At the 2008 Local Government Managers Australia National Congress at the Gold Coast,
Local Government FOCUS invited delegates to nominate individuals or teams from their council who are improving their council’s operations or enhancing service delivery within their community.
In this edition, we showcase the next two of our high achievers for 2008.
Rick Dunn, Economic Development Manager, Meander Valley Council, Tasmania
With mountain ranges, extensive forests, productive land and a strong cultural heritage just a few of the natural highlights to be found in Meander Valley, it is no surprise Council hired Rick Dunn in 2006 to promote previously missed development and tourism opportunities.
Prior to taking on the newly created position of Economic Development Manager, Rick was Marketing Manager with Launceston City Council. In this role, he was involved in the attraction and development of events for the region, the most notable being the Rugby World Cup in 2003 and the establishment of AFL in Tasmania.
Meander Valley’s General Manager, Greg Preece, nominated Rick to appear in FOCUS. He said Rick has been instrumental in attracting new business to the area, including the creation of a new transport/industry development – ‘Trans Central’ – which will act as a key transport hub for the State.
Rick most enjoys the diversity of his current portfolio, which covers economic tourism with crossovers with community development.
“Each project is different – they all have their own challenges,” he said. “I enjoy building and maintaining good relationships with industry, community, other spheres of government and any other stakeholders to ensure that any project we undertake benefits Meander Valley in some way.”
Rick Dunn said understanding the needs of the local community and new local businesses looking to establish in the area is imperative.
“It is especially important to guide and assist niche business,” he said. “Although people may have a good concept, they may be uncertain as to how to take it to the next level, what the requirements are, and what they need to do. It is my job to not only build a relationship with them and assist them by pointing them in the direction of appropriate organisations and legislation, but also to be forthright in my assessment.”
Council is currently in the process of identifying opportunities associated with the recently constructed Meander Dam, which will be the foundation for new agricultural industries.
“The dam will give farmers certainty of supply for the long term and will also give businesses and other enterprises the confidence to invest in agriculture in the area,” Rick Dunn said. “As a result, Council will need to work with industry sectors, attract and develop the skills base to service the growing agricultural area and will also need to develop and promote campaigns to attract these workers to live locally and become part of a close knit community.”
Rick Dunn said Council has had considerable interest from interstate, with people wanting to relocate to Meander Valley for a lifestyle change. With these people also looking to invest in the local area, Council has had to develop baseline data, such as demographical statistics, from the ground up.
“As my position was newly created, much of this data did not previously exist,” Rick said. “As such, a lot of the information has had to be collected, distilled and assessed from scratch. While this is a lengthy and challenging process, we are now starting to get a better picture of what the current and future community needs are and the necessary information needed to assist potential investors to realise opportunities in the region.”
Rick Dunn said he is also committed to further establishing the region as the thoroughbred breeding area for Tasmania.
“Meander Valley currently produces approximately 75 per cent of the State’s thouroughbred yearlings, and it is this industry’s vision, with the assistance of Council to step up operations,” he said. “We have seen the results of breeding as a significant economic driver in places like Ireland, Kentucky, New Zealand and the Hunter Valley.
“The industry has a number of knock on effects, such as the development of infrastructure, employment opportunities and tourism. We are keen to work with the industry to develop the many competitive advantages of our region over the next couple of years.”
Rick Dunn believes it is crucial for Local Governments to work together and share ideas, both to save time reinventing the wheel, and to achieve best practice.
“There are some good stories out there, and we can all learn from their failures and successes,” he said.
Ranger Unit, Alice Springs Town Council, Northern Territory
With a population of over 28,000 people, the Alice Springs Town Council area has a large Indigenous population, accounting for approximately 17 per cent of residents, compared with 2.3 per cent Australia wide.
While this contributes to a multicultural society, inspiring several unique and interesting events and art fixtures across the Council area, it also presents some challenges.
Alice Springs Town Council CEO, Rex Mooney, said Council’s Ranger Unit does a fantastic job of addressing some of these challenges.
“The unit is professional, reliable and dedicated in undertaking the multitude of tasks that confront the Alice Springs community,” he said.
The Ranger Unit comprises seven staff members, including a Manager, Senior Ranger, Administration Officer and four Rangers. Its main role is to educate the community on and enforce local laws, such as animal control, behaviour in public places and parking control.
Ranger Unit Manager, Kevin Everett, said with 19 Aboriginal camps in the Council area, it can be difficult to get the message out about what is and what is not acceptable behaviour.
“Each camp tends to have several hundred ‘camp dogs’, which are quite different to domestic dogs, given that they have had no formal training and are rarely placed on leads,” he said. “This becomes a problem when camp people come into town with their dogs off the lead and come into contact with other people walking their domestic dogs.
“It is a requirement that all dogs in the Alice Springs town area be kept on leads when in the Todd Mall and under effective control at other times. As such, our team faces a unique set of demands compared to most ranger units, as 30 to 40 per cent of our total time is spent on animal control.”
Kevin Everett said the Ranger staff continue to be trained and updated on cultural awareness and communication issues to enable them to educate Indigenous residents on the physical handling of animals. However, no formal training is in place that deals with animal husbandry, as there is a lack of training facilities and resources of that nature in the Alice.
The unit has begun to overcome this problem through simple initiatives, such as the distribution of free leads and collars several times during the year.
“We send Rangers down to the mall to engage with people with dogs off the lead and explain why it is necessary for them to use leads and what can happen if they don’t,” he said. “While the cost of purchasing the leads can be quite expensive, the educational benefits are rewarding.
“It is great to see that six months down the track, people we spoke to about using a lead now have their dog under control in the mall.”
Kevin Everett said educating the community is a priority in all circumstances.
“We always look to explain the reasons behind our laws first, and then encourage correct behaviour,” he said. “Enforcement is always a last resort, but sometimes it cannot be avoided.”
Kevin Everett said all of his team members are friendly, sociable people, which is a key skill required for the job.
“It takes a very special person to deal with some of the issues and problems we encounter, so having a good, positive outlook is essential,” he said. “Working here in Central Australia, we are blessed with great weather, and there is something new and exciting happening every day. There is a lot to be positive about.”
The unit is currently working towards normalisation of the town camps using funding and agreements that have recently been made available. Currently, all camps in the area are marked as special purpose leases, and as such, they have not received the same attention as the rest of the town.
“However, with the camps soon to be handed over to NT Housing, we are visiting them all and with the assistance of Tangentyere Council we are working to bring them in line with the rest of the community,” Kevin Everett said. “One rule we will be enforcing will be a two dog policy per household. We expect it will take around two years to achieve this across all town camps.”
