Media Release: Federal election wishlist

Mayor of Maroondah, Councillor Alex Makin has confirmed Council’s major project for funding at the forthcoming Federal election.

“The Federal election provides Council with a wonderful opportunity to promote the City of Maroondah to all federal candidates, both sitting and standing, and to ensure they are briefed on the issues and projects that are of concern to the Maroondah community,” said Cr Makin.

“With federal political parties forming a consensus on the need for sustainable population growth, it is timely to note that Maroondah is poised to assist with these concerns, with Ringwood being one of six State Government designated Central Activities Districts,” said Cr Makin.

“Significant investment and development has commenced in Ringwood, with support from the State Government and private enterprise – major commercial and residential growth is already underway,” said Cr Makin.

“Our priority is to ensure that all federal political parties are aware of the proposal for the Maroondah Aquatic and Leisure facility and the importance of the project for the region, both in recreational and leisure terms as well as the economic and employment benefits during construction and operation,” said Cr Makin.

“A particular aspect of Maroondah Aquatic and Leisure is that it will lead the way in terms of Environmentally Sustainable Design – an essential element in any infrastructure planning,” said Cr Makin.

“Council is seeking considerable funding to assist with the development of this project, particularly for the diving facilities which will provide unique dry driving training for the State, as well as FINA standard 10 metre diving tower and pool,” said Cr Makin.

Council has sought a grant of $10 million from the Federal Government towards this vital project.

“Both Diving Victoria and Diving Australia are strongly supporting this initiative. These bodies recognise the need for new training and competition facilities and have the results on the board in terms of past, present and future diving athletes,” said Cr Makin.

“The Delhi Commonwealth Games later this year will have a number of diving competitors who began their careers at the current Ringwood Aquatic Centre, and I’m sure the Maroondah community will watch with some anticipation to see how well they perform,” said Cr Makin.

The project has also gained support from:

  • Ringwood Diving Club Inc
  • Whitehorse Diving Club
  • Ringwood Triathalon Club
  • Ringwood Swimming Club
  • Victorian Water Polo

“The Maroondah Aquatic and Leisure facility will complement the developments to take place in the Ringwood Central Activities District enabling it to meet the needs of the growing and diverse regional population of more than 400,000 people,” said Cr Makin.

“I will be endeavouring to meet with all candidates over the coming weeks to ensure that they are aware of the needs of the Maroondah community, and wish them all well as they campaign on behalf of our local community,” said Cr Makin.

– ENDS –

Maroondah Leader: Most like Council

Each year the State Government undertakes a survey measuring community satisfaction levels across each local government within Victoria. The survey, which was distributed through the State Government in February and March, asks 350 residents their thoughts on their relevant council.

The surveys measure community satisfaction across a number of different Council areas and were tabled at the July Council meeting. Council will use this information to assist in identifying areas of improvement, such as advocacy, which is an area Council needs to enhance.

One of Maroondah’s strengths is its recreational facilities, as well as health and human services, where Maroondah has consecutively scored highly as reflected through these results. The proposed new Maroondah Leisure and Aquatic Centre will further enhance the municipality’s performance in this area.

The Maroondah Leader has reported on the outcomes of the community satisfaction survey:

Mayor Alex Makin said the results for recreational facilities showed the city had a “wealth of top-class sporting and leisure opportunities”. He said he was pleased with the ratings, which generally remained unchanged, but that the council would use the feedback to prioritise resources.

One of the areas requiring improvement is advocacy and Council will be embarking on a significant campaign seeking a commitment towards the complete redevelopment of Ringwood Station in a safe, integrated and accessible transport interchange.

Tour of the Casey Recreation and Aquatic Centre

The Casey Recreation and Aquatic Centre is located in Cranbourne East and was opened in 2009 at a cost of $38 million.  The Centre is a multi-purpose facility and provides a range of health and fitness services, including a gym, warm water pool and saunas. In addition, the centre has a range of aquatic facilities to meet the needs of all age groups, including water play areas and a 50 metre pool.

This evening Councillors undertook a tour of the Casey Recreation and Aquatic Centre to compare the facility to the proposed Aquatic and Leisure Centre for Ringwood. Encouragingly, the Casey Recreation and Aquatic Centre has exceeded patronage expectations and is returning a surplus to Council while also providing a range of recreation opportunities for the community.

The tour of the Casey facility provides an opportunity to learn from recent projects and to ensure that the proposed centre for Ringwood meets the needs of our community.