Mayor's Message 27 October

Hello everyone,

This week, yet again our Shire has been recognised for the incredible work of our hard working, dedicated volunteers, this time at the Victorian Keep Australia Beautiful 2023 Tidy Towns Sustainability Awards.

I particularly want to single out Iris Mannik and Anne Wilson from the Beechworth Tidy Towns Committee for their unwavering commitment to always putting the Shire’s best foot forward.

The fact that Beechworth has won the overall Tidy Town of the Year title on five occasions is all thanks to the work of this dynamic duo. We are truly grateful and appreciative of all that you do.

You can read more about our other very deserving award winners further in YOUR INDIGO.

Another great example of dedicated community members is the Wahgunyah Progress Association. On Tuesday evening, we held a joint community forum with the WPA to provide local residents with the opportunity to raise issues of concern directly with Councillors and the Shire’s Executive Team.

I was really impressed with the pride that residents have in their community and their willingness to chip in and get things done. They weren’t asking for big ticket items, they simply want improved maintenance of public areas, roads repaired and issues with drainage resolved.

The discussion was open, honest and respectful and there was a genuine appreciation that Council has limited financial and human resources, but that it is working closely with the WPA to address priority issues.

For us to be an effective organisation that can respond to and meet community needs, we must work in partnership with community as well as with government. Our relationship with the WPA demonstrates how this can be done effectively.

I’d also like to take this opportunity to welcome all participants competing in this weekend’s UCI Gravel World series event taking place in Beechworth over the weekend.

This is the second year that Beechworth is hosting GRAVELISTA, and we’re expecting both new and returning visitors to the region for the two-day event, which last year injected around $1.3M into the local economy.

Have a safe and enjoyable weekend

Sophie Price.