The Shire of Manjimup Council is a team of 11, including myself. Our configuration is unique, not in representation, but in terms of area covered.
The range of proposals, topics and issues that we cover in any given council meeting are as diverse as the 7028 square kilometres of our shire and no two meetings are the same.
The last council meeting, held on August 18, was no exception.
The items on the agenda ranged from the review of council policies, the transfer of lease sites at Windy Harbour and proposed small business in Manjimup, to the request to conduct public consultation for the Walpole Foreshore Boardwalk and the proposal to close a portion of a street adjacent to a school in Manjimup.
We often struggle to get community buy in at council and in the past people have conveyed their feelings of disconnect from the process, saying that they feel like they’re at arms length of council.
Over the last few years we’ve made significant efforts to bridge the gap between the community and council by advertising the council meeting dates a year in advance and encouraging community members to come along to council.
Even if people don’t need to ask a question of council, I still encourage people to come along to learn about the process and gain an understanding of how recommendations are voted upon to reach a final outcome for the community.
The Shire of Manjimup council meetings are held on a Thursday at 5:30pm, every three weeks (subject to change in some instances).
Prior to each council meeting, we have a briefing whereby staff provide us with updates on particular items of interest or that may be appearing before council for a decision.
The public are invited to attend this briefing, and in addition, at the commencement of each council meeting, we have “public question time”.
This mechanism of gaining input from the community can vary and depends on the Standing Orders Local Law implemented by the individual Local Government Authority.
Once a year, council also takes it’s ordinary meeting to Pemberton, Northcliffe and Walpole.
Council focus going forward is largely directly towards maintaining the day to day operation capability, or “business as usual”.
With a large area to service, there are so many considerations to be made in order to hit targets and reach milestones, particularly with regards to delivery on capital projects detailed in the annual budget.
We are so fortunate to have a strong, passionate and cohesive council representing the people of Manjimup, Pemberton, Northcliffe and Walpole, and all of the settlements scattered in between those towns.
We love where we live and want the best for our people, and in conjunction with our neighbouring local governments, we will continue to drive growth which will see this region continuing to thrive.
