April Council Meetings
Brimbank City Council
Josie Vine from RMIT Journalism
Wow! I wouldn’t be in the transport minister’s shoes for quids! Not after the long litany of complaints made at last month’s Brimbank council meeting during discussion of the draft Annual Action Plan and the draft Integrated Transport strategy.
The draft annual action plan includes the budget, under which rates have risen by 2.75 percent.
Cr Joh Bauch said council “faced very difficult financial challenges” through rate capping, “cost-shifting”, rising costs and “high service demands”.
He said the state landfill levy had “drastically increased” by almost 30 percent in the last financial year, and the emergency services and volunteers fund had been “dumped” on council rates in an “attempt to masquerade” a state tax increase.
“The state has shafted us again,” he said. “Cost shifting is hurting council … call it whatever you want – handballing, cost-shifting – and at the same time council has to continue with the rate caps.”
In moving the draft integrated transport strategy, Cr Maria Kerr said public transport in Brimbank was “not good enough”.
“Responsibility for that sits squarely with the state government,” she said. “Bus services are too infrequent, too indirect, too unreliable, to meet the needs of our residents.”
She said more than 80 percent of trips in the municipality were made by car because it had no tram services.
“This is not a choice, this is a failure of the system,” she said. “Getting to a train station should be simple, but for many, it is time consuming, inconvenient, and in some cases not possible without a car.”
“This is an issue of fairness, people in Brimbank should not have fewer transport options simply because of where we live … our community deserves better and it is time for the state government to step up.”
Cr Daniel Kruk said car usage in Brimbank was “so high” because there was “no sustainable or integrated” public transport in the area.
He said most Brimbank train stations did not have enough car parks for the number of people driving to catch a train, making public transport untenable.
“If the train station only has 200 car parks, does that mean only 200 people can use the train, because there’s no other way to get there,” he said. “I mean, how ludicrous is that.”
Cr Kruk said the transport strategy was open for consultation until the end of May.
“So it’s over to you now,” he said. “Please put your two cents in, we want to hear from you.”
The two documents are currently out for public comment until the end of May, after which final drafts will be tabled at council in June for adoption.
In other news:
- Early designs for the Sunshine ‘superhub’ project were endorsed.
- The $2,119,180 contract for location intelligence enterprise software was awarded to Esri Australia Pty Ltd, for an initial term of 3-years, with the option to extend for 2 further 1-year periods.
- The $8,168,511 contract for the Dempster Park Construction of Children’s and Community Centre was awarded to S.J. Higgins Pty Ltd.
- The $4,400,000 contract for Traffic Control Services was awarded to Advanced Traffic Management Pty Ltd and All Traffic Management Services Pty Ltd for an initial term of five years with the option to extend for an additional two, one-year periods
Maribyrnong City Council
By Maya Malavisi and Zoe Taylor
Another month, another meeting, and we’re here to tell you … it was a long one! But don’t worry, we won’t keep you for too long.
To start the night off, council suspended standing orders to receive a presentation and gift from Kelvyn Lavelle and Michelle Read, representatives of the new Footscray Hospital. The gift was a framed photo of the hospital to thank the support that the council and offices gave.
Lavelle said that Footscray Hospital ‘is the largest hospital build ever undertaken in Victoria’ and it was delivered ‘on time and on budget earlier this year.’
Cr Mohamed Semra said that this is a ‘significant milestone for our community’ and ‘a landmark investment in the health, wellbeing and future of Melbourne’s west.’
Representing more than a building he said, the hospital will reflect ‘a commitment to accessible, high-quality healthcare for our growing and diverse community.’
When he said our ‘growing’ community, he really meant growing, with the city of Maribyrnong expecting to ‘increase its population by 51% by 2050’ (holy moly…)
Cr Semra acknowledges everyone involved with bringing the hospital to life, as ‘we welcome the positive impact this hospital will have on local jobs, training opportunities and community wellbeing.’
Moving on, public question time was briefly interrupted by a small accidental turning off of the lights, but don’t worry guys, we were back up and running in less than one minute. Well done council.
When it resumed, public question time brought up a lot of interesting things that people wanted to know. Someone asked about two companies that engage with the Maribyrnong Pool with alleging that they both boast ‘battle-tested modern warfare’ for the US vs Israel vs Iran war.
Lucas Gosling, Director of customer and corporate services, replied saying these companies have worked alongside Maribyrnong Pool and Royal Life Saving Australia to focus on drowning prevention and overall aquatic safety; ‘The technology has contributed positively to aquatic safety at Maribyrnong Aquatic Centre.’
He also said that council is not aware, nor have they identified, any evidence that these companies are involved in the manufacture and supply of modern warfare.
To other news:
- Contract to restore Footscray Parks Thompsons Water Gardens has recently been awarded, works to be commenced in the next couple weeks, taking approximately 6-9 months
- The Council endorsed the proposed place management and activation model to support a vibrant and prosperous Footscray Activity Centre for the purposes of community consultation and engagement.
- Council approved in principle the Proposed Budget 2026/27, invites feedback on the Proposed Budget and hears any person who has requested to be heard in support of their formal feedback on Proposed Budget
- The Council will receive the draft Integrated Transport Strategy for community consultation at the May 2026 Council meeting. They will receive a further report by the end of June 2026 for consideration by Council that identifies any options for a program of quick-win bike infrastructure in response to the current fuel crisis that supports sustainable travel choices and reduces reliance on private vehicles.
Maribyrnong addition….
By Josie Vine
A Footscray ‘welcome crew’ is planned to replace the controversial security guard trial in Footscray’s CBD.
The item appeared on the last Maribyrnong council meeting agenda as part of its new Place Management and Activation Model.
Council voted to end the six-month trial of private security guard patrols in central Footscray amid public protest in its February meeting.
At the time, council described its yet-to-be-developed replacement as a “civic led approach” to CBD security, which drew criticism for its lack of detail.
Although the agenda item is very clear that the Footscray ‘welcome crew’ is NOT a security service, an enforcement-led model, a substitute for the role of Victoria Police, or a specialist outreach or clinical service, there is a paucity of information that tells us what it IS, other than a Footscray Precinct Officer and a Community Development Officer.
The Officers’ roles include maintaining a visible presence in the CBD, helping visitors with information and ‘wayfinding’, engaging with traders and businesses, observing how public spaces are functioning, identifying emerging concerns, escalating matters to the “appropriate authority” where required and supporting events and activation.
The agenda item does not reveal required qualifications or experience, or whether officers are new positions, or would be filled by existing staff.
Officers will be operating between 7am and 7pm, Monday to Friday, and ‘some’ weekend presence on Saturday.
The proposal is now out for community consultation until May 17, with public suggestions and concerns forming a further report to be tabled at council, with a ‘view’ for officers to be on the streets by July 1.
In Data Centre news…
Maribyrnong council is sending the state government a stiffly worded letter outlining its objection to the proposal to develop the NextDC data centre site on the block bounded by Indwe Street and Paramount Road in West Footscray.
“The interface to Stony Creek is unacceptable and contrary to the objectives of … the Maribyrnong Planning Scheme,” the letter says.
However: “Council acknowledges and supports the inclusion of public realm improvements to Indwe Street, Paramount Road, and Stony Creek, which will improve the character and amenity of the area,” the letter says.
Council has outlined a set of conditions to “be included” as part of any planning permit issued, “if the Minister decides to issue a permit on the basis of the current proposal”.
These conditions include: landscaping to protect Stoney Creek, noise impact assessments, and stormwater management.
Hobsons Bay
By Josie Vine
Redressing a “soul sucking” lack of consultation
You could almost feel the disgruntlement rippling through the packed public gallery at last month’s Hobsons Bay council meeting.
At the moment – across our four western suburbs LGAs (that is Hobsons Bay, Maribyrnong, Brimbank and Wyndham) – questions are pre-registered, and then read in meetings by either the mayor or CEO, and answered by (usually) council officers.
Well the same process goes down at Hobsons Bay, except members of the public are invited to read out their (pre-registered) questions from the gallery.
This has been going on since as far back as September last year, when former mayor Daria Kallander reintroduced this key aspect of public participation.
But what was different at last month’s meeting was this – when the person asking the question was not satisfied with the council officer’s answer, he spontaneously called from the gallery:
“Is that it? Am I allowed to speak? This is a joke, sheesh!”
Microphones were turned off (so anyone watching online would not hear the expression of frustration from the gallery) and the speaker was quickly shut down:
“You’ve received your response and we cannot have questions in the public gallery,” Mayor Cr Diana Grima said.
And then another member of the public, reading aloud a question from the gallery, apparently went somewhat off-piste.
In answer to the question – which was about the transfer of funds for the Williamstown Swimming and Lifesaving Club redevelopment to the state government – Cr Grima responded:
“Excuse me, we need to stick to what you’ve submitted, so we’ll be answering to what you’ve submitted.”
And despite the fact that the question was addressed directly to the mayor and her “fellow councillors”, it was a council officer who was called upon to “provide a response”.
And it was – in your correspondent’s humble opinion – a long response:
“There is no specific allocation agreement for upgrades to the existing swimming pool at the Williamstown Swimming and Lifesaving club. The agreement is focussed on the broader redevelopment of the facility and has been executed by council and the state government in partnership with Lifesaving Victoria and the club. On that basis, the absence of pool upgrade works does not represent a breach of contract …” And it went on.
While public questions are normally answered by council officers in corporate-speak, it is unfair to suggest that officers control all council-public interactions.
For instance, the Wren Street development in Altona is a proposal for five three-story dwellings. It’s currently before VCAT for decision. Hobsons Bay Council is being asked whether it supports the planning application in the first stage of the VCAT process. However it was elected representatives that listened to the Wren Street development objections and made the decision to defer the vote.
Council received more than 15 objections, three of which addressed council in-person about their concerns over the development.
After hearing about loss of privacy, damage to the natural environments around Wren Street and a “soul sucking” lack of consultation (amid several rounds of applause from the gallery), council adjourned to deliberate.
Cr Lisa Bentley said she could “empathise” with residents’ frustration.
“Given everything we’ve heard tonight and observed, obviously people are deeply impacted on a very personal level about their homes,” Cr Lisa Bentley said.
“Given that there’s probably information we’ve heard tonight for the first time, I think the best thing is to defer and hopefully be able to make this decision with our fellow councillors who are absent tonight.”
See what happens when elected representatives engage directly with residents?
Now, your correspondent understands why the public is required to submit questions more than 24 hours prior to a council meeting. Your correspondent understands officers need time to research answers. Your correspondent understands we gotta minimise crazy hate speech in public forums. Fair enough.
But – in your correspondent’s humble opinion – it’s not just the sacrifice we make to genuine public participation in the democratic process. It’s the risk to public trust in democratic institutions.
Wyndham City
By Jack Sutton
On Monday, the 27th of April, the day before the regularly scheduled council meeting, councillors gathered in an online video meeting to put forward a motion of no confidence in Mayor Preet Singh and called on him to resign from his position.
Cr Singh had earlier stepped down from his duties as Mayor after revelations that he provided character reference for Kashyap Patel who, in 2024, was convicted of grooming and sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl.
However Cr Singh has returned to his mayoral duties.
While the vote of no confidence makes a strong public statement, it cannot force Cr Singh to resign. Cr Singh needs to leave the council voluntarily, or the state government can step in, a rare occurrence.
As for the usual council meeting the following night, which also took place online through a video call, there was much discussion around the federal budget and if it were an in-person meeting, the seats would have absolutely been filled.
There was a lot to cover in the two-and-a-half-hour long meeting, but the main topics were the council’s operating surplus which is sitting at around $264.1m for 2026-27, and plans to complete the construction of a new Tarneit indoor recreation facility on track to be finished this year.
