His words were appropriate in regard to a number of happenings, developments and prospects for the city since Christmas.

In my youth, before Wagga had a public swimming pool (Junee had one many years before), our beach had a life saving club which patrolled the area.

Besides that duty the club provided a social hub for young men, and many older ones to meet and provide, especially in the school holidays, great assistance in learn-to-swim campaigns and general water safety lessons.

There was a skilful Lifesavers rugby league team formed from club members during the winter months. Jimmy Nelson was our swim instructor in 1951; he taught water safety including the dead man's float (also known as the jellyfish float), emphasising it was one of the most important aspects of survival if we ever found ourselves out of our depth or the current too powerful.     

The council and other authorities should get pro-active on this issue and about promotion generally of the Murrumbidgee River as a major recreation attraction for visitors.

It seems to me that reviving the beach lifesaving club would be a wonderful community service to go hand-in-hand with the PCYC as well as providing something worthwhile for young boys and girls to be involved with.

Patrols at least could be provided through the summer school holidays and if not the entire spring and summer seasons, then at weekends.

It might give reassurance to visitors and tourists to know there is a patrolled beach; not forgetting, of course, to make them aware of the wonderful Oasis facility and the exciting PCYC project.

While on the subject of water, it is amazing there has been such lack of support for Daryl Maguire's idea for a weir to provide a consistent river level for water recreation pursuits, swimming, house boats and fishing along its course through the city.

So, to the latest conference centre proposal and what a simple, practical option the Clay Target Association has provided with State Government assistance.

Arriving back in Wagga in 1979 to take up the post as editor of The DA one of the first people who advocated a convention centre to me was Yvonne Braid, now a councillor.

All sorts of grandiose schemes have come and gone in the 38 years since - "grandiose" being the operative and entirely inappropriate word.

The late Brian Parsons and his Equex supporters, including Gary Hiscock, had the best idea of a combined entertainment, convention and sports set up but never got the community (or council) support it deserved. All council needs to do now is approve the DA without delay and leave the experts to get cracking.

Other things looming across the horizon include a new home for the conservatorium of music; Warren Smith's proposal to move the sports hall of fame to Bolton Park and cable cars to Willans Hill and Botanic Gardens plus a new home for pacing.

Finally, on a much broader scale, and bearing in mind this city's great military history, what Australian city could be a more appropriate site for a national service training base than Wagga. Why? That's another story.