CHERYL ARNOL - VOTE 1 FOR COUNCILLOR; VOTE 1 FOR MAYOR

 VOTE 1 CHERYL ARNOL FOR MAYOR AND VOTE 1 FOR COUNCILLOR

After 28 years on Council variously as Councillor, Deputy Mayor and Mayor, I know that residents want their elected members to listen to them. That is only the start of the journey of a new council.

First time candidates for Mayor, Deputy Mayor or councillor often fall into the trap of making promises they can't keep. The reality is that each candidate is only one vote in the Chamber and each election term brings new ideas about how we should listen and consult.

Regardless of who is in the chamber, councillors have a responsibility to manage funds through the 10 year long term financial management plan and the asset management plan and the myriad of other legislative plans and policies that are not negotiable under the Local Government Act.

Some first time candidates electioneer on being able to 'change' council. My question to those Mayor and Deputy Mayor candidates is how do you propose to do that when council is governed by Meeting Procedure Regulations and a Local Government Act that has structured requirements for how a group of elected members operate.

I have completed the Learning Modules offered by the local government authorities as well as Local Government focussed AICD courses. I have governance experience on State Government regulatory authorities over the past 20 years, so I am confident I can lead the next Council through the minefield that is local government

Vote 1 Cheryl Arnol for Mayor and Councillor.

(Written and authorised by Cheryl Arnol 10 Aubin Court Orford)

PS Don't forget it is compulsory to vote so send those postal votes back ASAP. The TEC have the power to fine you if you don't! 9

More about Cheryl Arnol

 I have lived and worked in Glamorgan Spring Bay municipal area for the best part of 50 years. Between 1997 and 2004, I served one term as Deputy Mayor and three terms as Mayor (in those days a mayoral term was 2 years).  I returned to Council in 2007, sitting as Deputy Mayor at the 2014 election, 2018 election as a Councillor and the 2022 election becoming Mayor for the past 4 years.

I have a long history of governance roles in a regulatory environment including as director of government authorities.  I understand the complex legislative environment that is local government and have the experience and knowledge to separate the role of Mayor from the operational arm of Council.  Councillors, including the Mayor cannot interfere with the role of CEO, nor direct staff.  Councillors can only advocate for residents.  I may not have always been ‘out and about’ but it doesn’t mean that I haven’t performed the role of Mayor.   

I make no secret of the fact that during my time on Council I have made some decisions that have not always been popular with the community, particularly planning matters but they have been made in an unbiased and informed manner.

The issues of most importance for me are

• ·       Upgraded infrastructure throughout the municipal area
• ·       Strategic and sustainable development across all areas
• ·       Transparency, honesty and integrity in all council business
• ·       Continuing the community engagement and consultation with the pop-up sessions across the municipal area.

The various communities believe that as a councillor or Mayor or whatever, elected members do not always consider just how much is done in their particular area.  More importantly, communities do not always recognise that their wish list is not always achievable simply because the main requirement in any municipal area is keeping rates at a manageable amount. You can’t have it both ways.  I am particularly proud of the fact that this current group of elected members have turned the finances around and is now funding 100% of asset renewals.  It is an achievement that is unheard of in most Tasmanian councils.

There seems to be a school of thought that changing a number of councillors, Mayor and/or Deputy Mayor will achieve miracles, but no it won’t.  Those who come into council in whatever role will face the same challenges as the 2022 elected members have over the past 4 years.  We have weathered some storms and come out the other side with a renewed focus on stability in the council chamber. 

I will undertake the role of Councillor and Mayor with honesty, integrity and transparency.  I seek your support to be re-elected by voting 1 for Councillor and 1 for Mayor 

MATTERS OF IMPORTANCE

 

Candidates are often asked what they would change in Council.  For those who have never been on council before it is often easy to make promises that are simply not achievable as one vote. 

I will continue to advocate for the issues of importance to our municipal area.  The decisions made are not always popular, but we are governed by a suite of legislation that must be adhered to.  It is why it is important for there to be a combination of stability and experience in the council chamber.

(Authorised by Cheryl Arnol 10 Aubin Court Orford)      www.cherylarnol.com

COUNCIL ELECTIONS

I'm pleased to be back on www.cherylarnol.com to announce that I am standing for Councillor and Mayor. GSBC is being reduced to a 7 member council for the next four year term. I'm not going to do a lot of electioneering because the simple fact is that in local government there are few promises that can be made or probably more to the point achieved when you are one vote in the chamber.  

I will do some posts over the next 3-4 weeks and share to Facebook as we progress through the election period.  

If you have any questions please don't hesitate to send them to cheryla298@gmail.com or give me a call on 0419 533 615.

All the best,

Cheryl

I'M BACK!

 

Sometimes I take a step back and realise just how quickly time is rocketing by.  It seems no time at all since we entered summer and it's about to come to an end!

Then I realised that it has been some months since I last posted a blog.  No excuses, it has just been a very busy time.  Here is my first Mayoral Moment (blog) for 2025.  Enjoy

MAYORAL MOMENT FOR FEBRUARY

A belated welcome to 2025 Mayoral Moments.  I had leave of absence in January to visit our son in Adelaide in what turned out to be 40+ degree heat!

At the February meeting on Tuesday 25^th February there were no planning matters to be dealt with.  Council continues to see strong growth right across our municipal area, but that comes with challenges for our budget especially if we are unsuccessful in achieving grant money.  As a result, Council considered the revised budget that officers presented.  As an elected member group we are most grateful to have such competent staff at GSBC who keep a watchful eye on the budget.

Many of you will know that there has been a government inquiry into the future of local government.  Council has been offered the opportunity by Government to participate in the collection of data to allow us to better inform our communities of the benefits or otherwise of some form of boundary adjustment or amalgamation. At the forefront of Council’s position are the Minister for Local Government’s established principles that reform outcomes should always

- Be in the best interests of the community.

- Reserve and maintain local representation.

- Ensure financial sustainability of Councils.

- Improve the level of service for communities.

 

GSBC looks forward to working with our neighbouring councils and the Local Government Division on these important principles in coming months to enable robust community consultation to occur and informed decisions to be made.

Council supported a request from the family of Mr Adrian O’Leary for a commemorative seat at the Triabunna Marina.  Adrian, who sadly passed away last August, was a long-standing employee of GSBC and played an important role in the marina project.

There were some policies for review and two requests for event support and a community grant application to be considered.  Council welcomes applications for both community grants and event support.  As our Communications Officer, Eliza departs for maternity leave, we have welcomed Bernadette to the community engagement team.  Reach out to Bernadette by email community@freycinet.tas.gov.au if you are considering applying for a community grant or your organisation is hosting an event that you may want to advertise through our social media networks.

Have you heard of the Spring Bay Community Food Hub in Triabunna?  It commenced operations in August last year and has an amazing coordinator and a group of wonderful volunteers who are committed to easing the burden of food insecurity in our community.   There is no pre-condition for a pension card or the like to access the hub.  They are currently opening Wednesday 3pm till approx. 6 pm, Thursday and Saturday 10 am to 2pm.  Everyone is welcome.

MARCH MAYORAL MOMENT

 

Welcome to the Mayoral Moment for March. 

The Council meeting held on March 26th dealt with the usual statutory matters as well as leave of absence for two councillors.  One of the statutory matters was the Determination of a Code of Conduct that had been lodged against me in relation to a planning matter that we dealt with almost a year ago.  I have accepted the Panel’s determination, but moving forward I welcome the Office of Local Government’s review of the Code of Conduct provisions that hopefully will provide some clarity around the declaration of a conflict that is non-pecuniary in the context of Councillors involvement in community groups. 

The questions on notice section provided some interesting reading, particularly in relation to the question around the costs of planning appeals held over from the February meeting.  Council welcomes questions from the public and encourages people to lodge them as ‘on notice’ so that a response can be provided in the agenda.

Council was pleased to support some event funding for Bicheno Beams and the Van Dieman’s Band as well as a community small grant for the Spring Bay Maritime and Discovery Centre.  It is becoming a very popular experience in Triabunna for locals and visitors alike. 

The Swansea Court House Management Committee provided their annual report to Council.  This group has done an amazing job caring for what is one of our most precious historical buildings.

Have you caught up with the surveys from Council in recent times.  The surveys are very important in that they provide us with a snapshot of the community and your expectations.  There is considerable value in the surveys as we move into the budget discussions for the coming financial year.   Council has had some early discussions around potential rates increases.  I would like to assure you that we have listened to your concerns about the current economic climate and as we head into the last quarter of this financial year, we will work closely with staff on budget matters. 

In recent weeks I have had conversations with various stakeholders about the need for a Food Hub in Orford/Triabunna.  It had been identified by a concerned Triabunna resident that some members of that community have been travelling to the Brighton Food Hub.  Have you experienced times when you have had difficulty providing a meal?  Have you accessed a food hub or other charity? Do you have concerns about feeding your pet?  There will be an anonymous survey done during April both electronically and paper based to gather the data to establish the need.  It is not intended that the food hub would be Council run but rather a collaboration amongst the wonderful volunteer organisations, charities, and churches in our area.  Some of those groups are already providing some food relief but have offered their support to what has become known for want of a title as ‘The Mayor’s Food Hub Project’.    It maybe you or your neighbour or the person down the road that needs assistance so please reach out confidentially to me at cheryl.arnol@freycinet.tas.gov.au if you would rather not speak in person to one of the other stakeholders when the survey is released.

Till next time, take care and stay safe.

Cheryl Arnol

Mayor

FEBRUARY MAYORAL MOMENT

 

Welcome to the Mayoral Moment for February.   I did do one for January but I forgot to post it!  The Great Oyster Bay News did and it is posted on Council's website.

The Council meeting held on February 27^th dealt with the usual statutory matters as well as leave of absence for two councillors.  Councillor Young was on pre-approved leave of absence and so it meant that we only just had a quorum for the meeting. 

Council welcomed Councillor Kenneth Gregson to the Chamber for his first meeting.  He told me afterwards that he found it to be an enjoyable time and he was looking forward to continuing to learn the protocols and processes of life in local government.  From where I sat as chair of the meeting he did very well, and I offer congratulations to him for his obvious dedication to reading his first Council agenda. 

Two planning matters and two requests for grant funding were approved.  Clr Gregson accepted a nomination to be Council representative on the Cranbrook Hall Committee and we thank him for being willing to undertake that role so soon into his tenure as a Councillor. 

One of the statutory matters we dealt with was a review of Council’s strategic plan.  As noted in the report, the strategic plan informs and guides Council’s annual Operating Plan and Budgets that are set and scrutinised by Council and which will provide residents, ratepayers and businesses with a clear sense of what Council is doing and why.  With a change of Council in late 2022, it was important to update the strategic plan to reflect the current councillors and reaffirm our commitments. With the Future of Local Government Review in play, it was prudent for the review to be done in-house rather than involving a costly consultancy. Staff are to be congratulated on the manner in which they undertook this very important process.

Council’s Delegation Register is another important legislated document that must be maintained.  At the February meeting, the Delegations Register was updated to reflect some changes in several Acts of Parliament.  Whilst Council is governed by the Local Government Act 1993, there is a multitude of other legislation that must be abided by, and the Delegations Register provides operational authority to the General Manager and his team. 

 With the recent review of Crown Land leases and licences, it became apparent that the Mobile Food Vans, Pop Up Stalls and Kerbside Vending Policy was no longer fit for purpose, and it was rescinded effective from this meeting.  Staff will over coming months and during the negotiations with the Crown on the leases and licences, undertake a review for a new policy.

Have you checked out the Director of Works and Infrastructure reports in our agenda?  It really does give a snapshot of the enormous workload that our small and very dedicated team undertake.  We are so lucky to have such a wonderful, committed group of people in our various teams. 

I know I have said it before, but time just seems to rocket by me these days!  I hardly seem to have had time to get over Christmas and Easter is fast approaching.  As always, please stay safe especially as we move towards another busy holiday season.  

Till next time,

Cheryl Arnol

Mayor