Over the past four years, the executive team at the District Council of the Copper Coast has worked towards better future-planning strategies and foreshore renewal.
Located in the Yorke and Mid North region of South Australia, the district is renowned for its coastal areas and is becoming a popular retirement destination.
The Council’s executive team is responsible to the Mayor and the district’s ten Councillors for the operations of Council.
They manage an approximately $25 million operational budget, 100 staff and $350 million of assets including an indoor play café, four caravan parks and a retirement village.
Mayor Paul Thomas nominated the team as high achievers for providing Council “better planning for the future, including usable open space, foreshore redevelopment and community engagement”.
The four directors of the executive team are: Greg O’Connor, Community Services; Katrina Borlace, Corporate Services; Muller Mentz, Development Services; Wade Della Torre, Infrastructure Services. The CEO is Peter Harder.
Mr Harder praised the team members for their long-term outlook.
“The Directors have ensured that they put in long-term solutions and using practical and well-written policies are creating usable public spaces and facilities that will be sustainable in the long term.
“They are the right people in the right roles and have been very successful.
“While each Director has clear accountabilities and staffing, their ability to work together collaboratively in a non-competitive manner has enabled much of the foundational and transformational work to be undertaken over the past four years.”
Mr Harder said under this executive team, Council has championed a focus on redeveloping foreshore areas.
“Over the past four years the Council has had a renewed focus on our key assets. “Those assets are the reason we get over 400,000 visitors a year and are becoming a retirement destination of choice.
“This new focus is on our foreshore areas and other coastal assets and after the development of masterplans, Council staff have been steadily enhancing these areas.
“We have been creating public spaces and enhancing the natural environment and giving our community and visitors a greater interaction with it.”
Mr Harder said this is a welcome change of approach for the Council.
“Previously adhoc development resulted in many scattered small parcels of open space that were costly to maintain, better planning is now ensuring that new development achieves the needs of the current and future generations.”
Four key Council projects are currently underway.
This includes, the redevelopment of the town centre of Kadina; the upgrade of the Port Hughes boat ramp; the redevelopment of the Copper Coast Sports and Leisure Centre; and the replacement of the Wallaroo Jetty and Swimming Enclosure.
“While we have $54 million planned for road works over the next 10 years, these other projects will drive the economy and will increase the attractiveness of the Copper Coast as a lifestyle location of choice and will complement the major private investment that is also underway.”
Mr Harder said the executive team wishes to continue its forward-thinking outlook into the future.
“A key challenge is to now build upon the strong foundation that has been laid, to stay focused on the key areas that the community has told us matter to them and push through the many barriers and obstacles that hinder the community moving forward.”
