Sunshine Valley Gazette

From left, Rebecca, Catherine, Andrew, Dana and Georga Kendray amidst the blackened workshop area.   A Nambour family has been left devastated but determined to rebuild after a fire gutted the business last Wednesday. Three fire crews were called to the fire at the Stihl Shop Nambour on Coronation Avenue at 8.50pm on Wednesday (February 8) and left about 10.40pm. Most of the structural damage was contained to the workshop area, where the fire started, but there is overwhelming damage throughout. Almost all the stock and equipment in the business has been ruined by either the heat, smoke, ash or water.  Daughter Georga said the family was still coming to grips with the enormity of effort that will be required to get the business back on its feet.  “Yesterday (Thursday, February 9), I think in our minds, we were like: ‘We’ll come in, get in there, clean it out, and we’ll be trading next week’. That’s what we thought.  “But I don’t think that that is the reality. There’s a lot of smoke damage throughout the whole shop that needs to be repaired and cleaned and replaced. “I didn’t realize that smoke was capable of such destruction. It’s on everything. […]

In the later part of 2022, the Nambour Chamber of Commerce, Nambour Tram Co, ReImagine Nambour and the Nambour Retailers joined forces with Cr David Law – Division 10 and his internal Sunshine Coast Council teams to bring some relief to parking in and around Nambour. “Previous parking maps had been designed for Nambour about 10 years ago, but unfortunately they were only in paper form,” said Rhonda. “Back then, the online community was not what it is today, so once the maps had been distributed, the map benefits were lost. “However working with coast Graphic Designer Katie Buckley, Sunshine Coast Council as well as our Nambour Groups, we have been able to identify all parking availability in the Nambour CBD and surrounds and create a fully downloadable version for anyone who lives, works or plays in Nambour.” The map is now live at www.iamnambour.com.au along with our Nambour Vintage Shopping map and other Nambour and Surrounds information. “We urge people to get on the site, download your copy and get in the know of what parking options are available.” Cr Law thanked Rhonda for coordinating the work with community organisations and for her “determination to build a positive change”.

Gary Langford: “Because of what these people do out there for our community, I can’t help but keep going and keep working for them”. A dedicated Nambour ambulance stalwart who has offered his time and leadership in many roles across multiple organisations and charities has been named Sunshine Coast Council’s 2023 Senior Citizen of the Year. Gary Langford is the President of the Nambour Local Ambulance Committee (LAC) where he has served since 1999. The passionate advocate has received numerous awards for his service but he said this one held a special place in his heart. “It’s a huge honor,” he said. “I’ve received some awards from the Commissioner over the last 20-odd years, but that’s an in-house sort of recognition. I’ve never had an award presented to me which is external of the QAS, so it’s an absolute honor to be recognized. I mean, nobody in volunteering goes out there to seek recognition, but I’ll tell you what, when you get it, it is wonderful to receive! “I fell in love with Ambulance from day one, and I’ve absolutely loved it. I’ve made a lot of friends through QAS, with paramedics and senior management and patient transport drivers, and

From left, Club Hotel Namba Directors Josh Allen and Paul Harley and Venue Manager Mark Lean: “The potential for this place is amazing.” As soon as they saw the Club Hotel in Nambour the two publicans couldn’t resist taking it on. With over 50 years experience between them, Paul Harley and Josh Allen said the pub, which they will rename the Club Hotel Namba, had good bones and a presence in town that was irresistible. “The potential for this place is amazing,” said Paul. “What Nambour doesn’t have is a big, open, family-friendly style hotel. We don’t have gaming, so that promotes a different atmosphere.” And it wasn’t just the commercial potential of the hotel that appealed, but the prospect of helping to reinvigorate a great town. “The community has been crying out for something like this,” said Josh. “There’s a perception about Nambour and there’s also been a long-term push to want to reinvigorate the town. And we sort of see ourselves as, perhaps, the start of what’s to come. “There are examples all around Australia where one business has started a domino effect of more businesses moving into the area or people moving there because of it. We

Division 10 Councillor David Law, social media phenomenon Brooke Styles and Rhonda Billett with the Nambour Vintage and Retro Op Shop Hip Hop Map. Nambour has a flourishing retro and vintage scene to explore and now 17 of the popular destinations are laid out for shoppers on a handy map.  The Nambour “Vintage and Retro Op Shop Hip Hop Map” is a joint project of the Nambour Retailers Group, ReImagine Nambour, Nambour Chamber of Commerce and Nambour Tram Co. who all recognised the Vintage and Retro resurgence in the hinterland town.  “Nambour is the perfect place to discover original items and treasures from times past,” said organiser Rhonda Billett. The map is sure to get massive exposure thanks to Sunshine Coast social media influencer Brooke Styles (Brooke Styless official) who assistied the launch yesterday (November 1).   Brooke has over 200,000 followers on Instagram and a million on Tik Tok and will be promoting the Nambour map initiative as a part of her regular ‘Thrift Thursday’ series. “Being a Sunny Coast local, and then growing up here, I thrifted a lot in Nambour,” said Brooke. “My mum introduced me to thrifting, and then that’s where the passion grew.  “But I

Rock on! The TramFest is back … The Nambour Tramway Company (TNTCo), is running a free, Christmas Tramfest event this Saturday December 3, with great bands from 4pm til late! Tramfest used to be held in Howard Street but has moved to the new TNTCo Western Terminus in Mill Street. Follow the heritage tracks to great food, excellent live music with three bands, kicking off with local group Lazy Guns, pictured. Lazy Guns is a family band and includes, from left, Dad Richard Smith, lead singer Jack, Sam on bass and Ryan, drums. Organiser Mark Higgins from Shake It Up Music is holding the poster. “We play 2000s Rock n Roll,” said Jack. “Kind of like the Von Trapp family meets Jet.   “We’re looking forward to coming out and rocking the hinterland and playing some good honest rock music from 4pm to 5pm. We’re going to melt some hinterland faces!” The Nambour Tramway Company (TNTCo), is running a free, Christmas Tramfest event on December 3, from 4pm until late! The venue for Tramfest has changed from Howard Street to the new TNTCo Western Terminus in Mill Street. Just follow the heritage tracks to great food, excellent live music with

Rhonda Billett … “we should all be really, really excited about what is coming Nambour’s way in 2023”. Local businesswoman Rhonda Billett is filled with optimism about the direction Nambour is taking. The vivacious owner of Uptown Hair Studios set about this year to unite local groups and businesses under the same banner with a common cause.  At the same time she has garnered support from Sunshine Coast Council to implement a Nambour Activation Plan to reactivate and energise the CBD.   The loosely affiliated organisations hold monthly meetings with Council aimed at growing the local economy.  Nambour Chamber of Commerce, Reimagine Nambour, Tram Co and Nambour Retailers Group work alongside Div 10 Cr David Law, Mayor Mark Jamieson, key council staff and relevant businesses and groups.  The aim is to help ensure everything they do aligns with Council’s  vision for Nambour with a particular focus on the Nambour CBD revitalisation. Rhonda said she was thrilled with the progress made so far.  “As groups, we are all working towards the same goals for Nambour, we want to see the streets look visually enhanced, we want to see the empty shops tenanted, we want people to feel safe when doing things

Lights, Camera, Nambour! They helped launch the I Am Nambour brand and video series in 2021 and now Nambour’s very own video company, Red Boss Productions, are back at it again for their home town. “Nambour has so much on offer to work, play and live,” said Reimagine Nambour Ambassador Rhonda Billett. “As a part of our collaboration with Sunshine Coast Council, Reimagine Nambour, Nambour Chamber of Commerce, Nambour Tram Co and Nambour Retailers Group, we are rolling out a new up and coming video series that showcases Nambour’s best assets.  “It’s all a part of our Top 3 roll out for Nambour, that our groups have been working on for the last six months.” Red Boss, located in C-Square, will play a pivotal role in capturing and producing some updated, picturesque aesthetics of our region for everyone to share.  “We have many new people that have moved to our region as well as thousands of visitors daily. Nambour has lots to offer from lush green spaces, natural water falls, to chic shopping options that include our recent Vintage and Retro Op Shop Hip Hop Map,” said Rhonda. Red Boss Productions are renowned for their work with an impressive client

Owner Vaughan Jones says he’s glad he moved to the new location. “We can see the support is here for it.”   The move is over. The doors have been open for a few weeks in its new premises at Majestic Cinemas. And now it’s down to just the finishing touches as Sunshine Coast Pinball  prepares for its October 14 official Grand Opening.  Owner Vaughan Jones said he was always confident the move from the former Currie Street location to upstairs next to the cinema made sense, and early indications are he was right. “Just in the last week or two I’ve gone, ‘Wow, it’s going to be okay’,” he said. “Because we weren’t sure. Everything’s a bit of a gamble, isn’t it? But we can see the support is here for it. The feedback has been really strong, which is the most important thing. People are coming in and looking at the new venue and saying, ‘Wow, this is awesome. Well done’.  “There were almost no reasons not to move here. The big takeaway for us is the huge dedicated bar/servery area, which gives us the opportunity to do everything from selling beers and spirits on tap through to

Rod Constantinides loves what he sees in Nambour — an old town that has “good bones” and a passionate community.   The 28-year-old was attracted by Nambour’s country town feel in 2017 and established The Pottery Studio in Brookes Street and, with his family, set up Mammoth Storage in Zealey Road. His next project is to transform a block of  five existing commercial buildings – several of which are vacant – on the corner of Bury and Currie streets. He wants to build a six-storey residential and commercial building. The $50 million plans include 60 apartments and commercial tenancies on the ground floor including a childcare centre,  gym and coffee shop. The development would upgrade the unsightly block facing Currie Street and, hopefully, help trigger more commercial activity in the CBD.  Mr Constantinides studied architecture at Bond University and says he was drawn to the old town charm and community feel of Nambour.  “I realized that a lot of the stuff I was  learning was prevalent in Nambour as to what a town should look like versus what we’re currently getting. And I noticed there’s good bones in Nambour. So I was interested immediately.   “Nambour is good value compared