THE conviction that ‘near enough isn’t good enough’ has only strengthened over time for Nik Tsardakis, the man who has been charged with steering Wyndham’s push for its fair share.
As the period of massive population growth that has become synonymous with the municipality closes in on a decade, Mr Tsardakis is winding up his two-year tenure as executive director of the Committee for Wyndham, which represents the region’s businesses and community organisations.
Mr Tsardakis, 63, lives in Werribee South. It’s a location that has put him at the coalface of Wyndham’s rapid transformation in growth suburbs like neighbouring Point Cook.
“In my mind, what’s happened in Wyndham with the growth is that it seemed to happen by accident.
“It was a low-cost entry for the growing urban community and it went at such a rate that it caught everyone by surprise, so now it’s very hard to retro-fit and improve the arterial road system and public transport that should have grown with it.” He says a strong community voice that looks beyond short-term electoral cycles has been crucial to holding bureaucrats accountable.
“It’s great to be part of a very progressive and fast-growing area, but we need some support to guarantee that all the public policy generated by people in Canberra is filtered all the way down is resourced properly so everyone can benefit.
“Otherwise, it’s false expectations, particularly when it lingers on and on, as it has in Wyndham. People get angry.”
Mr Tsardakis was previously involved in the Werribee South Ratepayers’ Association and its four-year battle with council after the market garden precinct was rezoned as urban, triggering a rise in rates bills.
“We were eventually switched back to the farm rate, but we kept pushing for improvements, and soon we saw the sealing of the walking trail, the lighting of the foreshore, some improvements to Duncans Road.
“We were happy to see the Wyndham Harbour development go ahead because it will bring extra activity into the area,” he said.
With the long-awaited Werribee Employment Precinct on the horizon, Mr Tsardakis believes Wyndham is closer to undergoing the wholesale transformation it has needed for 10 years – creating local jobs and opportunities.
“We need to start viewing Hoppers Crossing and Werribee train stations as drop-off points for people coming into Wyndham rather than pick-up points for people going to the city. The quicker council and other groups start pulling in that direction, the better.”
Mr Tsardakis plans to return to community advocacy in another capacity after Christmas.
