Wyndham council has agreed to pitch four priorities relating to cost sharing with the state government to other Victorian councils later in the year.
At the council meeting on Tuesday, July 23, councillors endorsed a report calling on the state government to provide a return to a 50/50 funding model for school crossing supervisors.
The report claimed that the ‘School Crossing Supervisors Program’ in Wyndham costs the council an average $4.1 million annually.
According to the document, the $1.3 million being allocated by the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) no longer reflects the original 50/50 cost splitting agreement.
Councillor Jasmine Hill said the document was an important step in making sure the council could cater to its residents’ needs.
“It’s really time to balance state investment to ensure our suburbs get a fair share– especially for Point Cook and Tarneit.”
To address the distribution of pools across the state, the report recommended a new and recurrent grant program to support the development of aquatic centres.
“In my view, [the funds] should come from grants and other sources that don’t place a burden on the community,” Cr Peter Maynard said in support of the resolution.
“There are probably many councils that have more pools than they want.”
The report also highlighted the need for the state government to fund weather-proof bus shelters as urgent.
It states that many bus stops along routes in Wyndham do not offer passengers shelter, but rather a platform and a timetable sign— which can leave patrons exposed to the elements on hot and rainy days
Councillor Robert Szatkowski also spoke in support of the suggestion that the state government works more closely with councils on developing a framework for using artificial intelligence (AI).
“The later we begin the adoption of AI and have a framework, the longer we will not be reaping the benefits of its productivity,” he said.
Councillor Shannon McGuire will serve as Wyndham’s delegate to the meeting of the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV) in October and table the resolutions.
The MAV is an advocacy body that represents the interests of the councils.
