It has been, apparently as usual for a new Council term, a very busy couple of months. The draft budget. The new 4-year plan. Presentations on diverse shire services, responsibilities and activities. Council meetings & events. Emails (always), talking to & meeting with people. I thought I’d pass on a few significant items.
Last Tuesday saw the March Council Meeting held over in Lorne, with half an hour beforehand to mingle and chat. (By the way, the next ‘away’ Council meeting will be in Winchelsea in August, so if you want to see how it goes in person please come along!).
One important decision was about the Winchelsea Shire Hall, with the existing 3-year activation agreement coming to and end in June and what happens next. Having been Chair of the Winch House Committee up until the end of last year, I was advised that due to potential conflict of interest it would best if I stepped out while this item was discussed and voted on – which is what I did, reluctantly but with acknowledgement that Councillor integrity is important to public perception. My thanks to Cr Schonfelder to taking up the item and speaking so well about the need to continue for another 2 years with a revised agreement (given the Covid hangover and issues with heating that interfered with the first 2 years). It is extremely important for the Winchelsea community to realise that this gives just 2 years to formulate and activate a model that will keep the Shire Hall open to the public after Shire funding stops. It really is over to you.
Another item was a decision to phase out the fleet of small community buses. They are ageing and generally a decade old or more, and due for replacement. In addition, new regulations and driver requirements arising from the Hunter Valley bus tragedy a few years ago are going to make it all a bit harder. So not only over $400,000 for new buses but also more difficulty in finding drivers. With declining use of these buses, Council has decided to sell them off and use some of the proceeds to subsidise the use of commercial buses for the next 2 years instead. I would like to think there may be some alternative and/or innovative way of helping those in the community who find transport difficult – let’s face it, public transport isn’t great in our region. Your ideas are very welcome.
For Shire non-profit organisations, it was pleasing to see the return of the Surf Coast Grant Finder. It offers a free subscription to the Grant Guru email notification tool which is designed to streamline the grant finding process for community groups. Select the types of grants to hear about and an email advises of new matches. It’s a great tool for finding funding. Find out more at grantguru.com/au/surfcoast – there are ALL sorts of grants available.
Did you know it is Shire policy that a plaque or memorial for a deceased person will not be considered for 3 years following the passing of that person, to allow for a historical perspective to be developed? Cr Grist followed up on a knockback to a plaque being arranged for a Winchelsea community stalwart, and it transpired that the State has defined principles around this – although the Shire’s own policy exceeds the State’s 2-year delay. We look forward to this policy coming up for review in due course.
There’s a lot more on the boil. Don’t forget, if there’s an issue you want the Shire to fix, report it via the website (“Lodge a request” on the home page surfcoast.vic.gov.au).