Retiring Hobsons Bay mayor Sandra Wilson cites creating opportunities for young people, raising awareness of urban encroachment on birdlife and advocating for the city at higher levels of government as being among her most rewarding achievements.
She said issues of high importance to the community included public transport, air quality in Brooklyn, jobs, skills retraining and the retention of surplus school sites for future education needs.
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Cr Wilson said advocating to other levels of government was not always successful and it was difficult to meet community expectations in the face of government cost shifting.
At grassroots level, strengthened links between the council and local secondary schools had paid off, she said.
“A tangible outcome this year has been nine VCAL [Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning] placements, which means council is helping local young people get access to work experience in local government and develop real work skills,” she said.
The arts social enterprise for young people at Laverton, called I’m A Local, has been another legacy.
“A core group of young people have created a working name of Mesh Mash, designed T-shirts, bags, stickers … that will be on sale at local markets in the lead up to Christmas,” Cr Wilson said.
