Council meeting recap - 27 April, 2021

Councillors voted to endorse the Community Engagement Policy as the guiding document that will inform how Council will engage with the community - informing them of important issues of gathering feedback on designs, ideas or projects.

The policy was created not just to meet Council's obligations under the Local Government Act (2020), but to set the direction for meaningful engagement across the organisation - where community members are informed about various project and, where possible, invited to provide feedback that shapes Council's decision making.

You can find a copy of the Community Engagement Policy here.

Council made an alternate recommendation to remove Tree #1 and prune back trees #2 and #3 from the property at 100a Cherylnne Crescent, Kilsyth. 

To view the alternate recommendation in full, you can view the meeting notes from the Council Meetings web page when they are made available.

Council voted to extend the lease of Lyrebird College at 12 Kelso Street, Coldstream by an additional two terms of five years.

Lyrebird College operates as an education facility for children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder, and is held in very high regard by the families involved in the school, as well as the greater Yarra Ranges community.

You can view this item in full by viewing the Council Meeting Agenda.

Council voted to adopt the draft Chirnside Urban Park Master Plan while also noting the community feedback from the community consultation that occurred between February-March 2021.

Council also supported the progression of the project to enter the detail design phase, which among other installations, includes five diverse zones, each offering a unique opportunity for activity, program and interaction with its own set of landscape, material and planting characteristics.

To read more about the plan, please view the 27 April Council Meeting Agenda.

Council made an alternate motion to endorse the outcomes of the VECO Power Purchase Agreement tender process and awards electricity consumption for street lighting, small and large markets under this proposal. 

As part of Council's Liveable Climate Plan, we are transitioning from fossil fuel energy to renewable energy, which will include cost savings on street lighting which will be powered by 100% renewable energy.

While Council can't yet transition all of its energy use to renewable due to current contracts, the alternate motion provides Council with more flexibility in future to allow more information to be gathered through a review of its energy use, to make sure that the direction we head in with regard to energy use is still the right one.

You can view the alternate recommendation when it is made available on the Minutes and Agendas page.

Council voted to endorse the proposed acting arrangements for the position of CEO while Tammi Rose takes a leave of absence.

Council's four Directors will each rotate through the role effective from Monday 12 April 2021 to Sunday 4 July 2021.

To view the breakdown of these timeframes, please visit the Urgent Business Agenda.

The final urgent business item of the meeting was in regards to the northern 3.6 hectare parcel of land at 150 Cambridge Road, Kilsyth, which was part of the former Yarra Hills Secondary College School site.

After much community feedback and interest in wanting Council to purchase the land, Council agreed at its meeting to write to the State Government with a formal Expression of Interest for the purchase of the parcel of land.

A further report will then be provided to Council when a response is received from the State Government to allow consideration of the next steps to be taken.

To view the item in full, please check out the Urgent Business Agenda.