I was very humbled to be nominated for the role of Mayor, and equally excited to take on the position! I had planned to say a few word that night but I was voted in "unanimously" - Again humbled by the support shown!

 

I am also excited that Cr Andrew Witlox is my Deputy. His passion for change, service efficiencies and recreational services will be a great asset to this leadership team! I look forward to working with Andrew, the Councillor team and Council officers!

 

"Councillors, being a first term councillor I must say that I have entered this role with fresh eyes and the enthusiasm to make this council more relevant to the ratepayer.

 

4 years ago I sat down in this chamber and read the first agenda “that was at least an inch thick” and with the chamber full of community members, I thought to myself “What have I done”.

 

The “business” of council is huge, we have over 140 thousand residents to serve, we have over $150 million dollars of ratepayer’s money that we must utilise responsibly.

 

I know it’s a BIG responsibility.

 

The role of the Mayor should not be taken lightly and I look back on my career as a Paramedic of 20 years to see where my knowledge and experience can make me a better Councillor.

The skills I have gained both here and in my profession make me an effective communicator and leader ultimately making me a better representative to my community

And I draw upon words such as:

 

• Respect – Being respectful to the position, respectful to the community we serve, and respectul to the individual’s right to express their voice without reservation or bias.

 

• Team Work – This is a Team environment, in order to effect real change we must work as a team, this will ensure the Yarra Valley is forever a draw card for tourism, agriculture, lifestyle and business.

 

• Accountability – Ensure we as a council and as Councillors are accountable to our community, and that we stand up and say when we are wrong and ensure that we learn from our mistakes.

 

• Communication – No point having great ideas, great services, and an awesome back yard if we don’t effectively communicate to our community. We must ensure that our communication to our community is appropriate, effective and transparent.

 

• Innovation – Every year councils across Australia need to find more efficient ways to utilize their ratepayer’s money. With the introduction of “rate capping” We will need to dive deep into our organization and motivate our council to seek more efficient ways of servicing our community whilst maintaining core service delivery.

 

Councillors I may not be a “seasoned or experienced” councilor as some of us are around this table.

Having witnessed Councillor’s Child, McAllister and Mcarthy who were all first time mayors,

they represented our council with great leadership proving that “mayoral experience” is not a key element.

 

But both good leadership and communication are.

 

What I do know Councillors, are my limitations, my strengths and my weaknesses.

As your Mayor I will draw upon those around me so that I can carry my role as council’s spokesman and leader effectively and without bias.

 

I have planned to reduce my “full time” position with the Ambulance Service to 1 day a week, this will enable me to concentrate and commit 100% to the role.

 

My goals this year will be to further enhance councillor and officer communication, improve the working relationship with council staff and break down those barriers that are preventing better communication and services.

 

I would like to embrace our digital media and utilize this to communicate with our community more frequently, and improve the services we provide.

 

I want to streamline our meetings – I see efficiencies we can do in order to improve the community’s experience when attending council meetings and also improve how we deal with planning applications.

 

Anyone who may consider I may not have the confidence, experience or leadership for this role, I convince you and I will show that I am worthy of this position and will ensure I give it my all!"