Hudson holds mayor’s job, Eddy new deputy

CITY of Ballarat mayor Cr Des Hudson has retained the role for a second consecutive year and will see out the remainder of the current council’s term.

Cr Hudson was voted in on Monday evening during a special council meeting, and won following a majority recount against Crs Amy Johnson and Belinda Coates.

With completing long-term projects and a focus on potholes front of mind when elected last year, Cr Hudson said that would continue to be the case.

“For us it’s been disciplined around finishing off projects, making sure we’re not just continuing to add more and more projects,” he said.

“We need to clear the decks a little bit of projects that have sat in the pipeline for a long period of time but being disciplined to give officers the space to finish.

“Things such as Her Majesty’s Theatre, the [Ballarat] Library, Bridge Mall are just some of the projects… that we’re able to get on and do for the betterment of the community.

“We’re growing at 2.1 per cent. The draft housing strategy is absolutely critical about how we grow and where we grow.”

Following Cr Hudson’s election, Cr Peter Eddy was voted in as deputy-mayor by a majority vote against Cr Coates.

A freshman councillor, Cr Eddy said he felt confident to put his hand up for more responsibility.

“Having had three years to look and learn, I just felt there was an opportunity to take another step and offer myself into a leadership role,” he said.

“[My background is] mainly sports administration and management. My expertise is more about being a CEO away from a local government environment.

“I think the external experience can add value to what you do.”