President Sue Bilich, Shire of Kalamunda, Western Australia
My community involvement began in 1983 after losing my daughter to SIDS. I became involved in the SIDS Foundation, desperate to educate the public more about SIDS and to help those who had lost a child. As the founder of Red Nose Day in Western Australia, I was the driving force behind this campaign, raising more than $1.3 million in the first year.
I have lived in Kalamunda for almost 30 years; I understand very well the need to cater effectively for families and young people in our community. The lifestyle and the community spirit in our Shire are very special — I cannot imagine living anywhere else.
Being committed to community service and genuinely caring for people prompted me to run for Council. I have now served eight years as a Councillor and this is my first year as the Shire President. I was deeply honoured when I became the recipient of a Pearce Australia Day Award in 2008.
About the Shire of Kalamunda
The name Kalamunda comes from local Aboriginal words Cala (home) and Munnda (forest). Thus Kalamunda means ‘A home in the forest’. Prior to European settlement the Beeloo people occupied much of the land east of the Canning River in the Shire.
In 1827 the Colonial Botanist Mr Charles Fraser and Captain James Stirling explored the region to evaluate its suitability for farming. In 1897 the Darling Range Roads Board was formed and the Town site of Kalamunda was approved in 1902. In 1961 the Darling Range Roads Board was renamed the Shire of Kalamunda.
The population density of the Shire is 168.7 persons/km2, with the highest density occurring within the Foothills area. The Shire of Kalamunda is a residential and rural area, with some industrial areas, covering 349 square kilometres. This incorporates 247 square kilometres of State Forest, National Parks, Regional Open Space and water catchment area. The remaining 102 square kilometres is available for rural and urban purposes.
Well-recognised as a tourist destination, the Shire continues to have a growing tourism sector with a number of significant attractions, including Lesmurdie Falls, the Northern Terminus of the Bibbulmun Track, the Munda Biddi Trail, the Perth Observatory and the Kalamunda History Village, all integrated around a historical town centre that provides social interaction through its eateries, wineries, State Forest, parks, reserves and weekend markets.
Major challenges
One of the most significant challenges for the Shire of Kalamunda over the next twenty years is the dire shortage of aged care accommodation options. The Shire has been actively assessing land holdings to identify suitable potential aged care sites and is keen to work with developers or land holders who support the vision to increase aged care accommodation throughout our Shire.
The future
In providing for future population growth, Council has been proactive in identifying and progressing a number of key strategic issues; the provision of a range of housing types to suit the demographic profile; the promotion of local employment growth based on further development of the Perth Airport; industrial expansion in the freight sector; the provision of well-designed ‘activity centres’; and reviewing the future of the Special Rural Areas and Orchard Areas.
The State’s Economic and Employment Lands Strategy recognises the strategic importance of the Perth Airport and identifies Forrestfield as a key future industrial area. The State’s grain terminal is also located in Forrestfield.
In Western Australia, local government reform is a hot topic. Our Council does not support forced amalgamations and has engaged the WAEC to run a referendum. We want our residents to be fully informed and to have their say.
As President of the Shire of Kalamunda I have never been more inspired by what the future holds for this beautiful and historic Shire and I am deeply moved by the passion of the people who have made the Shire their home.
I hope to be remembered as somebody who truly engaged the community in decision-making, somebody who pushed the boundaries and who was focused on advancing Kalamunda as a leader in community capacity building, to create a place for people to prosper and a place that lives in harmony with its natural environment.
President Steve Dilley, Shire of Donnybrook-Balingup, Western Australia
I’m a third generation farmer and have lived in the Shire of Donnybrook-Balingup all my life. My grandfather purchased an abandoned soldier settler block in 1928, set about clearing the bush and became one of the pioneers of the Western Australian apple industry.
I was elected to Council in May 2005, having observed Council struggling to deal with an application to build a plantation timber woodchip mill — an issue that divided the town.
I was disappointed that an opportunity to diversify the Shire’s economy had been lost and felt that my communication skills and strength of character would be of benefit in relation to similar issues in the future.
I have spent most of my working life expanding our farming operation with my brother. In my early twenties I became involved in fruit industry ‘agri-politics’, which led me into holding numerous local, state and national positions over the following years.
These leadership experiences subsequently led me to being awarded a place in the Australian Rural Leadership Program and a Nuffield Farming Scholarship. The knowledge, skills and networks I gained from those two life-changing experiences have been invaluable in the leadership roles I have undertaken and, as a result, I have travelled across much of Australia and the world. This has given me an enormous perspective on global factors that affect our community at a local level and also an ability to see the big picture.
The Shire of Donnybrook-Balingup
Donnybrook was founded in 1842 by five Irishmen, who were exploring their way inland up the Preston River from Bunbury.
The Shire is situated on the Darling Escarpment and is typified by picturesque rolling hills, rich soils, a Mediterranean climate — cool wet winters and hot dry summers — and an annual rainfall of around 900mm.
As in much of the southwest, native Jarrah hard wood timber was abundant in the region and highly sought after around the world. So, for the first fifty-odd years after settlement timber felling and milling was the mainstay of the economy.
In the late 1890s, high quality sandstone was discovered in the region and was subsequently quarried and used to build many famous buildings in Perth, such as Parliament House, the GPO and the Commonwealth Bank building. Donnybrook sandstone is still quarried today and has been used right across Australia and around the world.
From past to present
During the 1800s and early 1900s, settlers began clearing the bush and initiated the Shire’s farming endeavours, including potatoes, dairy, beef and pigs.
In the early 1900s a local family imported some apple trees from NSW, a few of which were an unknown variety called Granny Smith. These subsequently grew exceptionally well in the Shire’s rich soils and Mediterranean climate.
In the boom years of the 1960s, the district became famous for its apples in London and Europe, exporting over two million bushels from the Shire.
By this time, the apple industry and farming had become the mainstay of the Shire’s economy, but this went into serious decline in the 1970s, when the UK joined the European Economic Community (EEC) and the beef industry collapsed.
The apple industry has ebbed and flowed since that time, with the WA-bred Pink Lady™ variety providing a major shot in the arm. Sadly, however, the industry is now in terminal decline due to low profitability, high cost of production and other macro-economic factors.
Shire features & attractions
The Shire is famous for its Apple Festival, which began in 1954, and we now have a very popular annual wine and food festival in recognition of the high quality wines that are produced in the district. The small town of Balingup is also well known for its annual Small Farm Field Day and Medieval Carnivale.
While commercial farming has been declining since the 1980s, there has been a steady stream of ‘tree changers’ moving to the Shire. Donnybrook is in the fortunate position of being a 25-minute drive from Bunbury and the coast, a 45-minute drive from the industrial employment district of Collie, and an hour from the famous Margaret River region. In essence, the Shire delivers the best rural lifestyle in the southwest with the added benefit of being close to major industrial employers, a regional city, beautiful beaches and a world famous wine region.
Projects, policies & challenges
The Shire is very proud of its aged care facilities, which have been community driven since 1974. Currently the community is serviced by a 26-bed frail aged facility (with an imminent 14-bed expansion), a 13-unit retirement village for self-funded retirees and 30 aged care units owned and run in conjunction with the Department of Housing.
In terms of projects, Council is currently trying to source $3 million in funding to construct a Western Australian Apple Interpretive Centre in Donnybrook’s Heritage Precinct, which will tell the story of the development of the State’s apple industry and will incorporate the Donnybrook Museum, the Community Resource Centre (Telecentre) and a community radio station.
A challenge that has emerged in recent years is that of land use, with a clash between those looking for a peaceful rural lifestyle and those trying to make a living from the land. It is hoped that the implementation of our first Local Planning Strategy will address these clashes through buffer zones and memorials on land titles.
Finally, with agriculture declining but our population of 5500 growing at around 2.5 percent a year, provision of infrastructure will continue to be a challenge for the Shire of Donnybrook-Balingup; however, far better a growing population than a declining one!
