Hello and welcome to the Local Government News Roundup. I’m Chris Eddy, and this is episode 10, recorded 7th April 2021
Coming up:
A preferred route chosen to link Seymour to the Great Victorian Rail Trail;
Sydney’s Inner West Council appoints a new General Manager;
The mayor of Subiaco to remain popularly elected;
And I’m joined by the Chair of Melbourne’s Metropolitan Transport Forum to hear about that group’s advocacy aims ahead of the Victorian State Budget.
Plus lots more from around the world of local government across Australia and internationally.
The Local Government News Roundup is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association, home of the VLGA Connect series of local government focussed interviews and podcasts.
Firstly to our Victorian roundup.
Mitchell Shire Council has determined a preferred route that would ultimately link Seymour to the Great Victorian Rail Trail. After discussions with affected landholders in recent months, the Council has identified a preferred option from Tallarook to Seymour with an underpass or overpass needed to cross the railway line. An alternative route has also been identified in the event the preferred option is not supported by rail authorities.
The Council’s preferred option will now be subject to more detailed investigation, pending the provision of government funding.
A communal glass recycling trial in the City of Port Phillip will be extended, with additional locations to be added. Since last year, residents of South Melbourne and Albert Park have been able to dispose of empty glass bottles and jars at communal glass recycling bins.
The Council says the trial has helped to develop new approaches to reducing recycling contamination. The expanded list of locations includes sites in St Kilda West, St Kilda East, Albert Park, South Melbourne and Port Melbourne.
Golden Plains Shire Council is conducting a community consultation about public holiday observance in lieu of Melbourne Cup Day. The shire is one of just 7 in the state that currently does not observe Melbourne Cup Day, opting instead to align its northern half with Ballarat Show Day, and the southern half with Geelong Show day.
Both shows were cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic. The Council has decided to consider whether a change to these arrangements might be appropriate and is seeking community input up until 18th April. A decision on future arrangements is expected to be made at the June Council meeting.
The Metropolitan Transport Forum has recently confirmed its advocacy aims and strategic direction in the lead-up to the Victorian State Budget and the 2022 State Elections. I spoke with MTF Chair, and Mayor of Hobsons Bay, Cr Jonathon Marsden about the group’s advocacy aims.
The Local Government News Roundup is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association.
Is your council working on your Municipal Public Health Plan?
The VLGA is hosting a free online workshop on the role of the Municipal Public Health Plan. In particular, on how the Plan may be used to support identification of, and responses to, the consequences of gambling in communities.
This online workshop will be presented by Dr Susan Rennie and Steve Cooper
Thursday 22 April, 12.30pm to 2pm
Register your interest on events page of the VLGA website - www.vlga.org.au
Now for the national news roundup
Infrastructure Australia is looking to assemble a national view of the strengths and infrastructure gaps in Australia’s 48 RDA regions to assist with identifying planning and analysis priorities.
The Regional Strengths and Gaps project will be used to elicit solutions from government, community and industry to address the challenges identified.
Industry groups are being encouraged to make submissions by the 16th April. A national consultation process will follow, leading to publication of a report that outlines the strengths and infrastructure priorities for each RDA region.
The Mayor of the City of Subiaco will continue to be popularly elected, following a public consultation that showed 53.4% of submissions supported the current method.
The Council recently considered whether to proceed with a poll of electors, and Mayor Penny Taylor said the decision to not go out for a poll was in line with the majority of community feedback.
The decision follows a proposal presented in late 2020 to consider the alternative method of councillors selecting a mayor from amongst themselves. A total of 253 community submissions were received.
The Shire of Carnarvon has appointed Ms Andrea Selvey to the position of Chief Executive Officer, following a recruitment process in which 19 applications were received. Ms Selvey is currently the CEO of the Shire of Cocos Island, and was previously Director of Community Services at the City of Geraldton for 7 years. She will take up the position in mid-April.
Sydney’s Inner West Council has appointed Peter Gainsford as its new General Manager. Mr Gainsford will move from the City of Canada Bay where he has been CEO since early 2018.
In taking on the GM position at Inner West it will be a homecoming of sorts, as he was previously the Council’s Deputy General Manager of Assets and Environment. The GM vacancy arose with the resignation of Michael Deegan in October last year. Mr Gainsford commences in the role on 3rd May.
The NSW Government has announced funding of nearly $5 million to assist regional councils to digitise the lodging and assessment of planning applications. The Minister for Local Government, Shelley Hancock, says the money is to help regional councils move from paper based systems to the e-planning platform, or to better support residents with limited digital literacy or internet access.
Grants of $50,000 are available to each of the 95 regional councils and the Lord Howe Island Boards. Councils in NSW are required to be using the planning portal by 1 July this year.
Shoalhaven City Council is celebrating success at the Institute of Public Works Engineering Australasia Excellence Awards, picking up two awards. The Shoalhaven Water Reclaimed Water Management Scheme was recognised with the Environmental Enhancement Project or Initiative Award, while the Shoalhaven Indoor Sports Centre won the Minister for Local Government’s Award for Innovation in Local Government Engineering.
CEO Stephen Dunshea said the awards highlight the innovation, skill and dedication of Council staff in providing infrastructure and services for the community.
The NSW Local Government Week Awards are now open for nominations. The awards recognise outstanding and innovative contributions by councils to their communities, in the categories of communication and events; arts and culture; planning; and Youth Week. Nominations close on 24th May for all awards except the Youth Week award, which close 30th June. The awards will be announced at the Hotel Swissotel in Sydney on the 5th August.
Voting is now open for the prestigious City of Adelaide Prize - People’s Choice category, as part of the SA Architectural Awards Program. The award seeks to recognise innovative projects that enhance the community experience in the City of Adelaide.
There are seven entries for the award this year, and the people of Adelaide are invited to vote for their favourite - with voting open until 30th April.
The Local Government Association of South Australia is seeking nominations for a local government member on the Environment Protection Authority Board, for a three-year term commencing in August. Nominations are invited from suitably qualified council members, or employees of a council or other local government entity. Nominations close on 24 May, and you’ll find a link to more details and the nomination process in our show notes.
And finally, some international news items that caught my eye this week.
In Virginia, USA, the state’s Supreme Court has overturned a lower court decision that would have prevented the City of Charlottesville from removing two statues of Confederate generals. The statues are monuments to Robert E Lee, and Stonewall Jackson.
Local governments across the state have been removing statues that have stood for 100 years or more, and some have been faced with protests and legal challenges to prevent their removal. The Supreme Court ruled that existing law did not provide local authorities with the power to erect the statues nor does it prohibit them from disturbing or interfering with them.
And I commend to you an article on theconversation.com that looks at how US mayoral perspectives on parks and streets have changed in light of disruptions from COVID-19. Despite implementing many changes to the way public spaces can be used, the report finds that most cities do not have a plan for retaining the changes after the pandemic. It also points to increasing public pressure to make some of the changes permanent.
There’s a link to the article in our show notes, along with links for the rest of the stories referenced in this episode.
And that’s your local government news roundup for now.
You can access episodes and related information on the web at www.lgnewsroundup.com, or you can subscribe to the show with your preferred podcast provider.
The Local Government News Roundup is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association. Subscribe to the VLGA Connect series of interviews and panel discussions on YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.
Until next time, thanks for listening.