Here is a transcript of Cr Ley's message:
Hello, Dungog Shire
I'm just going to kick off with the Council Draft Operational Plan and Budget for 26-27. Now, it has actually been talked about a little bit before, but I just want to touch on it because I think most people understandably don't follow council budgets, and that's completely fair enough.
But this is one of the more important ones that we actually do release each year. So right now, Council has released it as a draft form, and it's up for public exhibition.
So in simple terms, these documents set what projects get done, where your rates are actually spent, and what services Council will be delivering over the next 12 months.
So why this matters?
So this is what roads will get fixed and more importantly, probably for you guys, what roads won't get fixed, why community projects are moving forward, how we balance growth as well as keeping Dungog to our character in the rural setting that we all love, and how we deal with the realities that we are a very small Council and we do have very limited funds. So once this is locked in, it drives council's direction for the year.
Now, the reality is, I just touched on it, we do not have unlimited money, unfortunately. So like I've said before, we rely heavily on grants.
We maintain 700 kilometres of roads. We have an incredibly low rate base. So every dollar that we spend, unfortunately, is a trade-off. So when people say, why isn't X getting done? This is the document that outlays the decisions that are actually getting made.
So why do I want people to engage? I mean, this is your chance to influence it before it's final, not after. I get a lot of comments about why wasn't this done? I'll always refer you back to this budget. So once it's locked in, it's locked in, the plan is set.
So if there's something you think we should be prioritising, if there's something you think we've gotten wrong and it doesn't quite make sense, or if there's a project or something you think your community needs, now's the time to speak up.
And you don't need to read the whole document. I get it. is quite in-depth. It's a bit lengthy and probably not all of it's relevant to you, but even if it's just a quick submission, an e-mail, or coming to one of the community sessions. The input genuinely feeds the final version.
And as a Councillor, it gives me a lot of faith when I'm voting on a draft policy that the community actually aligns with this. Because at the end of the day, this plan should reflect what the community want and it's not what's easiest for Council to actually knock over. So if you care about roads, if you care about housing, you care about tourism, local facilities, have a look, have your say.
There are some community information sessions being held if you want to find out more.
- Dungog on the 4th of May from 5 to 6pm at the Doug Walters Pavilion
- Vacy on 5th of May, 5 to 6pm again, at the Vacy School of Arts
- are still pending but likely to be confirmed very soon will be Clarence Town, which will be on the 6th of May, 5 to 6pm at the Clarence Town School of Arts. Once that's confirmed, we'll announce that too as well.
Moving on, long weekend, of course, and it is for Anzac Day. So it's one of the big events that we have here in the community each year. We have had pretty good attendance the last two years. So I'm expecting this year to be good as well.
So there's a number of services across the Shire.
DUNGOG:
- 5:30am: Dawn Service commencing at the Cenotaph (Cny Lord & Brown Streets), followed by gun fire breakfast.
- 10:45am: March from Dowling Street and commemorative wreath laying
- 10:50am: Flyover at the Dungog RSL
PATERSON:
- 5:30am: Dawn Service from Stockers & Partridge Garage, Sloan St Paterson and proceeding to the War Memorial for a commemoration service.
GRESFORD:
- 10:30am: March from Gresford Rural Garage, proceeding down Durham Road and forming up at the School of Arts on Park Street for a commemoration service.
CLARENCE TOWN:
- 5:30am: March from Bowling, Sport & Rec Club, Prince Street to the Cenotaph at Cnr Grey & Queen Street, Clarence Town. Breakfast will be available at the Club after the service (for a fee). Bowls at 10am (weather permitting).
Lastly, there are actually some 355 committees open for expressions of interest for members of the community right now. So if you wanted to give back or you want to have your say on some of the local spaces that we have, now is a great opportunity to jump in. We're currently looking for locals to join the 355 committee to help manage the Gresford School of Arts, as well as the Dungog Showground and Recreational Reserve Committee. So you don't need any special experience here. You just need a willingness to get involved. It's really open for people of all ages and skills and backgrounds, and that's what makes these committees quite valuable. So if you want more information on that, it is on the website. Expressions of interest are open until 8th of May.
Lastly, sorry, I will just add too, we just had our Council meeting last week. I do a little summary of the key things that are kind of passed and voted on each month on my Facebook page. So if you jump over to my Facebook page, I will do a post every month about all the key kind of things. So I do get a lot of questions about what actually happened at that Council meeting, so if you're ever interested in that, jump across there. And also, if you want to jump online, the meetings are always recorded as well. I'm sure most of you probably watch live anyway.
Right, I think that's it from me. So have a good long weekend. Remember what it's about and hopefully I'll see you around.
