The Shire of Nillumbik is known as the Green Wedge Shire or the ‘lungs of Melbourne’. Its south western gateway is 25km northeast of Melbourne and extends 29km to Kinglake National Park in the northeast. Covering 432sq km, with 91 percent outside the Urban Growth Boundary, its 65,000 residents live in a collection of townships each with their own unique identity and heritage, set among bushland and rolling hills. It’s where people who love our natural environment live.
My favourite attractions in Nillumbik are the Diamond Valley Miniature Railway at Eltham Lower Park and the Diamond Creek Regional Playspace.
Walking the dog is a daily routine that is demanded by my furry companion but I’m also in a boat club at Lake Eppalock where I try to get away to whenever possible. Snow skiing is another favourite of mine.
Emergency services
I was first elected onto Nillumbik Council in 2010, representing my home area of Diamond Creek. It followed 10 years as captain of the local Country Fire Authority (CFA) fire brigade where I established many community contacts and became familiar with the broader needs of my local community. Joining Nillumbik Council appealed to me as a logical extension of the local voluntary work I had been involved in for almost all my adult life. I was honoured to previously be elected Mayor in 2012-2013.
I have been a career firefighter with Metropolitan Fire Brigade (MFB) – now Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) – since 2003 and I joined Council only 15 months after the devastating Black Saturday bushfires of February 7, 2009. Emergency Management has always been a focus area of mine and on Council, I’ve chaired the Municipal Emergency Management Committee meetings for 10 years. My previous voluntary work with the CFA and my current employment with FRV have positioned me well for understanding and helping to implement necessary bushfire mitigation measures to keep our shire as safe as possible.
Facing a new future
The global COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way we live and is undoubtedly the biggest challenge all councils face. Nillumbik is working hard to support our people and businesses during these very difficult times.
Like all councils, we will be developing a key set of policies for the next four years including our Vision, Council Plan and Municipal Health & Wellbeing Plan.
We are also working on a Climate Action Plan to develop our priorities in responding to climate change.
Nillumbik is involved in several exciting sustainability projects.
Award winning energy
We were recently the joint winner of the Innovation (Metropolitan) Award at the 2020 Cities Power Partnership National Climate Awards.
This was for our hybrid Solar & Battery Off-Grid Community Stadium & Relief Centre in Diamond Creek. The unique system reduces our greenhouse gas emissions and will power the stadium, which acts as an emergency relief centre during bushfires, during grid failures or disconnections. It also includes a free charging station for residents or visitors to charge their electric vehicle.
We are now developing a solar farm on one of our former landfill sites in Plenty. Through a power purchase agreement, we will initially be buying in excess of 2000MWh per annum, the equivalent of what is needed to power our corporate buildings and street lights. There will also be charging points for electric vehicles.
In line with this approach, Council is also installing large solar systems and electric vehicle charging points at two other leisure centres.
History preserved in play
My proudest achievement has been the development of a regional playspace in Diamond Creek themed on our rich gold mining history. It has been built on a former pony club site and was a large unutilised reserve next to the creek and central to the township. Thanks to the work of local service groups, and especially the Rotary Club of Diamond Creek, a restored W-Class Tram has been installed on an adjacent hill and is now a community run café.
The best part is engaging with your community and making positive differences for their benefit. To visit and walk through a completed project that you know would not exist without your work engenders the most wonderful feelings.
From 1880, Diamond Creek had a Literacy Institute and free public library for the population of a booming gold town. That building was lost in the 8 January 1969 bushfires and never replaced. Now, 140 years on, and with a population of 13,000 and service catchment well beyond, I’ll work hard to ensure Diamond Creek has its own library once again.
