On the Local Government News Roundup today, Moira Shire’s new administrator starts work; a cyber security incident at a southwest Victorian council; big plans announced for the South Melbourne Town Hall; the MAV’s CEO moves on; a tragic incident claims the life of a council worker in Queensland; a US Court rules to protect the right to be rude in public meetings; and Indigo Shire Mayor Sophie Price on an Australian first in Victoria’s northeast.
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Transcript (with story links where available):
Hi, this is Chris Eddy, with the latest from the Local Government News Roundup.
On the podcast today: Moira Shire’s new administrator starts work; a cyber security incident at a southwest Victorian council; big plans announced for the South Melbourne Town Hall; the MAV’s CEO moves on; a tragic incident claims the life of a council worker in Queensland; a US Court rules to protect the right to be rude in public meetings; plus: (grab) Indigo Shire Mayor Sophie Price on an Australian first in Victoria’s northeast
All that and more ahead in the latest update from the Local Government News Roundup which starts now.
Thanks for joining me for today’s podcast – brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association.
Moira Shire’s new interim administrator, John Tanner, has commenced work at the Council as of last Friday.
The council released a statement welcoming Mr Tanner to the organisation, and confirming that a planned Council meeting would go ahead this week.
Mr Tanner said he was looking forward to working with the staff to address the recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry, which led to the recent dismissal of the elected Council.
The statement quoted Acting CEO Josh Lewis who is the council’s director of infrastructure services. There’s no official word on the status of CEO Clare Keenan.
Source: Moira Shire Council
Moyne Shire has revealed it has been dealing with a cyber-security incident.
For around 10 minutes, an unauthorised third party gained remote access to an electronic device at the Koroit kindergarten.
The device stores enrolment information of children at the centre.
Analysis has determined that no information was downloaded or transferred externally.
A full review is underway and the required notifications have been made to the Victorian Information Commissioner and the Department of Education.
Source: Moyne Shire Council
At Darebin, the council is calling for the release of a report impacting the future of the Preston Market.
The report was written after the conclusion of a hearing into a Planning Scheme Amendment last November, and the council says its release should have occurred two months ago.
Mayor Julie Williams said the council strongly supports the retention of the current market, which has been the heart of the community for over half a century.
A Protect Preston Market petition has attracted over 15,000 signatures to date.
The Council has written to the planning minister Sonya Kilkenny seeking the report’s release.
Source: Darebin City Council
The long-term future of the South Melbourne Town Hall seems assured, with the awarding of a 35 year lease by Port Phillip City Council to the Australian National Academy of Music.
The lease will begin with $20.5M in capital investment from the music academy, and it could be extended out to 50 years with a future $19.5M in capital investment.
Under the deal, the building will host civic functions and be available for community group hire, and a ticket levy will fund arts and cultural activities in Port Phillip.
The building has been closed since June 2020. A multi-million dollar repair and renewal program, funded by the Council, will commence soon to prepare it for occupancy.
Source: Port Phillip City Council
Moonee Valley City Council has released the first report on progress with its three year advocacy strategy, headlined by the achievement of new train station commitment on the Melbourne Airport Rail Line.
The election commitment will see a new station built on the border of Keilor East, Airport West and Keilor Park by 2029.
Mayor Pierce Tyson said some major outcomes have been achieved in the first year of the strategy.
They also include funding commitments for restoration of Moonee Ponds Creek, an expansion of Ascot Vale Library, and critical planning controls across the city’s three main waterways.
Source: Moonee Valley City Council
Briefs:
Swan Hill council is the latest to announce it will no longer accept building permit applications, referring customers to private building surveyors.
The change is due to a critical shortage of qualified and registered professional building staff in Victoria.
The council will complete all building permit applications already received, and will continue to provide statutory building functions.
Source: Swan Hill Rural City Council
Kerry Thompson has finished up this week as MAV CEO after 5 years.
The former council CEO and senior public servant became the peak body’s first female CEO in 2018.
While a recruitment process for her replacement is underway, former Hume CEO Dominic Isola and MAV executive Troy Edwards will be Acting CEO for about six weeks each.
Source: Municipal Association of Victoria
Alpine Shire has purchased its first electric vehicle, and has commenced installing four 22kw chargers at the Bright council office.
The investment is part of the council’s phased upgrade of its car fleet, with the support of the government’s EV Charging for Council Fleets program.
Source: Alpine Shire Council
Ballarat City Council says the 71st Ballarat Begonia Festival over the March long weekend attracted attendance of more than 65,000.
23,000 of those attended the final day which featured the Power FM Begonia Parade.
Source: Ballarat City Council
And Gannawarra Shire Council has formally decided to retain the Melbourne Cup Day public holiday following a community engagement process conducted late last year.
The Council says 57 per cent of respondents preferred to retain current arrangements, over the option of an October holiday for the Kerang Show.
Source: Gannawarra Shire Council
West Wimmera Shire Council will continue to provide Commonwealth Home Support Program services, going against a statewide trend of councils exiting that space.
The council will stay in as a service provider until at least June 2024, and provide additional resources to meet new clinical governance compliance obligations.
Source: West Wimmera Shire Council
A new mountain biking trail in Victoria’s High Country is being hailed as a game changer for Indigo Shire and tourism in the northeast.
Indigo Shire Mayor Sophie Price told me the 56km Indigo Epic Trail is the only all season Epic trail in Australia, and one of only two in the Southern Hemisphere.
Mayor Price says the project has been a huge investment for the small shire, but is expected to pay big dividends
Source: Indigo Shire Council
Mayor Sophie Price is one of my guests on the first edition of the Roundup’s Council Conversations – a new series of interview specials.
We talk more about the Epic Trail, plus the Moira Shire dismissal and why she doesn’t claim the councillor expenses she is entitled to.
And Friends of the Roundup get early access to the series.
You can become a Friend of the Roundup for just $5 per month, and you can cancel at any time. Head to www.lgnewsroundup.com to find out more and subscribe.
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Now for some of the stories making local government news from around Australia this week.
An incident in central Queensland yesterday has resulted in the death of a council employee.
Central Highlands Regional Council released a statement yesterday afternoon confirming that the incident had occurred in Arcadia Valley.
The ABC later reported that the incident involved a semi-trailer, and that the 36 year old man was unloading machinery at the time.
The Council extended its deepest condolences to the employee’s family, but said it had no further comment to make at this time.
Source: Central Highlands Regional Council; ABC News
The NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption public inquiry into the conduct of employees at Inner West Council , Transport for NSW and others is underway this week.
Operation Hector will hear from witnesses over the course of this week, starting with former Leichhardt and Inner West council employee Tony Nguyen.
Government News has reported on the first day of hearings, at which ICAC heard Mr Nguyen received up to $70,000 in kickbacks, and state government contracts for his own company, in exchange for awarding council tenders to mates.
Council Assisting Phillip English said in his opening statement that the allegations cover collusive tendering across two government organisations, use of aliases and false references, conflicts of interest and other alleged offences.
The inquiry is expected to run for six weeks.
Source: NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption; Government News
As the NSW State election approaches this weekend, the Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils is urging the major parties to tackle western Sydney’s worsening urban heat island crisis.
WSROC President Cr Barry Calvert said an urgent overhaul of the state’s planning policies to address the problem is needed, with the economic and health costs increasingly impacting the region.
HE said WSROC is asking whoever wins government this weekend to urgently update policies and DCPs which don’t currently address urban heat.
Source: WSROC
The Mayor of Orange Council, Jason Hamling, has welcomed this week’s news that ownership and maintenance of the city’s northern bypass has been taken over by the state government.
Mayor Hamling said the road has provided the function of a state road for some years, and that transfer was a great result for the council and residents.
He said for the people of Orange, this puts our primary heavy vehicle transport corridor in the hands of a tier of government with much greater resources needed for ongoing upkeep.
Source: Orange City Council
In South Australia, dual names have been implemented for six significant cultural sites in Mount Gambier.
The City of Mount Gambier has worked with Traditional Owners and cultural leaders on the process, which has just received formal approval from the state government.
The dual names are now in place for the six sites, with a staged introduction through digital and printed materials and a gradual upgrade of signage throughout the city.
Source: Mount Gambier City Council
In WA, the City of Cockburn will introduce a new home CCTV subsidy, as part of its 5 year community safety and crime prevention plan.
The city has allocated a budget of $200,000 for the subsidy across the life of the plan.
Details on how residents can apply will be released in the coming weeks, with the subsidy to take effect from 1 July.
As part of the new plan, the city is expanding its own network of more than 700 CCTV cameras, with another 18 locations expected to come on stream at a cost of nearly $1.6M.
Source: City of Cockburn
Meanwhile in Perth, the city’s very first e-scooter share scheme trial is underway.
As part of a two year trial, members of the public can hire e-scooters from over 80 sites across the city.
Two providers – Bird and Neuron Mobility – have been chosen to provide the e-scooters, which are fitted with geofencing technology to keep them in the city and out of certain designated areas.
Unlike trials in other cities, users will be required to return the e-scooters to designated parking spots.
Source: City of Perth
Briefly:
Northern Beaches council has appointed its director of planning and place, Louise Kerr, as interim CEO, following the recent resignation of Ray Brownlee, who is returning to Randwick City Council.
Ms Kerr has nearly 30 years of local government experience, the last four years at Northern Beaches. Previously she held senior roles at Sydney and Parramatta councils.
Source: Northern Beaches Council
The Deputy Mayor of Balonne Shire Council, Richard Lomman, has resigned for personal reasons, after three years on the Council.
The resignation takes effect on the 1st April and creates a vacancy. CEO Matthew Magin will announce a process to fill the vacancy in the coming week.
Source: Balonne Shire Council
The City of South Perth has a new councillor.
Nick Warland won the extraordinary election earlier this month, to replace Carl Celedin who resigned in December.
He was one of four candidates to contest the election.
Source: City of South Perth
Bundaberg Regional Council has won a major award for its One Million Trees program.
It has been named winner of the Granicus Digital Government Award for innovation and positive contribution to the environment.
The program has leveraged the council’s community engagement website to streamline the process for managing tree applications and distribution. More at Bundabergtoday.com.au
And Canterbury Bankstown Council has launched a range of new initiatives at the Bankstown Arts Centre to help shape the next generation of local artists.
The program is designed to give local youths an edge in the industry, with topics like creating video artworks on smartphones; minimising incidents of graffiti vandalism; and showcasing the talents of local artists aged 15 to 25.
Source: Canterbury Bankstown Council
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Now for today’s International Spotlight:
An interesting development out of the US state of Massachusetts this past week, where a court has upheld the right to be rude in public meetings.
The case goes back 5 years to when Louise Barron, a local resident, was removed from a meeting of Southborough town council for accusing the members of violating meeting laws, spending town funds like “drunken sailors,” and describing one of them as a Hitler.
The town has a civility code, requiring discourse at public meetings to be free of rude, personal or slanderous remarks.
But the court has ruled that is unconstitutional, and that while the comments were rude and insulting, it was protected speech.
The justices said in a unanimous decision that while civility is to be encouraged, it cannot be required.
Source: WBUR.org; New York Times
A councillor at Braintree District Council, in the east of England, is under investigation after making comments on social media about LGBTQ+ Pride flags.
Angela Kilmartin told her Facebook followers that she did not want any “pride sex flags” on her local high street, in response to a man who bought rainbow flags for businesses to put in shop windows.
When approached by the BBC, she stood by her comments, but said “if shop owners want to put up flags, they can.”
The councillor is a former chairman of the Council, and a former mayor of Witham Town Council.
A council spokesperson told the BBC that Cr Kilmartin is under suspension while a number of separate code of conduct issues are being looked into.
Source: BBC News
Still in England – amid the building excitement of the Eurovision Song Contest to be held in Liverpool City in May, the council is facing backlash for partnering with AirBnB to encourage residents to accommodate fans attending the event.
The council has described an economic opportunity for people with spare rooms, and AirBnB is offering incentives for first time hosts.
The Liverpool Echo has published a number of online comments from people not happy about the collaboration, some saying there are more pressing accommodation issues in the city that need to be resolved.
Source: Liverpool Echo
And finally, a bizarre story out of England, where a Norfolk Council has written to a resident informing him of his death, and asking him to complete a form to receive a council tax exemption.
The BBC reports that 77 year old Stuart Dobson received the letter one month after the passing of his wife of 54 years.
He prepared a response and hand-delivered it to prove that he was indeed still alive, and said the letter had caused him distress at a time when he was already suffering.
A spokesman for South Norfolk Council said it was an unfortunate case of human error, for which they are deeply sorry.
Source: BBC News
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That’s the latest from the Roundup for the 21st March 2023.
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I’ll be back soon with more of the latest local government news. Until next time, thanks for listening, and bye for now.