General News
22 April, 2026
Malanda requests considered
A REQUEST from Malanda Gymnastics for Tablelands Regional Council to provide $10,500 for the painting of murals in the hall they practice in has been denied, but the council has given the green light for the project if the club can fund it.
Malanda Gymnastics Club wants to paint large-scale murals on the interior walls of the Malanda Fitness Hall in Churchill Avenue and asked council to fund the exercise.
The “Strength in Motion” mural project is aimed at enhancing the shared gymnastics and judo facility by “blending professional artistry with community engagement to foster belonging and pride”.
The project would involve painting four internal walls with high-detail murals created by a professional artist.
But a council report recommended the request be denied because it did not “demonstrate a broad community benefit and appears primarily focused on enhancing the identity and internal amenity of the club as the current occupant of the facility”.
“While the club is a valued user group, the mural would principally serve its interests rather than the wider community,” the report stated.
If approved, the mural would create a new council-controlled asset and introduce ongoing maintenance, inspection, restoration and potential vandalism management obligations.
“Given the mural would principally serve the club’s interests rather than the wider community and that as a general rule we discourage creating artwork directly on any TRC building walls, it is recommended that council not support the mural installation,” the report stated.
But councillors at the latest meeting could see value in the murals and voted to approve the project if it was funded by the club.
Council also approved a request from the Malanda Show Society to install a temporary office at the town’s showgrounds.The society has been forced to use a temporary office space at TRC’s Malanda depot since the Patrick English Pavilion was closed mid-2024.
The council heard that the new demountable office would serve the society until the new multipurpose building was constructed, although there was no timeline for when that might occur.
