On the local government election campaign trail earlier this year, Bob Manning told a crowd of around 50 people at St Mary's By The Sea that he did not want to die wondering whether amalgamation between Cairns and Douglas regions could have worked.

With a petition circulating the region calling for signatures to support the separation of Douglas from Cairns, time for Council to prove itself to a growing list of residents who demand change is running out.

In fact, Michael Gabour, spokesperson for the Friends Of Douglas Shire (FODS) - the group leading the charge for deamalgamation, said anything Cairns Regional Council do now to improve the relationship will be an act of futility.

"I don't think there's anything that the present Council can do that the previous Council did not do. It's the nature of the structure that plants the seeds of failure. It can't meet the needs of this community.

Before the amalgamation occurred submissions were made to Anna Bligh, the (former) Premier, that clearly showed the Douglas Shire did not fall into categories of Shires that needed to be amalgamated.

"We were totally viable, we had a community of interest, and we had definable geographic boundaries, we met all of those things. We were probably one of the very few, if not the only, local council in Queensland that had a budget surplus."

A petition is circulating in businesses between Port Douglas and north of the Daintree River, and according to rules set by the Minister for Local Government, require at least 20% of voters within the former Douglas Shire boundaries to sign in order for the next step in the deamalgamation process to be considered.

"I have no doubt at all we will get those numbers," Mr Gabour said.

"I am optimistic that we will, in fact, succeed in our efforts to deamalgamate and re-establish local government in Douglas."

"The fact that we've been successful in holding the LNP to their commitment to at least begin the deamalgamation process is a significant win."

NEWS ARTICLE: Black Knight in Port Douglas

When asked if FODS had discussed who would potentially fill councillor positions in a reconstituted Douglas Shire, Mr Gabour remained tight-lipped.

"We've certainly had conversations...It's probably wise to wait until we've managed to deamalgamate the Shire.

"There are some obvious individuals. Julia Leu would be a primary candidate for Mayor. There are many other individuals in this Shire who are quite capable of serving as a councillor."

Mr Gabour said FODS would propose a smaller elected council of four councillors and a Mayor, with no divisions within a Douglas Shire.

He said despite the last former Douglas Shire Council having a reputation for disharmony, the Shire's residents still saw positive results.

"The last local government was problematic. Having said that, we still managed to have huge successes in the direction of the Shire. We managed to produce a town plan that was recognised as the best planning instrument in the country.

"We still had a functioning water system that was state of the art, we still the roads being taken care of and the garbage being delivered.

"When contentious issues arise, at least it's being handled locally."

Mr Gabour said FODS estimate the cost of deamalgamation to be between $3 million and $4 million.

"There has been a lot of misinformation being put out and figures to scare people about the costs of this exercise.

"I think before people buy in to that they should ask for the source of those figures that are being bandied about."

More information on the push for deamalgamation can be found on the Friends Of Douglas Shire website.

Cheap, easy, and long lasting - check out The Newsport Classifieds