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THE region’s councils have met face to face for the first time in months after COVID-19 restrictions forced them to be held virtually.

The City of Greater Geelong, Surf Coast Shire and the Borough of Queenscliffe (BOQ) all held in person meetings last week.The last time BOQ councillors physically met was for their December 2021 meeting, Geelong council have spent the summer similarly estranged and Surf Coast councillors have been holding remote meetings for almost 10 months.

“As great as Zoom is, nothing beats meeting with people in person,” shire mayor Libby Stapleton said.

Sharing a similar sentiment, Geelong’s acting mayor Trent Sullivan said “after a disrupted summer, council is really keen to return to City Hall and interact with the public at council meetings”.

The first in person meeting for the Borough of Queenscliffe was a more sombre occasion, with councillors holding a minute’s silence at the start of the meeting to mark the recent death of Cr Susan Salter.

In line with Department of Health guidance, members of the public are not required to wear face masks at the meetings, though they can choose to do so if they wish.

Each council is continuing to allow the public to watch meetings via livestream.