Ratepayers are being asked to accept a 10 per cent rate rise while receiving  12.5 per cent less service, says Cr Brian Hood.  

Cr Hood, pictured above, was the only councillor who did not support the 2025 draft budget.

He gave a prepared speech to the council meeting but was stopped by Mayor Cr Don Henderson after five minutes.  

Cr Hood sent his piece, focusing on micro, macro and consultation issues, to The  Local in order to explain his position.

The constraints of the Local Goverment Act now require him to stand by the majority decision to release the draft documents.  

His speech has been edited for space but is available in full on his Facebook page.  The council is due to adopt the budget and plans on June 24, with consultation  closing on June 5.  

“Micro level: The 25/26 budget has been prepared under the cloud of a projected  $4m pa cash shortfall. An adjusted underlying deficit of $6.8m will be incurred in  24/25 with a cash neutral result due entirely to the injection of cash from a new  $5.5m loan.  

“As elected representatives we must acknowledge that ratepayers are enduring  challenging financial times with many under mortgage stress and cashflow hardship.  

“This is evidenced by 2420 ratepayers (approximately 30 per cent of all residential  ratepayers) falling into arrears with rate instalment payments.  

“Property tax rates calculated on property CIVs do not necessarily reflect a ratepayer’s capacity to pay (and) in a shire such as Hepburn many of our ratepayers  reside in high value properties. Their capacity to pay is another matter entirely.  

“The draft 25/26 budget allocates $31m to cash operating expenses plus $13m  to capital works. The amount of cash required to complete capital works carried over  from 24/25 into 25/26 won’t be known until after year-end financial statements are  completed.

“Dependent on a wide range of assumptions the 25/26 year is forecast to  essentially break even on the income statement but cash holdings are projected to fall  by a further $1.6m.  

“To achieve that outcome rates will be increased by 10 per cent effective July 1 2025 and operating costs incurred to provide services will be cut by $2.5m.

“Costs  have already been cut by $1.5m in the current financial year. The budget document  discloses the cost savings that will be secured across a range of service areas should the changes be fully implemented as planned.

“Of the $31m allocated to fund services only 2.4 per cent will go to customer services, 1.6 per cent to early and middle years programs, 1.6 per cent to libraries and 0.6 per cent to youth services – all core  functions aimed at supporting families.  

“An amount of $375,000 is allocated to further planning and design works for  the second stage of the Daylesford Town Hall redevelopment (a $15-20m project).  

“While I appreciate the need for long term project planning the timing of incurring  such a substantial cost may be premature when the grant funding is not yet on the  horizon and the critical social license for the project is yet to be widely established.

“Consultation: As it currently stands the budget raises more questions than  it answers. The lack of detail makes it near impossible to describe what many of  the scaled-down service areas would look like should the budget be adopted.

“The  potential release of a much-awaited budget and four-year plan will, quite rightly,  attract higher than usual interest and scrutiny – especially with the confirmed  inclusion of a 10 per cent rate increase. Ratepayers are being asked to accept a 10 per  cent price rise while receiving 12.5 per cent less service.

“Macro level: The need for a 10 per cent rate increase plus a further decrease  of $2.5m in operating costs once again highlights that HSC’s ability to meet its  legislated obligations to provide services in response to community needs is seriously  compromised.  

“In their report the ESC noted that: ‘Even with the higher cap, Hepburn will still  need to do further work to reach and maintain a financially sustainable position that  will enable it to achieve sustainable outcomes in the delivery of services and critical infrastructure in the long-term interests of their communities.’  

“I am not hearing or reading anything on further stages.  

“(With) service reductions and the 10 per cent rate increase council would  still face having no surplus cash to make co-contributions to government grants  until years later; will have no cash to fund emergencies (such as floods, storms and fires – a net cash drain of $3m in recent years); and no cash to invest into the  construction of new assets.

“There would be no surplus cash to cope with any other  emerging or contingent liabilities – for example multi-million dollar remediation  works on transfer station or landfill sites.

“With only 12,000 ratepayers and multiple  service centres across the shire, Hepburn’s financial sustainability must be seriously  questioned.”  

The Hepburn Shire Council is seeking approval for a higher rate cap for the 2025/26 financial year in a bid to secure long-term financial stability.

The council is applying for a total rate increase of 10 per cent for 2025/26  which includes a 7 per cent increase to the existing 3 per cent rate cap announced in  December by the Local Government minister.  

An additional 7 per cent rate rise would be on average equal to $2.20 per  property per week but will generate $1.36 million to invest in programs and services.  The proposal has now been submitted to the Essential Services Commission  and aligns with the council’s financial vision 2024-2027 that was endorsed at last  September’s Special Council Meeting.  

The move is being made in a bid to ensure financial viability and long-term  sustainability, the council said in a media statement.  

Mayor Cr Don Henderson says the council is committed to ensuring it can  continue to provide essential services for the community in the years ahead.  

“General rates and charges are council’s biggest revenue stream, making up 66 per  cent in the financial year 2024/25,” Cr Henderson said.  

“Operating in a financially sustainable way can be challenging when we have a  smaller population size than the average council and when we are working from a  historically low rate base.  

“This proposed rate cap adjustment will form part of ensuring we meet our  regulatory requirements and help guarantee the financial stability of council, which is  crucial to delivering services and infrastructure for our residents.  

“Councils, and especially rural councils, do not have enough revenue sources, and  this has been acknowledged by both state and federal governments.  

“We understand that there are many in the community struggling under cost-of living pressures and this decision is not being made lightly.  

“Rest assured, we are continuously seeking efficiencies to minimise the financial  burden on ratepayers to ensure that we improve our financial position to support our  community.”  

An increase of $2.20 per week would mean an extra $114.40 for someone now  paying $1144. However the rates for a modest home in Glenlyon would be $3907.  

Hepburn Shire Council is no longer financially sustainable, Cr Brian Hood  has told a meeting of concerned residents at Trentham last week.  

Cr Hood said it was time the state government looked at merging Hepburn Shire  into other local government areas because it no longer had the ability to continue to  provide services at their current levels – even with a 10 per cent rise in rates.  

About 90 people attended the town meeting with the majority from Trentham.  After talking about the town structure plans, Cr Hood moved to the four-year  council plan and the “overly ambitious” previous four-year plan.  

“It strayed away from core business. It had five focus areas, I think 23 priority  statements and 116 strategies. And while there were some successes along the way and  lots of good stuff got done, it was just trying to do too much all over the place.  

“On the capital side of things, we built the Mechanics at Trentham and the sports  ground rooms, we did Creswick Town Hall, Creswick Trails, Bullarto Station, all  those sort of things, no qualms about that.

“But I showed them (the meeting) a slide  on the operating performance with all the day-to-day activities and services and that  was a bit of an eye-opener to everybody.  

“The deficits incurred over the past four years were sizable each and every year  and were getting bigger. And it just said, look, the plan wasn’t affordable. Yes, there  were successes in it, but we’ve got to stop doing what we’re doing there and get back  to whatever we determine to be basics.”

Cr Hood said the projected $4 million a year cash gap was largely caused by  escalating costs and also the cumulative effect of rate capping.

“We started from a  very low position, unfortunately, when they brought in capping, and that then got  entrenched into it. And each year whenever we’ve had a rate cap increase, it’s always  been below CPI. So that’s really put the squeeze on.  

“We’re small. And of course, the other geographic factor is we’ve got four or  five centres, so there’s a lot of inefficiency or duplication where, unlike, say, Mount  Alexander Shire where everything’s in Castlemaine, we’ve got Clunes and Creswick  and Daylesford and so on. So it’s not an excuse, it’s just a reality.”  

Cr Hood said that while The Rex was a financial and governance disaster, if it had  never happened the council would still be facing a $4 million gap going forward.  

“We have looked long and hard at selling surplus land and buildings, but to be  frank, we really don’t have anything that’s not being used.  

“The other thing that we’ve done with the capital works program is we’re now  only doing renewal work. We’re not building any new assets, there’s no cash for it.  

“If we get the rate increase of 10 per cent it would give us $1.36 million. The  other $2.64 million is coming from service changes, cost reductions, that sort of  thing, which is going to be pretty challenging.

“We’re looking at what are we going to  leave the same? What are we going to give a minor cut to? What are we going to give  a big cut to? What are we going to stop?  

“And the best case outcome is if we get the 10 per cent rate increase then we’d be  left with a council that has completely shrunk and can’t deliver all of its services. But  people are paying 10 per cent more in their rates.  

“But worse still, from a risk point of view, there’s absolutely no cash sitting there  for the next storm or flood or bushfire, any emergency. We’re running on empty.  (And) if we happen to get grants from other levels of government, we can’t accept  them because we’d have no cash for co-contributions.  

“We’d just maintain what we’ve got. If you live on an unmade road today, it’s still  going to be unmade in 10 years’ time.”  

Cr Hood said those at the meeting then asked if Plan B was carving up Hepburn  Shire to merge with other local governments.

“And I said, yes, we have been (talking  about that). Several of us have reached this conclusion. We’ll advocate, particularly  to the new minister, who we’re seeing very soon, that this sort of review needs to be  done.  

“So it’s now up to the state government. Would they send Creswick to Ballarat?  Would they send Clunes to Central Goldfields or Pyrenees? Would they send  Daylesford to Mt Alexander? Would they send Trentham to Macedon Ranges or  Moorabool. Who knows?  

“I’ve only got as far as saying if we cut all these services and costs and get a rate  increase, that’s not a great outcome for the community at all. There needs to be  something better. And we need to convince the state government to look at the bigger  picture, that we’re just too small to be viable.”  

Before December 31 each year, the Minister for Local Government sets the  council rate cap for the next financial year.

If the cap does not meet a council’s needs, the council can submit a higher cap application for up to four years of higher caps at  a time.

Rate caps started in 2016-2017 at 2.5 per cent. They dropped to a low of 1.5  per cent in 2022-23, reached a high of 3.5 per cent in 2023-2024 and in 2025-2026  are set at 3 per cent.  

Words: Donna Kelly  

Results from Hepburn Shire Council’s Community Satisfaction Survey have been released.

The state government-commissioned survey is administered by JWS Research and covers the period from June 1, 2023 to March 18, 2024 and is now conducted quarterly instead of yearly.

In the survey 72 per cent of survey respondents rated the shire’s overall performance as ‘average and above’, an increase from 70 per cent in the previous year.

Mayor Cr Brian Hood said it was pleasing to see improvements in many of the key metrics.

“We recognise council has lots more to do to improve its service delivery, but seeing this upward trend in many service areas is a further step in the right direction.

“Of the 17 service areas surveyed, council recorded improved results in 12 areas compared to the last survey and the same result in one area. There was a decline in satisfaction in four service areas.”

However, the council still finds itself below other small rural shires and state-wide results in 14 of the 17 areas surveyed.

The survey results for overall satisfaction in those 14 areas were:

Hepburn 2024 | Hepburn 2023 | Small Rural 2024 | State-wide 2024
Overall performance: 49 49 53 54
Customer service: 64 66 66 67
Appearance of public areas: 64 60 71 68
Recreational facilities: 61 57 67 68
Enforcement of local laws: 56 53 60 61
Community decisions: 46 42 50 50
Sealed local roads: 29 33 41 45
Planning & building permits: 35 39 43 45
Business & community development: 56 54 57 57
Environmental sustainability: 57 56 59 60
Value for money: 42 41 47 48
Waste management: 65 64 67 67
Recreational facilities: 61 57 67 68
Lobbying: 48 44 50 50
Community decisions: 46 42 50 50; and
Slashing & weed control: 42 39 46 45
Those closest to small rural shires and/or statewide results were:
Tourism development: 61 62 61 59; and
Overall council direction: 44 41 44 45
The best result was for Consultation & engagement: 52 46 51 51.
They survey findings said one in five residents (21%) rate the value for money
they receive from the council in infrastructure and services as ‘very good’ or ‘good’.
Almost twice as many rate the council as ‘very poor’ or ‘poor’ (39%).
Link: www.hepburn.vic.gov.au/Council/Plans-and-publications/Performance

Words: Donna Kelly

The consultation period on Hepburn Shire Council’s draft Township Structure Plans and Rural Hepburn strategy has been extended to June 26.

The draft documents were released on May 1 with the original consultation period ending on June 12.
Mayor Cr Brian Hood thanked everyone who had already lodged their submissions.

“We know there is a lot of detail and so we’ve decided to extend the consultation period so we can gain more insights from the community.

“Though the deadline is extended by a fortnight, it will still give us time to fully consider that feedback and work to adopt the strategy in early September.

“I encourage every resident to access the information via council’s ‘Participate Hepburn’ page. This is a
once-in-a-generation planning strategy that will guide development for many years to come.”

Cr Hood said all the submissions would be considered by councillors and he assured the community
that all feedback was being taken into account “and (we) will continue to do so before we consider possible adoption”.

A council media release said the Rural Hepburn strategy provided a comprehensive planning and action framework for the use and development of private rural land.

“It will provide a safeguard for rural land. Initial community feedback reaffirms that agricultural land is
highly valued, contributes significant economic benefits, that conservation and biodiversity are important, and that rural tourism is a significant growth contributor,” the release said.

“The strategy proposes to introduce contemporary and clearer planning provisions, so getting feedback from community on these options is important.”

CEO Bradley Thomas said community engagement had been integral in providing further local knowledge.

“The small, but highly skilled strategic planning team have gathered great insights from the community and submissions to date, which they will review and provide recommendations to councillors.”

The council has held face-to-face meetings in each of its townships, which attracted many interested
individuals. Online there have been thousands of visits to the Participate Hepburn site, and almost 500 people have completed the survey.

“We have all these farms around us, a form of food security for the town, and that should never
be taken for granted. We have really good soil, really good water, and can just throw seeds on the
ground and food will grow for us. To destroy that is ludicrous.”

These are the words of Vasko Drogriski, one of the “very active” members of grassroots community group Pastures not Pavements.

The Daylesford and Hepburn Springs group’s aims are threefold. To stop plans to rezone land in East Street from farmland to residential, to stop extensions to Daylesford’s town boundary and also stop the rezoning of another parcel of farmland to industrial.

“The hopes of the group are that the extension of the town boundary gets dropped and the council also puts aside the rezoning of farmland to residential. There is not sufficient evidence for it to be warranted and these are very big modifications to the town.

“We are just saying if there is no urgent need for it, why do it now? Why not just step back, look at it again in 10 or 15 years’ time and if there is any such need, reassess then and have another discussion with the town.”

Mr Drogriski, a builder, said councillors were listening and understood it was an important issue for
the community but “we don’t know which way they are going to vote”.

“They are certainly hearing this is a serious thing for the town and people are quite unanimous about it. That message is getting through.”

If the plans do make it through council, despite opposition, Mr Drogriski said the group would continue to fight.

“The next stage would be the planning scheme amendment and we have been collecting evidence and
if we have to, we will take that to the minister.

There is evidence of improper consultation, flaws in the plans themselves and insufficient evidence for some of the changes they are proposing.

“The community, including our group have done a lot work in terms of fleshing out and exploring options and we think we have some very good viable options we want the council to look at and consider seriously.

“We have a lot of expertise and experience and some of us have been here 20, 30 or 40 years. I am a building designer myself so I have some insight into where housing is possible and it doesn’t need to go on a farm which is sitting on top of a spring that flows into one of our main tourist attractions, the Lake.

“There is a lot of space for housing within the town boundary and there are viable alternatives which will keep the town as it is and how people and tourists like it.”

Mr Drogriski said the shire’s councillors needed to leave a legacy of “retaining the beauty and structure of this town – why any councillor would want to leave a legacy of destroying a big heritage beats me. If you want to leave a legacy, leave a good one.”

He said farmer Ned Powell, whose East Street property is in the firing line for rezoning, was “probably
partly overwhelmed but also actively engaged in the fight”.

“It is not just Ned, it is his uncles and his aunty who own the property together, who have been dragged into something they don’t want. But Ned is in there batting for his whole family because he sees his future in farming, and he wants to be that next generation with his kids who want to farm that property.

“I think he is also inspired by the support he is getting from the community. It has been a fantastic community effort, and it shows me for the first time in the 20 years I have been here how supportive the community is of our farmers and the farmland around own town.

“I have seen how much people value the farmland, the open spaces, the rural edge. And that has been fantastic.”

Words: Donna Kelly | Image: Wayne Hammond

Hepburn Shire Council is in such dire financial straits that Mayor Cr Brian Hood and two other councillors voted to defer the release of its draft budget until September.

At a special meeting of council on May 28, Cr Lesley Hewitt moved a motion which acknowledged the challenging financial environment that is confronting councils across Victoria and requested the CEO and Mayor write to the Local Government Minister to seek an extension of time to the September 2024 council meeting to adopt the budget, to allow the council to undertake further work including extensive community consultation.

The motion also requested that the CEO work with councillors to undertake additional councillor workshops, engage with the community during July and prepare an updated Financial Plan (10 years) for consideration at the September 2024 council meeting that addresses the long-term financial sustainability of the council.

It was voted for by Cr Hewitt, Cr Don Henderson and Cr Hood. Those against were Cr Jen Bray, Cr Juliet Simpson, Cr Tessa Halliday and Cr Tim Drylie. After alternative motions, the draft budget was moved to be released for public discussion.

Cr Hood, speaking on why the draft budget release should be delayed said it was “absolutely unacceptable and unsustainable to budget for deficits”.

“The draft budget does not meet the requirements of the overarching governance principles set out which relate to ensuring the ongoing financial viability of council.

“(It) does not prudently manage financial risk (and) in its current form it also does not meet the requirement to provide stability and predictability for the community. The limited mention of rates does just the opposite – it creates uncertainty.”

Cr Hood said in its current form the draft budget posed unacceptable risks and was outside the council’s stipulated risk appetite and policy in that it “recklessly projects a scenario of having no unrestricted cash available to buffer against unforeseen emergencies (such as the storm and flood events experienced in recent years).”

Cr Hood said the draft budget disclosed unfunded cash shortfalls in the order of $4m in each of years 2, 3 and 4 – a gap equivalent to 20 per cent of the council’s rates base or 12.5 per cent of its cash operating expenses.

“In reality the budget quantifies massive problems to the community with no solutions. It is simply unfair and unrealistic to present a budget with massive deficits and cash shortfalls for a review by the community in less than three weeks. Nothing constructive could be achieved in that period.

“While there has been limited discussion/debate today on the budget’s contents there has been absolutely no discussion on what the next three weeks’ consultation looks like.

“When informing the community of further deficits, no cash buffer, no major capex projects, possible service cuts and rate hikes what do we expect them to do with that info in three weeks and what do we expect their reaction to be?”

In a media briefing the day before the draft budget was released, Cr Hood, speaking on behalf of the council as mayor, said financial issues had arisen from the cumulative effect of sub-CPI rate capping ($5.8m over the past three years), high inflation in construction and other costs, cost-shifting from other levels of government, mostly state, and waste charge changes effective from 25/26.

Cr Hood also said Hepburn Shire had a small population, a low rate base and an overly ambitious service offering from the council.

The council is looking at asking the state government for a rates variation from the current government cap, cuts of operating costs of $1.5 million, new borrowings of $5.5 million for capital expenditure and the Daylesford Town Hall, the completion of only ongoing and renewal works, and slashing full-time staff from 190 to 174.

Public consultation is open until June 13, with its adoption set for June 25. Link: www.participate.hepburn.vic.gov.au/draft-budget

Words: Donna Kelly

With local government elections set for later this year, 2024 will be a significant year for the Hepburn Shire council and its elected councillors, the Hepburn mayor, Cr Brian Hood has foreshadowed.

“2024 will prove to be an exceptionally busy and important year for council and for councillors in particular,” he says.

“As this is the fourth year of our term we are heading to elections in late October, as are all Victorian councils. Our final council meeting will be held on 17 September after which we go into caretaker mode.

“Councillors are therefore determined to advance a number of critically important pieces of work by the end of our term.

“In that regard community members should watch out for draft town structure plans being released in coming weeks for further consultation.

“We are aiming to finalise these plans by the end of the term and then forwarding them to the state government for formal adoption.”

Arrangements for the October election are yet to be released by the state government. Their announcement will clarify the ward structure for Hepburn Shire, following last year’s electoral review.

“Ahead of the election we expect there will be legislative change aimed to strengthen oversight of councils by the state government, improve dispute resolution mechanisms, reforms to strengthen
council leadership and performance and greater controls over councillor conduct,” Cr Hood said.

The Hepburn Shire Council has adopted new policies governing the way it manages leases, licences and the disposal and acquisition of land. 

The council adopted the Leases and Licences Policy and Disposal and Acquisition of Land Policy in recent days, at its last scheduled meeting for 2023

The Leases and Licences Policy applies to leases and licences for all council property assets.

This includes land and facilities on crown and freehold land, occupied by community groups, not-for-profit organisations, private individuals and commercial entities.

Mayor, Cr Brian Hood, said the council manages an extensive property portfolio and it is important to do so in a responsible and transparent way. 

“Council owned and managed land is a valuable community asset. It’s essential that we manage it carefully to maximise the social, environmental and economic benefits to our community,” said Cr Hood.  

“At the core of both policies is the intention to maximise the community benefit and public value from the management of council’s property portfolio with a consistent, equitable and transparent approach to decision-making,” he said. 

Both policies have been designed to exceed minimum standards of the Local Government Act and take into account recommendations from past audits and reviews.  

“The Leases and Licences Policy governs our approach when considering, negotiating and finalising all occupancy agreements for the use of public land.” 

“The policy ensures that the use of council owned or managed land is formalised through binding agreements,” he said. 

The Disposal and Acquisition of Land Policy provides a framework to guide decision making in relation to the sale and acquisition of land and applies to all council freehold land or land vested in council.  

“Council may buy or sell property in response to community or organisational needs. From time-to-time we may sell surplus land or strategically acquire additional properties,” Cr Hood said.

“The policy outlines council’s principles and is intended as a framework to assist us in making these important decisions,” said Cr Hood. The policy also sets out mandatory processes for council to follow. 

The policies are available on the council’s website.

Daylesford and Hepburn Shire are definitely open for business and open for visitors, Hepburn Shire Mayor Cr Brian Hood says. Cr Hood said in the aftermath of the (November 5, Daylesford) accident many traders were left wondering if they should close, remain closed or be open for visitors and the vital tourism trade.

“They were looking for guidance, because they didn’t want to be disrespectful, but straight away senior police and other experts said ‘no, you plough on and start to build a sense of normality’ and that gave traders the peace of mind to do that. We are hardly ever confronted with anything like this and there is no script to follow. But the message is we are open.” Cr Hood said the community was moving on but “slowly as you would expect”.

“The council’s primary concern at the time of the incident, and given our role, was one of the welfare of the community, our staff, volunteers and other organisations. Along with Central Highlands Rural Health we got counselling in place very quickly and the take-up rate was very strong.

“We are now continuing with the counselling but also doing operational things in the background and being very mindful of moving at the right sort of pace and taking on board the right sort of advice. We want to avoid any immediate kneejerk reactions.”

Cr Hood said with the reopening of the Royal Hotel, the outdoor tables had been moved slightly, and council was now looking at other outdoor dining areas across the shire. “We are breaking it down into immediate actions we can and should take, and what the longer-term actions are. So, we are not only looking at this particular site, but we are taking into account outdoor dining areas across the shire.

“No-one would have expected this sort of thing to happen at this site and outdoor dining is very popular throughout the shire,” Cr Hood said. “We, like many councils, and in line with state government guidelines, encouraged outdoor dining during and after Covid as part of economic recovery and also to give people some normality.

“Yes, it is council-owned land, but a valid permit was in place, and those tables had been there long before Covid and they stayed during and after Covid. They are the facts.” Cr Hood said while the police and Coroner’s Office investigations would take some time, the council would not wait to take any actions it believed were needed to improve safety throughout the shire.

“Obviously we will very much take on board whatever comes out of those two investigations, but in the meantime, we are talking about what we can do now.” Cr Hood said while some media reports had said locals had long been calling for safety improvements on Albert Street, calling it a “dangerous stretch of road”, in his three years with council he had never been made aware of any issues.

“You wouldn’t consider Albert Street a dangerous street. Unless they are mixing it up with Howe Street? But sometimes freak accidents do happen.” Cr Hood said the idea of a memorial for the site had been raised but would need careful consultation with the community. Cultural issues also had to be taken into account.

“The last thing we want to do is something wrong or inappropriate or that annoys a section of the community. The Dja Dja Wurrung have also said they could hold a smoking/cleansing ceremony but we haven’t made any decisions yet. We just need to move at a careful pace.”

Cr Hood also praised the first responders including Victoria Police, Ambulance Victoria, the CFA and the SES, along with community members who “sprang into action”.

“To have four helicopters taking people to Melbourne and others on the road to Ballarat in 45 minutes, that was just brilliant. And we are mindful that the CFA and SES are staffed by locals and volunteers, and with the members of the community, they just all did as much as they possibly could with no hesitation. “Fortunately, we are a tight-knit, small community and when something like this happens, people get strength from each other.”

Words: Donna Kelly

Hepburn Shire Councillors have returned Cr Brian Hood as Mayor and elected Cr Juliet Simpson as Deputy Mayor.

Following the decision last week Cr Brian Hood thanked his fellow councillors for the opportunity to again lead the council in the final year of this term.

“I am honoured to have been re-elected as mayor of Hepburn Shire,” he said. “Council has achieved much in the past year. As we enter the final year of our term there are significant and fundamental challenges before us as an organisation – including the extensive and ongoing program of road repair works and the pressing need for long term financial and strategic planning. 

“I look forward to working with my councillor colleagues, the CEO and his executive team as we embrace those challenges on behalf of the community,” he said.

Cr Brian Hood was elected to the Coliban Ward in October 2020.  He has held a number of senior management positions across public and private sector organisations, mostly as a Chief Finance Officer. He is a company director and chair of the company that operates the Trentham & District Community Bank.  Cr Hood was an AFL level umpire and secretary of the AFL Umpires Association and is a life member of that organisation.

Cr Brian Hood acknowledged the contribution of former Deputy Mayor Lesley Hewitt.

“Cr Lesley Hewitt was a great support to me in my pervious term as Mayor. Her professionalism and dedication to our community is evident and much appreciated,” said Cr Hood.

“Congratulations to Cr Juliet Simpson on her election to the role of deputy mayor. I look forward to working closely with her,” he said.

Deputy Mayor Cr Juliet Simpson was elected to represent the Holcombe Ward in October 2020.

Council Chief Executive Officer Bradley Thomas extended his congratulations to Crs Hood and Simpson.

“Cr Hood has shown strong leadership throughout the Council term and has provided ongoing support for staff,” said Council Chief Executive Officer Bradley Thomas.

“We have a lot to achieve in the coming year to deliver the final actions of the Council Plan 2021-25. It is a challenging environment for local government, but we look forward to working closely with Councillors in a positive way for the community,” said Mr Thomas.

“I congratulate Cr Simpson on her endorsement as Deputy Mayor and thank Cr Lesley Hewitt for her contribution in the role over the last 12 months.  With Cr Hood and Cr Simpson in these roles, the community can be confident of continued transparency and good governance,” he said. 

The Hepburn Shire Council has released a summary of progress towards delivering goals contained in its 2022/2023 Annual Plan.

Mayor of Hepburn Shire Cr Brian Hood said the council has been able to make good progress over the last 12 months, amid challenges.

“It’s very pleasing to reflect on some of the achievements over the last year, especially when you consider the challenges we have faced in terms of ongoing recovery from multiple storm and flood events, the rising costs of construction, challenges with supply chains and increasing financial pressures,” said Cr Hood. 

The Annual Plan serves as a progress tracker for the objectives outlined in the four-year Council Plan rather than an all-inclusive list of that plan. 

“Some of the highlights include completion of two major capital projects, the Trentham Sportsground Reserve Pavilion and Hammon Park Trailhead,” said Cr Hood. 

“Both projects have delivered considerable benefits for the community and are very well-used and popular spaces,” he said. 

Other features in the Annual Plan 2022/23 progress update include developing and implementing the Sustainable Hepburn Strategy and circular economy activities, adopting a Disability Access Inclusion Plan and youth strategy, and completing a flora and fauna assessment of Creswick township and surrounds. 

At the Council meeting last night Council also adopted its Annual Plan for 2023/2024. The plan highlights the delivery of 34 projects and initiatives aligned with the four-year Council Plan. 

Action items include the planned rollout of Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO) across townships to reduce landfill (expected in 2024), review of short-term accommodation, ongoing repair of sealed roads damaged by storm events, finalise a business case on aquatics provision, adopt an Integrated Transport Strategy, develop a new Reconciliation Action Plan, continue the strategic planning project Future Hepburn, renew Wheelers Bridge in Lawrence, support the transition to a circular economy, complete construction of the Trentham Community Hub, deliver enhancements to modernise Council’s planning services, conduct a review of Council’s Long Term Financial Plan and much more. 

Those keen to take a closer look can find more details on the Plans, strategies and studies page of the council’s website at www.hepburn.vic.gov.au. 

The Hepburn Shire Council will continue to ‘advocate strongly’ for an alternative to the route currently preferred for the Victoria New South Wales Interconnector West (VNI West) project, mayor Cr Brian Hood says.

This comes after details of the preferred option for the Victoria New South Wales Interconnector West (VNI West) project were outlined by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) and Transgrid just over a week ago.

Hepburn Shire Council issued a media release stating that it was pleased the terminal station is no longer proposed for Mount Prospect but still has serious concerns about the increase in size of transmission line towers and the abject lack of genuine consideration for undergrounding lines. 

“The community and Council have campaigned strongly against the location of the terminal station in our Shire, consequently we are very pleased to see it is no longer the preferred option,” said Mayor of Hepburn Shire, Cr Brian Hood. 

“At the same time, we feel for the communities who are now facing the unwelcome prospect of a terminal station and towers in their region. We sincerely hope AEMO and Transgrid will engage more closely with the community as the projects continue,” he said. 

Cr Hood said the biggest concerns for Hepburn Shire Council now are the significant towers and easements planned as part of the proposed Western Renewables Link (WRL) corridor, which forms part of VNI West. 

“This is a beautiful part of the world. There is strong visitation and economic activity through tourism and it is also some of the best agricultural land in Victoria. It is incredibly disappointing that undergrounding transmission lines has not been genuinely considered in either project given these towers will be up to 80 metres high and easements up to 100 metres wide,” said Cr Hood. 

“Farmers will face the unwelcome prospect of massive easements around transmission infrastructure on their property, thereby restricting agricultural activities in this incredibly productive land,” he said. 

“Given these challenges we question the rationale of maintaining the currently proposed alignment of WRL through Hepburn Shire now that the terminal station will be relocated. On that basis we will be continuing to advocate strongly for a change to the proposed route.” 

A Ministerial Order has been implemented to progress the preferred option, which connects VNI West from Dinawan Energy Hub in NSW, via a new terminal station near Kerang directly to the WRL at a new terminal station near Bulgana in Northern Grampians Shire (rather than at Mount Prospect in Hepburn Shire). 

“While Council is highly supportive of renewable energy there has been a missed opportunity for genuine consideration for placing powerlines underground in some of the more sensitive areas. The refusal to consider that option represents inappropriately short-term thinking,” said Cr Hood. 

“We encourage the community to continue to make their voices heard throughout this process, including the upcoming Environmental Impact Assessment process,” he said. 

Those seeking further information may visit https://participate.hepburn.vic.gov.au/VNI-West. 

The Hepburn Shire Council has released its $59.10 million draft budget for 2023-24, which is now open for community feedback.

Any member of the community can now view the draft budget and budget summary online at https://participate.hepburn.vic.gov.au/draft-budget and make a submission by 5pm on Thursday 8 June. Council will consider the budget at a Special Council Meeting to be held on Tuesday 27 June. Council meetings are livestreamed via Facebook.

Mayor, Cr Brian Hood, said that the draft budget includes a record $19.56 million investment in capital works projects, which are predominately funded by Council.

“The budget has been prepared in one of the toughest financial environments in recent history. Our Shire has been significantly impacted by the COVID pandemic, multiple extreme natural disasters, rising inflation and interest rates, sector-wide shortages of construction contractors and extraordinary increases to material and construction costs,” said Cr Hood.

“We have sought to deliver a fiscally responsible budget that aims to achieve actions in our Council Plan, whilst balancing available resources and community expectations. We are in a delicate and challenging financial position which we will continue to manage prudently,” he said.

“While we have aimed to deliver a financially responsible budget, we are continuing to invest in projects that are important to our community and that align with priorities in our four-year Council Plan and the Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan.

“There is a lot of work to be done as part of our recently adopted strategies, such as the Early and Middle Years, Youth and Positive Ageing strategies, Disability Action and Inclusion Plan and Gender Equality Action Plan,” he said.

The budget also continues the implementation of the Sustainable Hepburn strategy, including initiatives relating to circular economy, reducing emissions, protecting the natural environment and biodiversity, low waste initiatives and climate and water resilience.

Capital works highlights

· Major investment in roads of $2.73 million, made up of $1.28 million for pavement rehabilitation, $950,000 for road renewal, and $500,000 for gravel road re-sheeting.

· Construction of the Creswick Trails ($5.9 million).

· Renewal of the historic Wheelers Bridge ($3.2 million, supported by $2.8 million from the Federal Government).

· Renewal works to protect and improve the historic Daylesford Town Hall ($1.0 million).

· Completion of the Trentham Community Hub ($2.02 million), which will deliver a library, Council hub and community facilities.

· Detailed planning for Glenlyon Recreation Reserve Pavilion redevelopment ($150,000).

· Repairs to Trentham and Drummond tennis courts ($140,000).

· Detailed designs for the Clunes Recreation Reserve Masterplan ($100,000).

· Cyber security initiatives for data protection ($130,000).

· Review options for increased regulation of short-term accommodation properties ($30,000).

The budget proposes $5.9 million of new borrowings to support the delivery of key infrastructure assets, including $1 million for stage one of critical remedial works for the Daylesford Town Hall to ensure the long-term structural integrity of the building, and $4.9 million to be allocated to the construction of the 60-kilometre Creswick Trails.

The total cost of the Creswick Trails project, which started in 2017 and is under construction, is expected to total $9.4 million. Council has secured government funding

of $2.57 million towards this project and is continuing to lobby government for additional financial support.

“Along with hosting Commonwealth Games competition in 2026, the Creswick Trails network will be one of Australia’s key mountain biking destinations,” said Cr Hood.

The budget continues the important delivery of more than 100 services to the community, including road maintenance and repair, library services, early years, youth and positive ageing programs, emergency management response, major projects, tourism, grants and more.

Hepburn Shire was severely impacted by storm events in June 2021 (east of Shire), in January 2022 (west of Shire), and in October 2022 (Shire-wide). Forecast expenditure on storm events is $20.8 million by June 2024, with a net cost to Council (after government grants) close to $2.5 million, equivalent to 12.4% of Council’s annual general rates revenue.

“Planning for our future is an important component of our draft budget, with $2 million allocated to further enhance and support both our statutory and strategic planning activities. This includes development of critically important town structure plans as part of our Future Hepburn project,” said Cr Hood.

“We will also invest $130,000 in cyber security initiatives to ensure protection of data and will review possibilities of increased regulation of short-term accommodation properties ($30,000).”

Rates and charges

Rates and charges make up over half of Council’s annual budgeted revenue and are vital to provide the services and facilities that our community needs. Rate increases have been capped at 3.5% in line with the Victorian Government’s Fair Go Rates System.

“There has been a 7% CPI increase in the past year (to March) and we know that households are struggling with the increase in living expenses,” said Cr Hood.

Properties are revalued each year by the State Government and rates are based on the value of a property.

“There can be a misconception that Council receives additional revenue when the property market increases. This is not the case. The rate revenue for 2023/24 can only increase by 3.5% over the amount of rates collected in the 2022/23 (current) financial year,” said Cr Hood.

Consequently, based on property value, some residents will incur a rate increase of more than 3.5%, while others will incur an increase of less than 3.5% and some will see a decrease in rates.

Pensioners who qualify under the State Government’s Pensioner Rebate Remission scheme will be entitled to a Council-funded rebate of $21.

Under the draft budget the annual waste charges will increase approximately 6.2% on average to meet the increased costs of the service. The standard annual fee for a residential property (weekly garbage collection and fortnightly recycling) will be $570 (or $10.96 per week).

Words: Donna Kelly

Gordon Legal has launched a ground-breaking defamation claim against
OpenAI’s ChatGPT on behalf of Hepburn Shire Council Mayor, Cr Brian Hood.
Gordon Legal alleges Cr Hood’s reputation was defamed by the ChatGPT AI,
which incorrectly identified him as an individual who faced charges related to a
foreign bribery scandal, rather than his actual role as the whistle-blower in the case.
Cr Hood previously worked for Note Printing Australia – a Reserve Bank of
Australia subsidiary – in the early 2000s, when he alerted authorities to officers of
NPA and another subsidiary, Securency, paying bribes to overseas agencies to win
contracts to print banknotes.

Cr Hood (pictured above) was not charged with any offences. Rather, he alerted the authorities to
the wrongdoing and was praised for his bravery in coming forward.
ChatGPT made several false statements when asked about Mr Hood’s
involvement in the Reserve Bank of Australia’s foreign bribery case. They included
that Cr Hood was accused of bribing officials in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam
between 1999 and 2005 and that he was sentenced to 30 months in prison after
pleading guilty to two counts of false accounting under the Corporations Act.
All of these statements are false. And Gordon Legal filed a Concerns Notice to
OpenAI on March 21 detailing the inaccuracy and demanding a rectification.
Cr Hood told The Local that one key objective with the claim was letting people
know that ChatGPT was not as secure or accurate as many believed.
“There is not much regulation or control around it. And the information coming
out of it has to be reliable. The really odd thing is that you can put in an enquiry and
it spits out five or six paragraphs and some are absolutely accurate, with names, times
and places all spot on, but then there are others which are false, complete garbage.
“That suggests it is going to certain sites to get the real information but where are
the garbage paragraphs coming from? Is it creating them itself? There is nowhere on
any site that suggests the sort of things I have been alleged to have done, nothing on
the record anywhere, so where is that coming from?
“It is a really weird mixture of fact and fiction and the average punter won’t know
which paragraph is right and which is wrong. It needs to be nipped in the bud. When
it is spitting out stuff that affects people’s reputations, or causes harm or doubt, that
is just wrong. You put garbage out there and some people will believe it.”