Mayor thankful to all

To all Queenscliffe residents, ratepayers and visitors: it’s great to be back. This is my first Mayor’s Column since re-election last month, so a couple of thank-yous are in order.

To the people of Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale, thank you for voting in this year’s Council election. Already, after just a few weeks, I can tell that I’m going to really enjoy working with this new set of Councillors. We’re all looking forward to the next four years and how we can best serve the Borough of Queenscliffe. Secondly, to my fellow Councillors, thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve as Mayor once more. Let’s hope that 2021 will be a little bit easier on us all.

In November’s Special Meeting of Council, Councillors were each delegated their portfolios and committees. A more exhaustive list will be available on Council’s website, but for now, the portfolios are as follows:

Cr Donnie Grigau – Community Wellbeing
Cr Ross Ebbels – Local Economy
Cr Fleur Hewitt – Environmental Sustainability
Cr Michael Grout – Planning and Heritage
Cr Susan Salter – Governance and Performance

Lend your support to our local traders
2020 has been a year like no other, and the last nine months in particular have been especially challenging for our local businesses. This summer, they need your support. We have already been making some short-term changes, with increased seating for outdoor dining as well as deep cleaning of the main streets to help our traders get back on their feet while staying COVID-safe. There’s some innovative ideas to come which will allow even more on-street dining during the summer months – we ask for your patience and understanding as these are implemented.

16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence
We are currently nine days in to Respect Victoria’s “Respect Women: Call It Out” 16 Days initiative from 25 Nov to 10 Dec 2020, which coincides with the United Nations’ 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. “Respect is…” is the theme of Respect Victoria’s 2020 campaign. This is a positive message that aims to support Victorian communities to engage in conversations about ‘respect’ – what respect means to us, what respect looks like and how to put respect into practice, especially in the context of gender equality.
Together with the help of Bellarine Community Health, Council is engaging businesses in the Borough by providing posters, stickers and other resources encouraging customers to call out disrespect and violence. Both the customer service teams at Council and BCH have been wearing orange hats throughout the 16 days to promote the campaign, and Council’s Facebook page features a range of posts providing real-world tips and strategies to help people recognise and call out when they hear or see sexist, disrespectful or sexually harassing behaviour.

Give nature a hand and become a Borough Coastcarer
An exciting new program is now underway with thanks to the Bellarine Catchment Network, Swan Bay Environment Association and Coastcare Victoria. We’re inviting community members to volunteer in a new conservation group, Borough Coastcarers, which aims to restore native habitat and remove weeds in Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale.
It’s a great way to get to know your local area in your own time, meet like-minded people, learn about indigenous and weed plant species, and help restore local habitat for our wildlife. I was down at the Narrows for the first session earlier this week, and there’s plenty more chances for you to get involved too. The first Monday of each month there’ll be a two-hour session meeting at the Narrows Beach car park in Queenscliff, and on the second Tuesday of each month, there’ll be a two-hour session meeting at the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse car park.

Volunteers will be guided by conservation field staff, and you’ll need to BYO safety gear as well as abide by relevant COVID-19 regulations. If this sounds like something you’d be interested in, or just to find out more info, email [email protected].

I look forward to seeing you all over the summer, and please feel free to say hi if you see me down the street.

Kind regards,
Cr Ross Ebbels
Mayor, Borough of Queenscliffe