Facilitating change
I have been on Council since November 2005, this is my third term. Councils play a vital role in community development and set the tone for many important local events, assets and attributes. Things were going wrong in 2005 and I thought I could facilitate change for the better.
Hepburn Shire covers an area north of the Great Dividing Range in Central Victoria that is rich in natural beauty and fertile farms, and steeped in history. Hepburn Shire is world famous for its pristine environment and sparkling mineral water. The greatest concentration of mineral springs in Australia are in the Hepburn Mineral Springs Reserve near the famous Bathhouse, where people come from far and wide to take the waters, relax and get well. Tourism is a major industry bringing in many visitors and much wealth, but not all embrace it. Property prices are vibrant and affordable housing is highly sought after. Farming and small business are the chief economic drivers.
My role as a councillor
The best part of being a councillor is seeing communities achieve their goals and aspirations. I enjoy seeing people working together for everyone’s benefit, being in a key position where you can identify needs, devise solutions and really make a difference for your community. The worst part is the long hours, sometimes crushing work/life imbalances and trying to do what needs to be done with multiple pressing deadlines.
The most difficult part is developing adequate understanding and practical expertise in a variety of professional areas. The ability to understand planning principles to determine planning applications fairly and objectively, financial acuity with accounts and an understanding of engineering matters and tendering for goods and services also makes a councillor’s skill set multi-dimensional.
Being a good councillor means being a good listener and a fair dealer who acts without fear or favour. It means an inspiring person who can encourage, engage and empower others and work collaboratively with diverse groups of people and communities. Multi-skilling and multi-tasking to bring individual skills and expertise to Council are essential.
Making ends meet
Small rural councils never have enough money to fund infrastructure upgrades and renewal. Ratepayers are the main source of Council revenue other than Government grants and keeping rate rises down is an annual challenge. Planning issues like developing small blocks in wildfire areas and septic tank issues in potable water catchments are constant frustrations, as many landowners cannot develop their properties or even replace dwellings under certain circumstances.
Much of Hepburn Shire is rural and small communities and villages often miss out on what the larger towns receive. Key challenges facing the Council are rating equity, ongoing service provision with rapidly escalating costs, planning issues and infrastructure maintenance.
The important issues to me are giving everyone a fair go and putting the needs of residents and ratepayers first. Saving money, better work practices and efficiencies to keep rate rises down are also important, as is Community planning to engage and empower the various communities within the Shire to achieve their aims and to shine. I want to help people appreciate the benefits of living in Hepburn Shire and be proud of its rich history and pristine environment. I hope to continue to build on community trust, cooperation and empowerment to really see aspirations become realities. Seeing small rural communities get inspired, achieve and shine is true success in local government.
