Kiama Council has released its Annual Report for 2021-22.
Mayor Neil Reilly said while the report captured a difficult time for Council, it also included many positive outcomes.
"Change is the only constant and while some transitions are positive, there will always be some growing pains when it's time for things to move ahead," Cr Reilly said.
"One change I'm particularly proud of is greater transparency."
"We have been more open about the financial and operational challenges we face as a Council."
"We have also been very clear about decisions made to secure our long-term financial sustainability."
Cr Reilly said this was underpinned by a suite of important strategies including the Community Strategic Plan, a Strategic Improvement Plan and a Long-Term Financial Plan.
Other achievements included in the Annual Report 2021-22 are:
- Consultation on our Kiama Town Centre Development Control Plan and Kiama Heritage Review.
- Continued development of the Coastal Management Program and Corporate Emissions Reduction Program
- Delivering waste management programs including our popular Household Bulky Waste Drop Offs
- Supporting our local economy through recovery post COVID through major events such as Revel in May and IGNITE festivals
- Extensive program of repair and clean-up work carried out by our teams across the Municipality after a series of extreme weather events.
CEO Jane Stroud acknowledged 2021-22 had presented significant challenges yet had also seen important improvements in the running of Council.
"It's easy to forget everything our workforce has dealt with over this time," Ms Stroud said.
"There are our well-documented organisational and financial challenges, as well as the day-to-day challenges of delivering local government and aged care services."
Ms Stroud said on top of these, there have been the significant disruptions of floods, storms, landslips, road closures and continued COVID lockdowns.
"Despite all this, this report shows we are continuing to find the opportunities to deliver for our community with real improvements and changes."
"I am especially proud of the hard work of our staff that this shows."
You can download Kiama Council's Annual Report 2021-22 from our Community Reports page.
