News

Bob Winnell from the Village Building Company has good reason to look contented as he considers 30 years of development in Canberra. From pioneering the idea of a tram to buying up the Big Banana (and continuing to own a banana plantation), he's now a long way from the battling builder with big ideas about knitting our community together into...

Introducing Naomi, a 31-year-old administrative assistant at a local Canberra mechanic shop. Naomi has Down Syndrome, but she is seriously challenging the stereotypes of people with disabilities who can’t be independent, work in mainstream places or meaningful jobs. It is a bright sunny day and I am greeted outside the shop by Naomi, and her employers, Raffy and Charlie Sgroi,...

“You can’t sell the shop, Nic. Everyone will miss you,” says a voice filming Nic Manikis as he loads milk into a fridge at his convenience store on Morton St in Queanbeyan. It’s one of the last videos of Nic before he died, peacefully in his shop on June 12, some 44 years after he first started in 1975. His...

When former Canberra business and marketing executive Belinda Head grew tired of the twice-daily bus journey from and to Murrumbateman on the Barton Highway, she created a healthy alternative for herself – and the village. Belinda is one of three winners from Murrumbateman of the annual Yass Valley Business Chamber awards. Her new business, Physical-Ease Recovery Clinic, was judged start-up...

Corporate conferences these days entertain and uplift their audiences, yet only a few will ever touch a person’s psyche for life. The Fireside Conference Ray White Canberra staged for its team was one such conference. In the aftermath is a resounding message – a rewarding career in real estate starts here. “What we set out to deliver was a far...

When reality hit and the ACT Down Syndrome Association (ACTDSA) thought it was going to have to close its doors, Alicia Flack-Kone couldn’t describe her despair. The self-help organisation, formed in 1987 by a group of interested parents, was facing a lack of funding. It was at crisis point. "I’ll never forget how stressful it was," says Alicia, now President...

A leading Australian economist has used the Australian Local Government Association's annual regional congress, held here in Canberra, to fundamentally challenge popular beliefs about limiting immigration. Dr Peter Brain from National Economics, who prepared the annual State of the Regions report, says that parts of Australia are indeed full, but others are crying out for skilled migrants to build a...

In the chilling aftermath of violent attacks against women across Australia, comes the all-too-familiar despair from a chorus of voices on talkback radio and on social media. What can be done to make people safe? Prayer vigils, mountains of floral tributes for the deceased, extra policing and warnings peak and subside until the next attack. A Canberra woman with a...

No matter how cold he gets or how much he shivers, Col McIntyre of McIntyre Property won’t be complaining the night of Thursday 20 June. Instead, he’ll be reminding himself that life could be much, much worse. For the third time, Col will rally together with other leaders from business, community and government to help end the pain of poverty...

Investors have given Canberra-based Viva Leisure an emphatic endorsement after it successfully listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) on Friday 7 June. Viva Leisure Chief Executive and Managing Director Harry Konstantinou says the $20 million capital raising hit the target date June 7 on schedule. “We had opened the book build about three or four weeks ago and we...

After two decades of tumultuous change in the industry, local media is arguably more important than ever. Huge financial pressures have forced hundreds of redundancies and changed formats dramatically as traditional mastheads grapple with what the audience wants and how they can pay for their business models. As a result of those pressures, the venerable Canberra Times goes behind a...

Canberra Liberals< Opposition Leader Alistair Coe says Canberrans are being monumentally ripped off. "Despite record revenue, the ACT will soon be in debt by more than $3 billion,'' he says. For the amount the Government is spending and borrowing each year, Canberrans would expect a premium level of service. Instead, this government fails to deliver even the basics well. "Canberrans...

The Snowy Monaro Business Awards have been handed out at The Station Resort in Jindabyne. With the chill of early season snow in the air, around 200 people turned out to cheer on and support the local business community. Twelve categories were contested, in this the second year of the awards... Excellence in Caravan & Holiday Parks This category recognises...

The ACT Government is hoping to fill a gap in the events calendar with a new Winter Festival next year to promote Canberra as a home of innovation, new technology and creative thinking. Last year's budget allocated $1.85 million to the 2020 festival and a tender has been released for an experienced event executive producer to deliver and run it...

The bright startup minds of Batemans Bay and beyond have come together to pitch their new business ideas to other entrepreneurs in conjunction with the New Business Assistance - NEIS program. Coordinator Tim Whitaker works with the government-funded program and decided to bring the Big Pitch event to the Bay after huge success in Bega and Narooma. "In regional areas...

In a further development for the changing Canberra media market, News Corp has announced it will be launching a digital news platform called the Canberra Star. Kate Christian, who most recently worked on suburban Sydney newspapers the Wentworth Courier and the Northern District Times, is the Star's journalist. The Canberra Star is described as "a local digital news platform covering...