Meet the Lockhart Shire Council candidates

WARD A

Goals if elected:

To consolidate and enlarge the council so we can remain independent.

I’m passionate about the community and would like to continue the good work the council has been doing by being part of cohesive council and get things happening.

Key areas that need attention:

Continued focus on rural road maintenance, rural ratepayers and continue to develop youth development and support skills throughout the shire.

Employ people through building on the industrial areas at Lockhart and The Rock. To grow sporting and community groups throughout the shire.

Goals if elected: 

We live in a great part of Australia and if elected I will work hard for growth, safety and prosperity in our shire.

I believe that increasing our shire boundary and an increased focus on economic

development in our shire are paramount to us continuing to remain a stand-alone shire.

Key areas that need attention:

It’s never been more important for our council to be proactive and to work hard and closely with our community. 

I believe our residents and community deserve to be heard and with continued consultation the decisions and actions of council truly reflect the wants and needs of our community.

Goals if elected:

Good government and stability to ensure the shires longevity and economic development.

Key areas that need attention:

Economic development – development of business and attracting residential development throughout the shire. 

Goals if elected:

One of the biggest I believe that sometimes gets lost is listening, my father who was very much into politics always said “listen to people and listen to what they what.”

It’s no good saying I want to seal all these roads if it’s not what the people want, I’m standing for the people, it’s what they want.  

Key areas that need attention:

I think council mergers will continue throughout the years, you can’t get complacent.

One thing to help stop the mergers is attracting business but also to draw people to the town.

WARD B

Goals if elected:

I’m there to respresnt the people who will have me and everyone in the shire. 

The role of council is roads, rates and rubbish, roads constanly need repair and all that sort of stuff.

Key areas that need attention:

Getting good results for the ratepayers and residents of the shire.

We need to attract people to the shire and we need industry – that’s probably our biggest challenge, to get industry that will employ local people and stimulate the economy.

Goals if elected: 

I think the shire is headed in the right direction and I want to help to make sure that it stays that way.

People are being attracted to the shire and we need to make it a nice place for newcomers.

Key areas that need attention:

One of my pet peeves is the addressing in the area, we have rural addressing but no one uses.

I’d like to try and encourage rural addressing to progress to improve energy services, it’s important to be able to find the place in emergency situations.

Goals if elected:

My goals will be firstly to learn and understand how the council works. getting elected will be goal number one.

Key areas that need attention:

The previous council has done a great job in keeping us fit for the future  we have just got to build on that and keep Lockhart shire a great place to live, work and play.

Goals if elected:

My goals if elected are to represent Pleasant Hills and the southern area of our shire, to the best of my ability, to keep council services as efficient  and rate payer orientated as possible. 

Key areas that need attention:

I believe the focus must be on the condition of our minor roads within the shire and also, focus on the movements for our shire not to become amalgamated in the future. 

WARD C – NO CONTEST

Goals if elected:

Economic development across the shire and hopefully that includes growth of people economy and opportunity,

Make sure we are a sustainable shire into the future, to increase scale and capacity whether that means realignment of boundaries.

Key areas that need attention:

Services for our youth, we do a great job with aging population but need to look at the other end of the scale and look at services for our youth.

We need to make it a place they want to stay work, and raise a family.

Goals if elected: 

Strategically - to continue with the good work of the previous councillors and keep Lockhart shire as an independent council.

At ground level - to enhance the shire so more people want to live, work and visit the shire.

Key areas that need attention:

I think we can build on tourism, especially around The Rock as it has heaps of undeveloped potential.

Expand on light industry in the Shire.

Both these areas will take time to reach the full capacity.

Goals if elected:

Key areas that need attention: