Can you believe we will soon find ourselves in 2017 already? How the time flies.
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I hope you and your loved ones enjoyed a wonderful and safe festive season and are feeling refreshed and ready for the brand new year ahead.
Our shire is still reeling from the announcement that Stawell Gold Mine is transitioning into care and maintenance.
This will have a huge impact not only on the Stawell community, but on the shire as a whole. With over 140 jobs lost just before Christmas, council is doing everything within its power to help not only the displaced employees, but those businesses which will suffer from the flow on effects of this decision.
We had a visit from Minister Jaala Pulford, where we discussed the opportunities to assist these employees, including business mentoring sessions and the Business in Transition Support (BiTS) program.
Our thoughts are with all those affected and we will continue to assist as much as we can to make this transition as smooth as possible for those involved.
The funding of school crossings continues to be an issue for council. We firmly believe that the state, as the responsible level of government for schools, should fully bear the cost of school crossings.
The state recently proposed a 50-50 funding model with local government and we maintain that this is not appropriate. Crossings should be fully funded by the state, not the burden of our ratepayers.
The system, developed in 1970, is outdated and needs reviewing. This council exited the service a year ago now and will continue to push for a rethink of how this service is delivered.
We thoroughly enjoyed seeing our communities come to life over the Christmas period with processions well attended across the shire. We thank and congratulate all those involved in getting these events up and running. You do a fantastic job of bringing the festive spirit to our community and it is greatly appreciated by all.
Council is now looking forward to getting stuck into the development of the council plan and budget documents. It’s always a tough job, but one that is very important for our communities. We’ll be seeking your input and look forward to your comments.
On behalf of council, I’d like to wish you all the very best for a healthy and prosperous new year.