General News
18 November, 2021
Cr Ian Smith elected mayor
MOYNE Shire has a new mayor and deputy mayor this week after Cr Ian Smith was elected mayor and Cr Daniel Meade was elected deputy mayor at a Special Meeting of Council on Tuesday.
MOYNE Shire has a new mayor and deputy mayor this week after Cr Ian Smith was elected mayor and Cr Daniel Meade was elected deputy mayor at a Special Meeting of Council on Tuesday.
Three councillors were nominated for the role of mayor, but only two accepted the nominations.
Cr Karen Foster nominated Cr Jordan Lockett and Cr Damien Gleeson nominated Cr Ian Smith.
Cr Jim Doukas nominated Cr James Purcell, who thanked Cr Doukas but declined the nomination.
In the head to head vote, Cr Lockett received three votes from himself, Cr Purcell and Cr Foster.
Cr Smith received four votes from himself, Cr Doukas, Cr Gleeson and Cr Meade.
With four votes, meeting the required absolute majority of votes needed to be elect a mayor under the Local Government Act 2020, Cr Ian Smith was elected Mayor of Moyne ShireCr Meade was assumed the role of deputy mayor after he was an uncontested nomination for the role.
Cr Foster nominated Cr Meade for deputy mayor and Cr Doukas nominated Cr Purcell, but Cr Purcell again declined the nomination.
Cr Smith said it was an honour to have the backing his fellow councillors and while the election process was drawn out, that was now behind the council and he was looking forward to quickly getting on with the job.
He said with the state opening up and things returning to normal after lockdowns and restrictions, he and his fellow councillors were keen to ensure Moyne was in a position to recover strongly.
“We have already taken a very active approach to supporting our communities. Our Love Local Campaign was a call to arms to remind the community to support our small business,” Cr Smith said
“That support will be vital again as we recover and welcome people back to see what our fantastic shire has to offer. There are a number of programs ready to launch that will again encourage people to experience everything Moyne has to offer.
“We also have our largest ever capital works program which has a particular focus on improving the condition of our local road network.
“We also have key projects we are continuing to roll-out and advocate for including the Koroit Township Renewal, The Port of Port Fairy Masterplan, and the redevelopment of the Mortlake Community Health building and developing a Disability and Access Action Plan for the shire.”
Cr Smith said Moyne’s strong advocacy agenda to State and Federal Governments would continue on other key issues for communities – including access to housing, worker shortages, renewable energy developments and the condition of state controlled roads.
Cr Smith paid tribute to outgoing mayor Daniel Meade.
He said Cr Meade had done an amazing job in difficult circumstances.
“Daniel lead the council brilliantly though the pandemic and the lockdowns,” Cr Smith said.
“He was a strong advocate for Moyne right throughout and remained engaged with and supported the community despite not being able to attend events because of lockdowns.”
Deputy mayor Meade had served in the role of mayor over the past two terms, but had announced he would not be in the running for a third term.
Cr Meade said it had been a privilege to see how strong and resilient Moyne Shire communities were in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic while serving as mayor.
“It has been the toughest period our community has faced in a generation and for local businesses that have been forced to close, it’s been particularly devastating,” he said.
“But it’s been heartening to see how everyone has come together to support each other and support businesses through these trying times.
“I want to thank everyone in our communities for the way they have responded to this uncertainty, it has been a huge challenge, but we have stuck together and now there is light at the end of the tunnel.
“We are on the bounce back and there is plenty of hope and optimism out there. I’m looking forward to working with the new mayor and my fellow councillors to make the most of that and to help Moyne come back stronger than ever.”
Cr Meade said despite the pandemic and various restrictions, council had been able to deliver on key projects across the shire.
“That’s testament to the hard work of council staff,” he said.
“The staff have gone above and beyond, and I’m really proud of the programs we put in place to support businesses and communities across the shire to help them through lockdowns and restrictions.
“I also want to thank my fellow councillors for their support over the past two years; it has been an honour to be mayor of the great shire of Moyne and to lead a committed and cohesive council team.
“I look forward to supporting the new mayor as we work as a council team towards a strong recovery for all our communities.”