A shared vision by neighbouring Councils to improve people’s lifestyle was the key message from a recent forum hosted by Western Australia’s City of Bayswater. Bayswater’s Quality Lifestyle Forum attracted high profile presenters from many Councils who spoke on youth programs and beautifying foreshores. These two areas were selected as they are synonymous with all Bayswater’s neighbouring Councils.
Speakers were from Cairns, Botany Bay, Casey and Shellharbour as well as the East Perth Redevelopment Authority (EPRA) and the Eastern Metropolitan Regional Council (EMRC).
Bayswater Mayor, Lou Magro, said the forum provided an exciting opportunity for all groups within the region to come together and share information on youth programs and beautifying the Swan River foreshore.
“Issues stemming from youth integration and foreshore beautification do not recognise local authority boundaries,” he said. “The City of Bayswater and its neighbouring Councils need a shared vision and a regional approach which can then be promoted through partnerships and the cooperation of stakeholders from Perth to the Eastern Gateway.
“We were extremely lucky to have such a prestigious line up of speakers for each session. The organisations and Councils that were represented had all experienced issues relating to either young people or waterfront development and have designed, implemented and raised funding for programs with extremely successful results.” Mayor Magro was delighted with the feedback following the forum.
“Some of the key points we’ve come away with are the importance of involving the community in planning processes,” he said. “They also spoke about keeping the lines of communication open; working closely with local businesses in developing youth programs that build on the self esteem and trade skills of young people.
“But the main objective of the forum was to inspire other local authorities along this eastern metropolitan stretch to work together. The forum reinforced the need for unity and the eastern metropolitan Councils have since agreed that it’s a great idea to pool ideas, funds and resources to increase our strength across the greater community.”
