion and he had been “on leave” for most of the year and that, when they were away or unable to attend to the necessary publicity and promotion of RHRS activities & events, this role was filled by the RHRS management committee. Overall, this was carried out successfully. It was moved by Neil and seconded by Andrew that the Publicity report be accepted, and this was agreed unanimously.
Grounds & gardens report: David advised that he had firmed up his ideas on how best he and Helen can scale back their level of work on the RHRS gardens and grounds, while at the same time, instruct and share with others many of the activities they have undertaken faithfully over many years. David proposed that, as of February 2016, there will be a ‘gardens working-bee’ every second month between 9am and 12 noon, including a “smoko” around 11am. This would occur on the second Saturday morning in February, April, June, August, October and December 2016. We would continue having the detainees mow and whipper-snip the lawns as required, but David did not want to be responsible for the organisation of that. The detainees could assist with other work on the grounds, eg mulching, but only if supervised closely by the attending RHRS management committee member. Helen and David had previously prepared reports on the RHRS gardens, which were sent electronically (attached). It was moved by David and seconded by Ian that the Grounds & gardens report be accepted; agreed unanimously.
Station and history report: Helen reported that there had been more certainty with visits by the ‘Cockatoo Run’ and that many visits were well-patronised, with some passengers going on to the ‘Illawarra Fly’. Helen made it clear that she will not be able to continue doing station duty forever and that she is seeking to cease doing it early in 2016. Helen is also seeking to design a detailed heritage walk from the station. It was moved by Helen and seconded by Anne that the station & history report be accepted, and this was agreed unanimously.
Buildings & maintenance report: Neil emphasised that, as the years go by, it becomes essential to have the role of maintenance supervisor, as we need to invest in preventative maintenance. Neil envisaged regular checking of taps, lights, etc to pick up and fix problems - a need for routine ongoing maintenance. This was generally agreed.
Railway heritage report: Ian spoke of recent events in RHA(NSW), of which RHRS is a member, and about his desire for more certainty and collaboration between individual rail heritage organisations within NSW. For some time now, Robertson has not had a visit from a THNSW steam train and he would like to understand why this is so and what we can do to get further visits. For many decades, a round trip from Sydney to Robertson and return has been viewed by rail enthusiasts as a very attractive one-day train tour, particularly when hauled by a steam locomotive, but, regrettably, these days seem to have passed due to increased costs. It was moved by Neil and seconded by David that the Railway heritage report be accepted and this was agreed unanimously. [In seconding this motion, David suggested that RHRS should “re-visit” the restriction by the Roads & Traffic Authority on signs directing people to Robertson Heritage Railway Station. David argued that RHRS is, in fact, visited by motorists and other people on a seven-days-a-week basis, RTA’s criterion for specialist signage. Further, our foundation President, Larry Whipper, is now Mayor and may be amenable to making representations to RTA for improved signage.]
Model railway report: Neil advised that he and Ron Middleton have purchased remote controllers for the RHRS layout - at a considerable saving in price. It was moved by Neil, seconded by Russell Bailey, that the report on the RHRS model railway be accepted; all agreed.
At this point, Steve Carey, who had been President of RHRS for many years, advised that he had enjoyed being President during this time and had gained great satisfaction from achieving something worthwhile. He stated that he was standing down as President and was not offering himself for election in any key role.
Election of Management Committee
With those words, Ian declared all management positions vacant and handed the Chair to Marion Harvey to act as Returning Officer. The following elections took place for the RHRS Management Committee for 2016/2017:
President: Ian Wallace was nominated by Steve Carey and seconded by Neil Harvey. Ian accepted the nomination and was elected unopposed.
Vice-president: Dennis Robertson was nominated by David Tranter for the position of Vice-president/Secretary, subject to Dennis’ agreement. Ian advised that he had previously spoken to Dennis on this matter and Dennis would be prepared to be Vice-president but not Secretary. It was agreed that Ian would contact Dennis further regarding this. [Subsequently, Dennis Robertson accepted the position of Vice-president.]
Secretary: Again, David Tranter nominated Dennis Robertson, subject to his concurrence. Ian will follow up with Dennis. In further discussion on the role of Secretary, Rona Goold offered to be Minutes Secretary or Secretary on a temporary basis. The Secretary position remained unfilled at that time.
Treasurer: Anne Wilson was nominated by Ian Wallace and seconded by Neil Harvey; Anne accepted and was elected unopposed.
Management committee members and co-ordinators/leaders for the following areas of responsibility were appointed thus:
Safety - Neil Harvey
Station & History - Helen Tranter, subject to the limitations previous expressed. When Helen stands down at the station, the Management Committee will take on the role of station management.
Publicity & Promotion - leave to the Management Committee
Gallery - Anne Wilson
Buildings & Maintenance - Neil Harvey
Grounds maintenance - Steve Carey to be the point of contact for the Detention Centre
Gardens - David Tranter advised that this will be the last management committee meeting that he will attend. David offered to hold bi-monthly garden working-bees for the next 12 months.
Railway heritage - Ian Wallace
Model railway - Neil Harvey & Ron Middleton
Events co-ordinator - no volunteers; leave to management committee
Membership & recruitment - no volunteers; leave to management committee
Having completed her role as Returning Officer, Marion Harvey handed over the Chair to Ian Wallace to continue the meeting. Ian thanked Marion for being Returning Officer, congratulated all office-holders on their election/appointment and looked forward to working with the new management committee during what looked like being a challenging year.
Chairman Ian then thanked Steve Carey for his many years of devoted service in his former role as President. He noted that Steve has good people-skills, which he used to encourage and relate well to others. In many ways, Steve was the “glue” which bound RHRS together to achieve good outcomes. In a token gesture, and in recognition of Steve’s many years of speaking through a megaphone during RHRS events, Ian presented Steve with “the Steve Carey Megaphone’, which he accepted.
There was no further business and no questions were asked, so the meeting was closed at xxpm to adjourn for refreshments.
Signed as a true record
Chairman for 2015/2016 Chairman for 2016/2017
Held in the Fettlers Shed on Thursday, 24 September 2015 at 7.00pm
Present: Steve Carey (Chair), Anne Wilson, Helen Tranter, David Tranter, Neil Harvey, Marion Harvey, Russell Bailey, Frances Bailey, Sandra Wallace, Ian Wallace, John Pearce, Andrew Bosa (part of meeting)
Apologies: John Hopkins, Ron Middleton, Dennis Robertson, Greg Oehm
Chairman Steve welcomed all attendees to the RHRS 2015 AGM and announced that Marion Harvey had agreed to act as returning officer for the election of office-bearers soon to take place.
Minutes of last AGM: Steve read out the Minutes of the 2014 AGM held on Thursday, 4 September 2014. It was moved by Neil and seconded by Anne that the Minutes as read be accepted; this was agreed unanimously and they were signed by Chairman Steve as a true record of the 2014 AGM.
President’s Report: This was circulated to members prior to the meeting and was tabled at the meeting. It was moved by Steve and seconded by Anne that the President’s Report for 2014/2015 be accepted, and this was agreed unanimously.
Secretary’s Report: This was read out by Ian as it had only been circulated to members that day; it was tabled at the AGM. It was moved by Ian and seconded by David that the Secretary’s Report be accepted and this was agreed unanimously.
Treasurer’s Report: Anne circulated the Financial Statements for the year ended 30 June 2015. As at 30 June 2015, net assets were $9,607.19 compared with $11,777.41 at 30 June 2014. Total income for y/e 2015 was $16,659.46 compared to that of $28,951.43 for y/e 2014, the difference being mainly the $15,400 Community Building Partnership grant we received in y/e 2014. The main expenditure item in y/e 2015 was the printing of the new RHRS booklet, which is viewed as an investment. The Excess Income to Expenditure in y/e 2015 was ($2,170.22) compared with ($4,595.55) in y/e 2014. Anne tabled “The Independent Auditor’s Report to the Members of Robertson Heritage Railway Station Inc”, which was favourable and signed by Glenn Shelton, Chartered Accountant.
It was moved by Anne and seconded by Steve that the Treasurer’s Report for 2014/2015 be accepted, and this was agreed unanimously. Steve then thanked Anne for her hard work as Treasurer and for her detailed report.
Safety report: Neil advised that we need to look at the range of work/activities we do and compile a thorough risk analysis and risk management strategy in undertaking a review of the RHRS Safety Management System, which he proposed for early in the new year. It was moved by Neil and seconded by Ian that the safety management report be both approved and adopted. This was agreed unanimously.
Gallery report: Anne noted that RHRS staged two main exhibitions over the last year and made more profit than last year. She also noted that RHRS has received six more bookings for the next year from the Australian Sewing Guild. It was moved by Anne and seconded by Helen that the Gallery Report be accepted, and this was agreed unanimously.
Publicity & promotions report: Neil remarked that Marion and he had been “on leave” for most of the year and that, when they were away or unable to attend to the necessary publicity and promotion of RHRS activities & events, this role was filled by the RHRS management committee. Overall, this was carried out successfully. It was moved by Neil and seconded by Andrew that the Publicity report be accepted, and this was agreed unanimously.
Grounds & gardens report: David advised that he had firmed up his ideas on how best he and Helen can scale back their level of work on the RHRS gardens and grounds, while at the same time, instruct and share with others many of the activities they have undertaken faithfully over many years. David proposed that, as of February 2016, there will be a ‘gardens working-bee’ every second month between 9am and 12 noon, including a “smoko” around 11am. This would occur on the second Saturday morning in February, April, June, August, October and December 2016. We would continue having the detainees mow and whipper-snip the lawns as required, but David did not want to be responsible for the organisation of that. The detainees could assist with other work on the grounds, eg mulching, but only if supervised closely by the attending RHRS management committee member. Helen and David had previously prepared reports on the RHRS gardens, which were sent electronically (attached). It was moved by David and seconded by Ian that the Grounds & gardens report be accepted; agreed unanimously.
Station and history report: Helen reported that there had been more certainty with visits by the ‘Cockatoo Run’ and that many visits were well-patronised, with some passengers going on to the ‘Illawarra Fly’. Helen made it clear that she will not be able to continue doing station duty forever and that she is seeking to cease doing it early in 2016. Helen is also seeking to design a detailed heritage walk from the station. It was moved by Helen and seconded by Anne that the station & history report be accepted, and this was agreed unanimously.
Buildings & maintenance report: Neil emphasised that, as the years go by, it becomes essential to have the role of maintenance supervisor, as we need to invest in preventative maintenance. Neil envisaged regular checking of taps, lights, etc to pick up and fix problems - a need for routine ongoing maintenance. This was generally agreed.
Railway heritage report: Ian spoke of recent events in RHA(NSW), of which RHRS is a member, and about his desire for more certainty and collaboration between individual rail heritage organisations within NSW. For some time now, Robertson has not had a visit from a THNSW steam train and he would like to understand why this is so and what we can do to get further visits. For many decades, a round trip from Sydney to Robertson and return has been viewed by rail enthusiasts as a very attractive one-day train tour, particularly when hauled by a steam locomotive, but, regrettably, these days seem to have passed due to increased costs. It was moved by Neil and seconded by David that the Railway heritage report be accepted and this was agreed unanimously. [In seconding this motion, David suggested that RHRS should “re-visit” the restriction by the Roads & Traffic Authority on signs directing people to Robertson Heritage Railway Station. David argued that RHRS is, in fact, visited by motorists and other people on a seven-days-a-week basis, RTA’s criterion for specialist signage. Further, our foundation President, Larry Whipper, is now Mayor and may be amenable to making representations to RTA for improved signage.]
Model railway report: Neil advised that he and Ron Middleton have purchased remote controllers for the RHRS layout - at a considerable saving in price. It was moved by Neil, seconded by Russell Bailey, that the report on the RHRS model railway be accepted; all agreed.
At this point, Steve Carey, who had been President of RHRS for many years, advised that he had enjoyed being President during this time and had gained great satisfaction from achieving something worthwhile. He stated that he was standing down as President and was not offering himself for election in any key role.
Election of Management Committee
With those words, Ian declared all management positions vacant and handed the Chair to Marion Harvey to act as Returning Officer. The following elections took place for the RHRS Management Committee for 2016/2017:
President: Ian Wallace was nominated by Steve Carey and seconded by Neil Harvey. Ian accepted the nomination and was elected unopposed.
Vice-president: Dennis Robertson was nominated by David Tranter for the position of Vice-president/Secretary, subject to Dennis’ agreement. Ian advised that he had previously spoken to Dennis on this matter and Dennis would be prepared to be Vice-president but not Secretary. It was agreed that Ian would contact Dennis further regarding this. [Subsequently, Dennis Robertson accepted the position of Vice-president.]
Secretary: Again, David Tranter nominated Dennis Robertson, subject to his concurrence. Ian will follow up with Dennis. In further discussion on the role of Secretary, Rona Goold offered to be Minutes Secretary or Secretary on a temporary basis. The Secretary position remained unfilled at that time.
Treasurer: Anne Wilson was nominated by Ian Wallace and seconded by Neil Harvey; Anne accepted and was elected unopposed.
Management committee members and co-ordinators/leaders for the following areas of responsibility were appointed thus:
Safety - Neil Harvey
Station & History - Helen Tranter, subject to the limitations previous expressed. When Helen stands down at the station, the Management Committee will take on the role of station management.
Publicity & Promotion - leave to the Management Committee
Gallery - Anne Wilson
Buildings & Maintenance - Neil Harvey
Grounds maintenance - Steve Carey to be the point of contact for the Detention Centre
Gardens - David Tranter advised that this will be the last management committee meeting that he will attend. David offered to hold bi-monthly garden working-bees for the next 12 months.
Railway heritage - Ian Wallace
Model railway - Neil Harvey & Ron Middleton
Events co-ordinator - no volunteers; leave to management committee
Membership & recruitment - no volunteers; leave to management committee
Having completed her role as Returning Officer, Marion Harvey handed over the Chair to Ian Wallace to continue the meeting. Ian thanked Marion for being Returning Officer, congratulated all office-holders on their election/appointment and looked forward to working with the new management committee during what looked like being a challenging year.
Chairman Ian then thanked Steve Carey for his many years of devoted service in his former role as President. He noted that Steve has good people-skills, which he used to encourage and relate well to others. In many ways, Steve was the “glue” which bound RHRS together to achieve good outcomes. In a token gesture, and in recognition of Steve’s many years of speaking through a megaphone during RHRS events, Ian presented Steve with “the Steve Carey Megaphone’, which he accepted.
There was no further business and no questions were asked, so the meeting was closed at xxpm to adjourn for refreshments.
Signed as a true record
Chairman for 2015/2016 Chairman for 2016/2017