At the 2007 National General Assembly in Darwin we invited delegates to share their Council’s projects and initiatives to win a full page feature in FOCUS. This month we feature Wyndham City Council from Victoria.
The women of Wyndham
Wyndham is fast developing a reputation as a home of powerful women. Having recently elected a female Mayor, Councillor Kim McAliney, and Deputy Mayor, Councillor Cynthia Manson, part of Wyndham also falls in the Federal electorate of Lalor, which is represented by Australia’s first female Deputy Prime Minister, Julia Gillard.
Councillor McAliney and Councillor Manson were elected to their positions last December and are keen to make a difference. Both Councillors are working together on many issues including advocacy campaigns, youth services issues and accommodating the rapid growth in Wyndham.
Councillor McAliney said one of her main aims was to advocate for better services and infrastructure during her mayoralty.
“As Mayor, I will continue to support the ongoing advocacy campaigns to address the chronic traffic problems and the shortage of mental health services,” she said. “I also looking forward to promoting the Quality Community Plan, to ensure that the Council and community continue to work together to see the QCP visions achieved.”
Councillor McAliney said being Mayor of Wyndham was a unique opportunity.
“Wyndham is an exciting and vibrant city,” she said. “We are in a strong financial position and have a unique opportunity to plan multimillion dollar buildings, community centres, libraries and roads for our growing city, while maintaining and preserving our existing assets and heritage.”
Apart from working to promote Wyndham, the Mayor also wants to work on advancing the western region as a whole.
“I look forward to working as part of Leadwest, the new regional body established by Melbourne’s western Councils to foster and undertake actions to support sustainable growth and development of the region,” she said.
Councillor Manson was elected to Council in March 2003 and said one of the highlights of her time at Council has been the Lollipop Creek redevelopment.
“Over $1 million was spent on redeveloping this area, from a concrete lined, low flow drainage channel into a creek and wetlands environment,” Councillor Manson said. “The project went on to win a national design award.”
Despite many achievements, Councillor Manson said there were still many challenges ahead for Council.
“We need to address the planning issues in order to cope with our rapid growth, in particular for the Werribee West area, which is part of the Urban Growth Boundary,” she said. “These challenges include creating the road infrastructure and social infrastructure to accommodate the population increase, while at the same time trying to protect the environment.”
The changing face of Wyndham City Council
Wyndham City Council’s Civic Centre is currently undergoing a major redevelopment, which will see new and totally refurbished staff accommodation and a new Wyndham Community Facility – incorporating Wyndham’s Council Chamber.
The $27 million project commenced in May 2007 and will be completed by the end of 2008.
The new Civic Centre site will integrate Council and community activities, utilising shared space to maximise the use of Council assets. The new Council Chamber will be a totally flexible space, which can be converted to a community meeting area.
Wyndham CEO, Ian Robins, said the redeveloped site will have a customer service focus and will serve as a ‘one stop shop’ for Council services.
“The refurbished reception foyer will provide an all in one service point for residents,” Ian Robins said. “There will no longer be a need to visit different locations to access Council services, providing improved customer service to ratepayers and visitors.
“The Civic Centre redevelopment project will also provide additional office space to accommodate future staff.
“The 40 staff currently located offsite at Council’s Community Services building will be relocated to the Civic Centre, as well as eight Economic Development Unit staff. It is anticipated that the refurbished building will accommodate 416 staff by 2025.
“When the Civic Centre opened in 1976, 35 staff were based in the building and the population was 30,000. There are now 122,000 Wyndham residents and 231 staff located at the Civic Centre and this amount will continue to increase over time as the population grows.”
Ian Robins said that the construction of the Wyndham Community Facility at the existing Civic Centre site is the best use of the land already owned by Council and uses existing infrastructure, such as car parking.
“The Civic Centre Redevelopment project is an excellent example of a shared use facility that will benefit the community and the organisation,” he said. “It demonstrates Wyndham’s commitment to providing outstanding customer service and improving access to Council services in a cost effective manner.”
A plan established by the
community for the community
In the mid 1990s, Wyndham Council and its community realised that growth was inevitable and wanted to ensure that the best of Wyndham’s attributes were preserved. As a result of this desire, the Quality Community Plan (QCP) was established.
The QCP outlines the vision for Wyndham’s future and is a document developed by the community and assisted by Wyndham Council that covers 16 areas identified through community consultation as the areas most important to Wyndham’s future.
The visions fall under areas such as growth; our community; learning for life; our people; and our environment. The overarching vision of the QCP is:
The City of Wyndham will be a self reliant community providing a choice of work, education, transport, health and recreational opportunities.
Wyndham will be built on a human scale encouraging individual, family and group interaction, a strong community atmosphere and a distinct sense of place.
Wyndham will do this while protecting its natural assets, to ensure that future generations will be able to enjoy the beauty of its waterways, grasslands and coastline.
Wyndham will be known for the way in which it has preserved and developed its attributes to create a prosperous and exciting place in which to live and work.
To raise awareness and monitor progress of all of the visions set out in the plan, the QCP Taskforce was established.
QCP Chairperson, Max Coster, said the Taskforce is made up of Wyndham residents, community stakeholders and Council representatives committed to the achievement of the visions.
“Residents play a crucial role in shaping the future of our City and what sets the QCP apart from other planning documents is that it is owned and managed by the community,” Max Coster said. “Many of the visions listed in the plan can only be achieved if Council and the community work in partnership to achieve them. The QCP is the basis for Council’s Corporate Plan and also includes residents, local businesses, schools and agencies in the overall direction for the City.”
The QCP was revised in 2002 and again in September 2007, when it was relaunched by the now Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd.
“The reviews determine which goals have been achieved, highlight new issues within the community and identify issues that have become more important,” Max Coster said.
In addition to the reviews, an annual Report Card is produced by the Taskforce and Council which outlines what has been achieved to date for each key area and what the community can do to help achieve that vision.
Since 1997, many major objectives outlined in the QCP have been completed, including upgrades to the Princes Freeway and several other arterial roads; new bus routes; an improvement in the condition of the Werribee River, which runs through Wyndham; the establishment of a new regional park; and the construction of Youth and Cultural Centres.
If you would like further information email qcptaskforce@wyndham.vic.gov.au or phone (02) 9742 0776.
Copies of the QCP and the 2006 Report Card are available on Council’s website at www.wyndham.vic.gov.au
