Tag: advocacy

Upcoming Council Elections

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Thank you to the many individuals and community organisations that have shared their time over the past seven years. It has been an absolute honour to represent the Loughnan’s HIll Ward and the Mullum Wards in the City of Maroondah.

We accomplished a lot over these years, including new investment in community infrastructure, a focus on public transport advocacy and a Council that responds to needs in the community. During my time as Mayor I reversed twelve years of budget deficits and improved the accountability of Councils by encouraging debate and discussion during Council meetings.

I was the first elected Councillor to regularly maintain a blog, documenting my Council activities and to engage communities through social media. I provided a range of contact options to ensure that constituents were able to easily make contact with an elected representative.

After seven years I will not be renominating at the upcoming Council elections. I would like to thank the many people who have offered support and encouragement for providing the opportunity to respond to their concerns.

We have a great seven years together but it now time for me to focus on my career and other pursuits. I like the people of Loughnan’s Hill Ward and the Mullum Ward for the opportunity to serve as their elected representative.

Discussing experiences as a Councillor for the MAV Stand for Council Campaign

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Being an elected Councillor requires an ongoing time commitment coupled with an understanding of good governance and the ability to respond to community feedback. Victorian council elections will be held at the end of October in all local councils with the exception of Brimbank City Council.

The Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV) provides introductory sessions for prospective council candidates to assist in understanding the role and responsibilities of local government. The sessions include an overview from a neighbouring Council Chief Executive Officer and Councillor to discuss the role of council officers and elected representatives.

This evening I was invited to speak at the information session held at Knox City Council to provide an overview of my experiences in local government and advice on conducting council campaigns. The session provided an opportunity for candidates to discuss the operations of a Council and the role that Councillors undertake within the community. In particular I was able to provide an overview of governance structures for Council to assist candidates in understanding how Councillors can deliver results for the community.

I attended a similar information session in 2005 when I first stood for local government in Maroondah and found that the discussion was useful in gaining an insight into councils. Candidates should be advised to learn about local government and its decision making processes to ensure that they can become effective representatives for their community.

Conclusion of the 2010 Mayoral Year

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This evening Maroondah City Council held its Statutory Meeting, whereby the Mayor is elected for the 2011 Council Year. While I have enjoyed the challenges experienced throughout this year I chose not to seek re-nomination as Mayor and Cr Tony Dib has been unanimously elected as Mayor for the oncoming Council year.

Maroondah is truly fortunate to have such a vibrant sense of community and I would like to thank the many community organisations and individuals that I have met throughout this year. While the volume of work undertaken as Mayor is immense it is also incredibly rewarding to meet the many people that are dedicated to their local community.

2010 has marked the year that Council delivered financial sustainability, ensuring that future Councils will be able to invest in community facilities and services. Maroondah City Council has finally reversed over 12 years of annual financial operating deficits to ensure that Council is able to meet future challenges. In addition, partnerships with neighbouring Councils have been strengthened and Maroondah is at the forefront of a newly formed alliance between the six Councils containing Central Activities Districts and the City of Melbourne.

Furthermore, Council has reaffirmed its commitment to Reconciliation through incorporating the Acknowledgement of Country at all Council events and Council meetings. Likewise, reforms to strengthen accountability and governance through encouraging debate and discussion were undertaken, including the rearrangement of the Council Chamber to ensure that Councillors are able to see members of the public present at Council meetings.

Council’s advocacy for an accessible, safe and integrated transit interchange for Ringwood proved successful and I congratulate the incoming State Government for their pledge to overhaul Ringwood Station.

Lastly, I would like to thank my colleagues for their support throughout this year, being Mayor is an incredible experience and I wish Cr Tony Dib all the best of success in the year ahead. I will be continuing as a Councillor for the Mullum Ward and I welcome feedback from residents and the community.

Media Release: Final call for commitment for Ringwood Station upgrade

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Maroondah City Council has issued a final call to all political parties to commit to the redevelopment of Ringwood Station into a safe, accessible and integrated transport interchange.

“Both the Greens and Liberal parties have listened to the concerns expressed by the Maroondah community regarding the urgent need to upgrade Ringwood Station within the term of the next government, but unfortunately the call has fallen on deaf ears with the current State Government.”

“While Council received a commitment in 2008 from Labor to fund the development of the Ringwood bus interchange and other improvements around the station, to date we have had no commitment to fund the upgrade of Ringwood Station itself,” said Cr Makin.

“We now wait in hope that the Labor party will follow its parliamentary colleagues, listen to the Maroondah community and commit to an upgrade,” said Cr Makin.

“Council has worked closely with the Maroondah community on a high profile advocacy campaign to highlight the urgent need for the funding commitment, as well as a commitment of starting date,” said Cr Makin.

“The campaign called for all major political parties to commit to an upgrade of Ringwood Station within the term of the next government. The Greens and Liberals listened to our community’s concerns and are now on board, we continue to await a commitment from the Labor party,” Cr Makin said.

“Council’s campaign has received enormous community support with a Ringwood Station upgrade petition receiving almost 3000 signatures,” Cr Makin said.

“The strong community support for the campaign has secured a commitment from two out of three major state political parties. It is extremely disappointing to note that the Labor Party not only continues to ignore the Maroondah community but ignores the need to fund the missing piece of its own Central Activities District,” Cr Makin said.

“The feedback I have received from people during the course of the campaign is that people want a station which is safe, accessible and integrated,” Cr Makin said.

“I will be presenting a copy of the petition, with all signatures and comments to both the Greens and Liberals in an acknowledgement of their support to the Maroondah community,” said Cr Makin.

“I will also be delivering a copy of the petition to Mr Brian Tee, Parliamentary Secretary on Public Transport, and Maroondah’s representative for the Eastern Metropolitan Region of the State Legislative Council,” said Cr Makin.

“The petition containing the almost 3000 signatures and comments will surely provide a weighty reminder to the Parliamentary Secretary and his colleagues in the Victorian Labor Party to sit up and take notice of the Maroondah community,” said Cr Makin.

Some of the comments posted on Council’s online petition:

“This station urgently needs an upgrade due to the increasing older population, to assist in making the train more accessible. It is very difficult for the elderly to manage stairs etc and updating the station would hopefully make it more secure for travellers. Older people don’t want to travel for this reason, it limits their freedom.”

“No one feels safe at this station. Our worries should not be ignored.”

“The upgrade is urgently needed if it wants to attract future residents. It’s needed to keep the existing travel users safe and secure. What happened to the Government’s duty of care. What happened to the Government’s responsibilty to Maroondah residents?”

“The current state of Ringwood Station is unacceptable. It is clearly not safe for the community- particularly those who are vulnerable ie pregnant women, elderly, disabled, mothers with prams- and its complete redevelopment should be the government’s highest priority.”

“This is an issue of great importance and ought to be a priority on the agenda for state political parties. Ringwood has been very much left behind and the upgrade would not only assist with the mobility of disabled commuters but will also make the area safer for all commuters.”

– ENDS –

Media Release: Support grows for Ringwood Station upgrade

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Maroondah City Council is delighted that the Greens and Liberal parties have listened to the community’s concerns with both of them pledging to upgrade Ringwood Station within the term of the next government.

Maroondah Mayor Councillor Alex Makin said Council will continue its advocacy campaign leading into the state election in the hope the Labor party would follow its parliamentary colleagues, and also commit to an upgrade.

“The campaign calls for all major political parties to commit to an upgrade of Ringwood Station within the term of the next government. With the Greens and Liberals now on board, we await a commitment from the Labor party,” Cr Makin said.

“Council’s campaign has received a lot of community support with the petition signatures fast approaching 3000,” Cr Makin said.

“The strong community support for the campaign has secured a commitment from two out of three major state political parties. Now we need to continue the campaign and secure a commitment from the Labor Party to fund the missing piece of the State Government’s own Central Activities District,” Cr Makin said.

“The feedback I have received from people during the course of the campaign is that people want a station which is safe, accessible and integrated,” Cr Makin said.

“I urge those who haven’t already signed the petition to visit Maroondah City Council’s information booth at the Maroondah Festival on November 7,” Cr Makin said.

“At the booth we will have the Missing Piece jigsaw puzzle which highlights how important an upgrade to Ringwood Station is to the overall success of Ringwood as a Central Activities District,” Cr Makin said.

Some of the comments posted on Council’s online petition:

“This station urgently needs an upgrade due to the increasing older population, to assist in making the train more accessible. It is very difficult for the elderly to manage stairs etc and updating the station would hopefully make it more secure for travellers. Older people don’t want to travel for this reason, it limits their freedom.”

“No one feels safe at this station. Our worries should not be ignored.”

“The upgrade is urgently needed if it wants to attract future residents. It’s needed to keep the existing travel users safe and secure. What happened to the Government’s duty of care. What happened to the Government’s responsibilty to Maroondah residents?”

“The current state of Ringwood Station is unacceptable. It is clearly not safe for the community- particularly those who are vulnerable ie pregnant women, elderly, disabled, mothers with prams- and its complete redevelopment should be the government’s highest priority.”

“This is an issue of great importance and ought to be a priority on the agenda for state political parties. Ringwood has been very much left behind and the upgrade would not only assist with the mobility of disabled commuters but will also make the area safer for all commuters.”

The petition is also available at Council’s service centres or sign online by visiting www.maroondah.vic.gov.au

– ENDS –

Maroondah Leader: Mayor wants the missing piece

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Last week I, along with accessibility advocate, Margaret Stevens, launched Council’s Missing Piece Campaign seeking to secure a commitment for the redevelopment of Ringwood Station and to provide the missing piece of the Ringwood Central Activities District.

The Maroondah Leader has reported on the launch on the call for a safe, integrated and accessible transport interchange for Ringwood:

“The community clearly sees Ringwood Station as a priority with over 2000 signatures calling for the upgrade and over 500 visitations on Council’s social media campaign,” Cr Makin said.

“It is time for each state political party to commit to delivering the mission piece and to fund an accessible, safe and integrated transport interchange.”

The Maroondah community is clearly demanding the need for an accessible, safe and integrated transport interchange for Ringwood Station. While the State Government has committed funds to redevelop the bus interchange and station forecourt, it is imperative that these works are extended to incorporate the redevelopment of Ringwood Station.

The overwhelming positive response to Council’s advocacy demonstrates that a commitment to the redevelopment of Ringwood Station is essential for the Maroondah community and Melbourne’s eastern region.

Delegates’ Report: Regional Partnerships, Celebrating Diversity, Ringwood Station Advocacy

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There are several notable items I will discuss tonight.

The first being the regional partnership signed by the Mayors of the Cities of Knox, Manningham, Maroondah, Whitehorse and the Shire of Yarra Ranges on the 22nd of September. This agreement will strengthen co-operation between the municipalities in areas such as advocacy, where each of these councils have supported calls for the redevelopment of Ringwood Station into a safe, accessible and integrated transport interchange.

The Eastern Volunteers Multicultural Spring Festival was held on the 9th of October, with over 5000 attendees enjoying a range of multicultural food, entertainment and performances. It is great to see the Maroondah community embracing cultural diversity and this was further evident at the New Year celebrations of Maroondah’s Chin community, an ethnic group from Burma who celebrated Fang Er at Ringwood Secondary College on the 16th of October. The afternoon provided an opportunity to learn about Fang Er, which coincides with the harvest season in Burma and to discover national dances and food.

Monkami, a not-for-profit service provider for people with intellectually disabilities, has continued to strengthen its community connections and I had the pleasure of launching Alarming Art on the 14th of October. Alarming Art is Monkami’s new public gallery located at the Croydon Fire Station in Croydon Road, the space will provide an opportunity to showcase the talents of Monkami’s clients and further strengthen connections with the community.

Lastly, Maroondah City Council launched its Missing Piece Campaign on the 13th of October, calling on all political parties to commit to the redevelopment of Ringwood Station into an accessible, safe and integrated transport interchange. The campaign, which I co-launched with accessibility advocate Margaret Stevens, reinforces the dire state of Ringwood Station and the need for a commitment. The campaign will continue until the State Election with updates being available at www.facebook.com/ringwoodstation.

I’ll table the rest of my report.

Eastern Transport Coalition – State Candidates Forum at Maroondah

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The Eastern Transport Coalition is a council initiated advocacy group, covering Melbourne’s seven outer eastern Councils; Greater Dandenong, Knox, Manningham, Maroondah, Monash Whitehorse and the Shire of Yarra Ranges.

As part of its advocacy campaign, the Eastern Transport Coalition is holding a series of candidate forums, throughout each of the member councils. The evening was attended by representatives of each of the three major parties, the Australian Labor Party, the Victorian Liberal Party and the Victorian Greens.

I provided the introduction to tonight’s forum to highlight the current public transport deficiencies within Maroondah. The speech is available within this entry:

Welcome candidates and the community to the Maroondah City Council Eastern Transport Coalition Public Transport Forum.

Maroondah City Council, in the spirit of reconciliation, acknowledges that we are meeting on the land for which the Wurundjeri people have been custodians for many centuries, and on Land which the indigenous Australians have performed age old ceremonies.

We are fortunate tonight to have secured Mr Clay Lucas as our independent moderator. Clay may be well known to some of you as he is part of The Age’s city team having worked The Age and The Sunday Age since 2005 as a city reporter. This role sees Clay reporting on a range of topics across the transport sector, including roads, public transport, planning and development. In 2009 Clay won a Quill for transport reporting with Age investigative reporter Royce Millar.

Before I hand over to Clay to get the evening underway I just want to provide a quick overview of the public transport issues that Maroondah sees as important to the community and help set the context of public transport in the east.

Regional Perspective

The eastern region is an established area experiencing significant economic and population growth.
This growth is mainly occurring through infill and consolidation of existing residential, commercial and employment areas.

The network is struggling to keep up with demand and provide services that the community require to carry out their day to day activities as viable alternatives to the motor vehicle.

The Victorian Transport Plan – Does not deliver for the east

To keep pace with the population and economic growth the current public transport system needs to expand.

The Victorian Transport Plan does not adequately consider or respond to the needs of the East and greater investment is still required, if the eastern suburbs are to continue to be liveable and met the State’s land use and transport plans as outlined in Melbourne @ 5 million.

The high household car ownership in the City of Maroondah is evidence of the public transport systems inability to provide a service that allows our community to undertake their daily activities. The ETC and Maroondah City Council call on the government for the development of a long term regional public transport strategy for the Eastern region.

Ringwood Station Upgrade

Ringwood is identified as one of six Central Activity Districts which will offer CBD type services in suburban locations. In recent MTF public survey, Ringwood Station was voted as Melbourne’s second worse station, after Richmond.

The current Ringwood Station is difficult to access with steep ramps to station platforms that fail the State Government’s Disability Discrimination Act requirements.

The footpath access from each side of the station is not safe, particularly for people in wheel chairs and there is not direct wheel chair access to the car park which is located at the bottom of a steep stairway.
There has been no significant upgrade to the station in more than 50 years and it is desperately needing to be modernised.

For Ringwood Station to be truly accessible to all and permit convenient transferring between transport services, it is imperative that it is clean, comfortable, accessible and safe and secure.

Triplication for the Belgrave/Lilydale line

As Central Melbourne will continue to be a major location for employment, the arts, culture, sport and leisure, central Melbourne should be conveniently accessible by public transport for all Melbournians.
The demand on the Belgrave/Lilydale lines, with approximately 93,000 daily boardings, make these lines one of Melbourne’s most highly patronised rail corridors.

The patronage of both lines is reaching capacity with overcrowding a regular passenger experience. To facilitate more efficient and comfortable commuting for those passengers coming from beyond Ringwood Station, the triplication of the line between Box Hill and Ringwood is required.

Better Buses

Buses are the largest public transport option available to residents within Maroondah and the neighbouring municipalities. Bus patronage is growing, particularly on services with long operation and high frequency of service, i.e. the SmartBus Routes.

The recently conducted Metropolitan Bus Service Reviews was a step in the right direction with identifying inadequate service and generating regional specific solutions. However, very few of the recommendations have been implemented and they have only been small route extensions or minimal frequency and duration improvements.

Bus services in Maroondah remain poor with limited out of peak services and long wait times between services throughout most of the day. Improving bus services in coverage, service frequency and duration will provide real alternatives to the private vehicle and enable the community of Maroondah to have real choice in transport.

Conclusion

The provision of a more equitable, accessible public transport will reduce the detrimental effects of poor access to public transport in the eastern region, such as, social isolation, high car dependency, reduced financial freedom or the inability to access services.

A truly integrated and accessible transport network will also reduce the regions vulnerability to changes in the environment, such as climate change and peak oil.

I thank you for your attendance tonight and look forward to hearing how the candidates respond to your issues.

I’ll now hand you over to Clay to get the evening underway.

Maroondah Leader: United stand on issues

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Throughout this year I have been focused on working cooperatively as a region to provide a regional perspective on issues and challenges facing Melbourne’s eastern suburbs.

As Mayor, I have been working with the Mayors of Knox, Manningham, Whitehorse and the Shire of Yarra Ranges to deliver a cohesive approach to advocacy and priorities. An agreement for regional cooperation, has been signed between these councils and the Maroondah Leader has reported on this pledge:

Maroondah Mayor said the pact put the council in a better position to tackle issues affecting the region, such as transport and housing.

“Our aim is ensure that all levels of government are well aware of the issues we face in the eastern suburbs,” Cr Makin said.

The agreement, which is a first for Victoria, will deliver a collective voice for regional issues, through working together on activities that have common interest throughout the region.

Overwhelming support for the upgrade of Ringwood Station

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The community has overwhelmingly supported Maroondah City Council’s campaign calling for the upgrade of Ringwood Station, with several residents devoting their time to secure signatures for Council’s petition.

The petition was circulated through community groups and several residents have encouraged neighbours and family to sign the petition. In addition, residents Dawn Oliffe and Margaret Stevens both volunteered their time to collect signatures at Ringwood Station and Eastland.

Margaret handing over signed copies of the Ringwood Station petition to Alex to submit via Council. Margaret spent the week at Eastland Shopping Centre supporting the petition and asking members of the community to sign the petition.
Margaret handing over signed copies of the Ringwood Station petition to Alex to submit via Council. Margaret spent the week at Eastland Shopping Centre supporting the petition and asking members of the community to sign the petition.

Margaret secured a stall at Eastland, where she spent the week encouraging community members to support the petition. During this time several hundred signatures were collected with a strong interest in the petition and I would like to thank Margaret, Dawn and the many members of our community that are supporting the petition and Council’s advocacy campaign.

This afternoon I accepted Margaret’s completed petitions on behalf of Maroondah City Council and thanked her for her commitment and time in supporting this campaign. Margaret is a well regarded accessibility advocate, who has first-hand experience with the access difficulties at Ringwood Station.