This week is the final council meeting for the year, with councillors traditionally going into recess from meetings until Australia Day.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
That means we continue to be on duty for inquiries from residents and emerging issues. But there are no formal meetings of council, committees or portfolios in this time.
This week brought news of council winning the A.R. Bluett award for the most progressive city, metropolitan or major regional council.
This is a great achievement and, although the award is for the 2016-2017 year, is testament to the great work of council during the past several years since coming out of administration.
The award is for the organisation as a whole, and due credit must go to all the great staff who contribute day-on-day to council’s operations.
As head of the corporate organisation, congratulations of course go to general manager Craig Swift-McNair, together with his four directors.
Craig and his team do a tremendous job, the scale of which is entirely unknown to most people in the community.
Recognition for the award should also go to the councillors of the last term, and especially former mayor Peter Besseling.
During 2012-2016, the majority of councillors worked superbly well together as a team, making it possible for staff to get on with the job of delivering for the community without any serious political controversy.
That meant record levels of works completed during those four years.
Of course, winning the Bluett award means little to those people constantly intent on tearing council down with their criticism.
The most disappointing aspect of such criticisms is the ignorance from which they come, with some people hell bent on every opportunity to be negative without stopping to ask for fuller facts.
Anyway, for those willing to hear a good news story, winning the Bluett award is objective evidence that ours is to date a great local council. Well done.
These are Cr Intemann’s opinions and not necessarily of council.