Mayor's Column: An important Council meeting
Published on 16 April 2025
The Local Government rules in NSW and cycle of Council meetings means some months our meetings are full of significant papers and decisions that are crucial in planning for the future. April was one of these times, with documents outline what Council will do, how much will be spent and most importantly, our why.
Discussion and questions on the Integrated Planning and Reporting document suite went for over two hours, with Councillors concentrating on the financial projections, the workforce management plan and the details in the annual Operational Plan.
Councillors all have differing priorities and projects that they are passionate about, but it was encouraging to agree on the importance of continuing to focus on financial management. Council has critical water and sewer projects that will not only secure our water but unlock potential growth for the shire. Ensuring prudent financial management while ensuring a prosperous future is a balance, but as a shire we must invest in our future.
The four-year Delivery Program, annual Operating Plan and budget along with supporting documents in the suite are now on public exhibition. Considerable work has gone into improving readability of the documents, with summaries and colour coding making them easier to follow. The detail is also available with a line-by-line breakdown of every project that has more than $50,000 expenditure.
Councillors were unanimous in their praise for the hard work of staff to get these complex documents drafted, particularly noting that the Executive team are almost exclusively in acting roles while recruitment for the CEO and Director Corporate and Commercial has been underway.
All Councillors strongly encourage everyone in the community to go to the Council website and have your say on the projects and services that will impact our community in the next year and over this term of Council.
Stay safe over the next two long weekends and hopefully we enjoy great weather to spend time connecting with family and friends.