Loddon Shire Mayoral Column

Published on 13 July 2020

Support for regional tourism businesses

Regional accommodation businesses are being offered support as a result of the new wave of COVID-19 of lockdowns affecting Melbourne. The Tourism Accommodation Support Program will be made available by the Victorian Government in the form of funds to assist operators who lose income due to cancelled bookings.

With Melburnians subject to strict stay at home orders until mid August, many people have been forced to cancel holidays and travel plans previously booked throughout regional Victoria.

Payments will be made available to regional businesses including motels, caravan parks and short-term rentals that demonstrate losses due to the new restrictions, aimed at slowing the spread of coronavirus.

Visit the website: www.business.vic.gov.au/ to find out if your business is eligible and to register.

Consider standing for council

With council elections just a few months away, consider whether you would like to contribute to your community by running for council.

Being a councillor in local government is a way to contribute to a greater degree in the development of your community, to take part in strategic decisions about budgets, economic growth, quality of life and social justice.

Diverse and inclusive organisations make better decisions for their people, that’s why it’s important to have a great range of people run for council. In particular, as part of Loddon Shire Council’s commitment to gender equity, I would encourage women to think about how they could use their skills and life experiences to bring something positive to council.

Women are under-represented in the decision-making of local government. Running for council is the opportunity to help councils respond to the changing needs of the community.

The Municipal Association of Victoria offers professional development for councillors and candidates including an online Stand for Council training session. These sessions will be scheduled over the coming weeks and will provide prospective candidates with information about the role and purpose of local government, responsibilities and expectations of a councillor, along with an understanding of the electoral process. To find out more visit: www.mav.asn.au/events/upcoming-events.

World Heritage sustainable tourism project

Loddon Shire Council is one of twelve Central Victorian councils that have worked together to attract funding to help place parts of the Central Victorian Goldfields on the World Heritage list. This is part of a campaign to encourage visitors to the area.

World Heritage listing could unlock the region’s full tourism and jobs potential and define the region globally as a tourist destination. I’m excited about this development because it promotes our natural, historical and cultural assets, in particular the story of our gold rush history which is so evident across Loddon Shire.

Creating jobs at Loddon

As mentioned in a previous Mayoral Column, Loddon Shire is one of the councils taking part in the Working for Victoria initiative, which aims to support the community and businesses impacted by coronavirus.

Council is currently recruiting for a variety of positions including outdoor roles, maintenance, project management, administration, support officers and more, and locals are encouraged to apply.

Potential applicants must be legally allowed to work in Australia and must register with the Working for Victoria partner ‘Sidekicker’ to participate. Visit www.vic.gov.au/workingforvictoria to register.

Tender opportunity

Tenders are invited for upgrade works at the Boort, Pyramid Hill and Wedderburn Caravan Parks. Enquiries should be directed to Adam Cooper, Project Management Coordinator on phone 5494 1200.

Tenders can be submitted via the electronic portal at www.eprocure.com.au/loddon/ before 4 pm, Wednesday 29 July 2020. The lowest or any tender may not necessarily be accepted.

The Loddon Project

Residents are reminded that they can still participate in an online survey which aims to find out how residents can best contribute to Council decision-making. The survey may be accessed at https://bit.ly/38wAyeq and only takes a few minutes.

The Loddon Project will develop three key documents over the course of a year as part of a review of community engagement. Another way to be part of the Project and keep up with the progress is to join the Facebook group at: www.facebook.com/groups/684395515470441/.

More details about the project are available on our website: https://www.loddon.vic.gov.au/Our-Council/Community-Engagement/The-Loddon-Project.