Achievements

I am proud to have lead a chamber that has delivered so much. Below are some of the achievements of which I am most proud.

RESPONSIBLE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

Although council rate income makes up just 4 cents of every dollar of total taxes (and councils deliver 26% of government services), for many households rates represent a significant proportion of household expenditure. It is therefore essential that there are no unnecessary rate increases and that ratepayers money is spent wisely.

To combat excessive rises, under my leadership council administration have committed to delivering ongoing services every year for a rate increase of equal or less than the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This means that we tell you every year how much of your rates is spent on ongoing services and seperate out any additional charges for new services. Only new services will cause a rate rise above CPI. We then consult with you to gauge your thoughts. We are the ONLY council is SA to have made this commitment to ratepayers.

INDEPENDENT FINANCIAL OVERSIGHT

In 2022, the South Australian Government gave the Essential Services Commission of South Australia (ESCOSA) responsibility for independently reviewing councils’ long-term financial plans and sustainability. This additional oversight is important because it gives both elected members and the community greater confidence in how councils manage public money.

ESCOSA's first round of assessments from 2023 - 2026 found that around one-third of South Australian councils were financially unsustainable or potentially unsustainable.

Mitcham, by contrast, received a glowing assessment, recognising its sound financial position and long-term planning. This reflects this chambers careful financial management, balancing investment in community facilities, infrastructure and services with the responsibility to keep council financially sustainable for future generations.

Importantly, strong financial management isn't simply about keeping rates low. It's about delivering value for money, maintaining the assets our community rely on, and ensuring we don't leave future generations with the bill for today's decisions.

MITCHAM COMMUNITY SOLAR PROGRAM

I am exceptionally proud of our Community Renewables Program which is saving residents money and reducing community greenhouse emissions. I advocated for a no upfront-cost solar scheme to provide free energy for residents in my 2018 mayoral election campaign and am overjoyed to report that the program is now embedded in our community. Since 2023 I have really enjoyed explaining our approach to residents and introducing our collaboration partner ShineHub. We have continued to hold ongoing community information sessions and bulk buys of solar panels and batteries each year so that residents can still join the program. So far over 1300 households have taken part.

As a result Mitcham has one of the highest penetration rates of solar batteries in Australia. Almost half (40%) of these batteries were sourced through our program and have joined the Mitcham Virtual Power Plant (VPP) which stabilises our community’s power supply and can provide income for residents. Additionally, we have been sharing our approach with other councils and I am very proud that at least six other South Australian councils have followed in our footsteps and several more interstate.

We have been chuffed to have been recognised for our work. We have won several awards including winner of both the Renewable Energy Achievement and Community Choice Categories at the 2023 Cities Power Partnership Awards, winner of the Excellence in Environmental Leadership and Sustainability Category at the 2024 Local Government Professionals SA Awards and, the one I’m most proud of: the Overall Winner and Government Category Winner, awarded by the Premier’s Climate Change Council at their 2024 Climate Leaders Awards. This award came with a $10000 prize which we used to make a promotional video, written and directed by Craig Reucassel (the War on Waste guy). Check it out!

How good is that!

Most recently we also won a prestigious national award for our pioneering Solar Recycling Program: Winner of Excellence in Stewardship and Sustainability 2026 from the Smart Energy Council. It was important to council that our Community Renewables didn’t add to the growing problem of landfill waste, so in partnership with ShineHub we created a recycling program which has diverted over 14 tonnes of waste and hundreds of panels and inverters from landfill.

GREEN ENERGY PLAN

FREE GREEN BINS & Additional Green waste days

Council has approved the roll out in 2023 of FREE green organics bins to residents who don’t currently have them, and FREE kitchen caddies and compostable bin liners to ALL residents. This initiative will allow residents and businesses to dispose of their organic and green waste sustainably.

ACCELERATED TREE PLANTING PROGRAM & tree assistance fund

During this term of council, elected members voted to increase our yearly tree planting by 50%, from 1200 to 1800 per year. Additional trees help to cool our suburbs, increase the value of properties and increase the wellbeing of residents.

COMMUNITY CENTRE AT PASADENA

Council purchased the old Pasadena Sea Scout Hall to create a much needed community facility for residents of our western suburbs. The centre has been upgraded to meet safety requirements and a volunteer consultative group is being established to provide direction for this new community space.

BLACKWOOD LIBRARY & COMMUNITY CENTRE

After 40 years of waiting, the construction of a new library and community centre for Blackwood was finally approved by this council. The new hub is expected be the catalyst for economic growth in the precinct, with major upgrades of Young Street and the Waite Street Reserve also funded. The future development of the current library and nursery sites, and creation of eight new shops and a new pedestrian link adjacent to the new hub, are set to drive further private development. As businesses and the precinct start to thrive, new vibrancy will be brought to the area. This is exactly the type of involvement councils should be having - creating a catalyst to encourage change.

Our decision to build the long awaited Blackwood library and community centre will change the face of the Blackwood precinct. I believe it, along with our substantial investment into Lot 101 Young Street (the land behind the Drakes), where new shops and a huge pedestrian walkway will be built, will be the catalyst for the reinvigoration of the area. The newly renovated Mitcham Library and Brown Hill Creek reserve has added a new level of vibrancy to the Mitcham precinct and I am are sure that the Blackwood Hub project will be similarly impressive.

hawthorn living gem and psadens biodiversity corridor

The declaration of a climate emergency in October 2019 was a turning point for council. This allowed the administration to rethink all of our business as usual services through a climate change lens. The outcome has been a dramatic change to the way we think about all of our assets, footpaths, roads, trees, storm water, power usage, transport and much more. We are planting more trees, using permeable footpaths and harvesting rainwater to water these trees (which, incidentally, encourages deep root growth, meaning less damage to our footpaths and kerbs). We’ve added recycled content to our road surfaces making them more flexible and less noisy. We’ve changed most of our lights to LED which is saving you thousands of dollars, were changing the vehicle fleet to 100% electric which saves money on fuel and we’ve installed several electric charging stations to encourage visitors to the city to recharge while they shop. However, the project which has the potential to provide substantial savings to every Mitcham resident is our community solar plan. Currently a panel of staff and experts is analysing the expressions of interest received from potential partners to provide solar panels, batteries and lower power prices, to residents, businesses, landowners and tenants, at no up front cost. This will be an Australian first and has the potential to reduce the energy consumption of the council area by up to 50%. We have been described by the state’s chief entrepreneur as the council of innovation.

LOCAL BUSINESS WEIGHTING

Council has added a local weighting to council procurement so that our local suppliers are now given an advantage through our tender processes. The outcome is that council now spends more money locally.

FLINDERS UNIVERSITY GRADUATE PROGRAM - engineering and AI

This partnership sees graduates fill temporary vacancies at council via 13 week internships. The arrangement allows talented young people to trial the local government sector and brings the expertise of university training into council.

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