At the Council Meeting on Tuesday 27 August, Council made the following decisions: 

• Adopted a Hardship Policy to support ratepayers in need. The policy is designed to provide a clearer, more accessible framework for ratepayers who are struggling to manage the payment of rates and charges in the current economic climate and provides several avenues for assistance, including payment plans, deferral of rates and charges, and a waiver of rates and charges for those defined as facing financial hardship.

• Voted in favour of a Notice of Motion related to a review of the Public Transparency Policy which will occur when a new Council is in place. The review will consider options for governance arrangements about how to engage with community at Councillor briefings that continue to be in accordance with the public transparency principles and confidentiality definitions in the Local Government Act 2020, and in the public interest. The new Council will also receive information about what steps and impediments are being revealed in the Mornington Peninsula Shire Council implementation of opening its briefings. 

• Will request the Minister for Planning determines an application for timber harvesting and regeneration on private land at 959 Murrungowar Road, Cabbage Tree Creek. 

• Deferred consideration of a proposed amendment to the development plan for 19 Lomandra Boulevard, Lucknow, to obtain further information to satisfy concerns outlined in the Offer’s report regarding housing quality and environmental performance. 

• Endorsed sending a submission to the Victorian Government’s Plan for Victoria which calls on the State Government to enact reforms that would better support the growth and prosperity of regional Victoria. The submission includes a call for infrastructure funding, social housing, better management of public land, improved roads and public transport, and planning system reforms that would streamline making land available for housing. 

• Accepted a tender for the construction of Buchan Recreation Reserve Pavilion submitted by Cadbuild Construction for $4,469,597.44 ex GST. The pavilion will provide a space for social and physical activity and play a vital role in improving community resilience, social wellbeing, community identity, sense of place, and health. 

• Accepted a tender submitted by CAL Civil for $1,754,132.85 ex GST for the construction of an Air Ambulance Victoria Transfer Facility at Bairnsdale Airport. The patient transfer building that will allow for transfers from a road ambulance to an aircraft that allow for patient privacy and protection from the elements. 

• Authorised a two-year extension of an existing 10-year contract for kerbside waste, recycling, organics collection, and street litter and public place recycling services, and authorised a further optional extension. 

You can watch the meeting and read the agenda on the Minutes and Agendas page. 

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