At the Extraordinary Council meeting held last week, Council determined two important items. In the first, Councillors unanimously endorsed the Fit for the Future Proposal to be submitted to NSW Government by June 30, following input from Councillors to the draft proposal.

Our proposal recommended that Kempsey remain as a council and work regionally to provide services, and outlined our strong strategic capacity as a regional council. The Proposal highlighted Council’s continuing efforts to strengthen our financial position, and a deliberate shift in being more efficient and cost-effective in the way we deliver services to the community.

In October, an independent report will go to Government on how ‘Fit for the Future’ NSW councils are, and will contain recommendations for local government reform on how councils can better meet the needs of their local communities.

Operating Plan 2015-16

Council’s Operating Plan 2015-16 was also approved at the Council meeting following the assessment of public submissions and a rigorous review of the Plan by Councillors.

The Plan provides the direction for the organisation over the next 12 months on what are Council’s priorities for the year ahead, along with the major projects and programs to be delivered. Importantly, Council’s Operating Plan contains the budget details on how delivery of the projects and programs in the Plan will be funded, and measures on how the organisation’s performance will be tracked.

Council will follow up on the public submissions received for additional cycleways in South West Rocks by looking into planning design to allow grant funding to be sought and to identify works for future budget consideration.

Macleay Valley Food Bowl Agribusiness Workshop

A big thank you to all the presenters and participants who attended the second Macleay Valley Food Bowl Agribusiness Workshop last week. It was fantastic to see around 60 people come along and participate with such enthusiasm for making the Macleay a leading agribusiness region.

To make this happen we need to create a strong industry network to help local producers share information, promote their business and exploit market opportunities so agribusinesses in the region can thrive. This is what the workshop was all about.

To support this, at the workshop Council launched the Macleay Valley Food Bowl website, www.macleayvalleyfoodbowl.com.au which contains a valuable source of the most up-to-date agribusiness information and contacts for producers, investors, restaurants, retailers, distributors and wholesalers looking to supply or buy quality produce from the Macleay.

As part of our Community Plan to grow a stronger economy through high-value agriculture, Council is playing a key role by developing the Macleay Valley Food Bowl website and continuing to work hard with industry and government agencies to build a strong agribusiness in our valley.