So much to look forward to this year

HAPPY New Year!

I hope you enjoyed New Year’s Eve in style with friends, family and loved ones.

I’m very excited about this year, as we have plenty to look forward to in Greater Geelong for 2026.

We’re set for an action-packed summer, with the Portarlington Mussel Festival, Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, the Victorian Open golf tournament and the Festival of Sails all happening in  the next few weeks.

Our world-class line up of events will continue throughout the year, drawing hundreds of thousands of spectators and participants, and generating millions of dollars for our
local economy.

I’m particularly excited for our inaugural marathon in September, as part of the Geelong Running Festival.

This event – led by local former Olympian Lee Troop and seven years in the making – could draw thousands of competitors to run the streets of Geelong and take in our spectacular waterfront views.
In October Geelong Design Week returns, celebrating our reputation and history as a global leader in creativity and design.

The event celebrates Geelong as Australia’s first UNESCO City of Design, and in 2024 attracted 40,925 attendances across 86 events, generating an estimated $1.4 million in economic benefits for our region.

Geelong Design Week will alternate on a yearly basis with ROAM Geelong, which made its highly successful debut last year.

But it’s not just our major events and hundreds of smaller community events that I’m excited about.

The long-awaited Nyaal Banyul Geelong Convention and Event Centre is set to open in July, in what will be a tremendous boost for our entire region.

The centre will draw tens of thousands of visitors annually and raise Geelong’s national and international profile as a premier location for conferences and major events.

Already several events are booked in for 2026, including The Wathaurong Aboriginal Co-operative NAIDOC Week Dinner, the Business Managers Victoria Conference and The Victorian Principals Association Conference.

The Victorian and Australian governments and the City of Greater Geelong contributed $416.1 million, $30 million and $3 million respectively, bringing the total funding for this project to $449.1 million.

The centre will feature 3,700sqm of flexible event space, a 1,000-seat theatre and cutting-edge audiovisual technology, and will support hundreds of ongoing jobs once complete.

With the state election approaching in November, we’ll be ramping up advocacy to secure even more game-changing commitments to help our region power forward.

Last September Council endorsed its 2025-26 Priority Projects, which features a range ambitious and visionary but achievable proposals to reach our full potential as a clever and creative city-region.

These include a $1 billion Regional Infrastructure Fund to support the growth of central Geelong and the Greater Avalon Employment precinct, key road and rail upgrades and
policy reforms.

Over coming months you’ll read, see and hear more about our Priority Projects as we work closely with our local MPs and candidates to shape our future.

As a Council we’ve already made fantastic progress in revitalising our CBD – with the Geelong City Market proving a smash hit – and in delivering crucial infrastructure across our municipality.It’s been a thrilling ride representing you as City of Greater Geelong Mayor so far and I can’t wait to continue our momentum, together, in 2026.

 

Cr Stretch Kontelj

Mayor, City of Greater Geelong