Reporter Joseph Hinchliffe will be tweeting and posting a live video on Facebook of the council meeting from 6pm. Follow him on @joe_hinchliffe or watch the live stream here. Full agenda at the bottom of the page.
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It is an important night for the City of Greater Bendigo with both its budget and council plan set to be put to a vote.
Councillors will be asked to push ahead with a contentious industrial park in Marong and award a tender for the major new green waste initiative.
Also, back on the agenda is a contentious development application which could spell the end for a ‘oasis’ for wildlife in Kangaroo Flat and which last week split the chamber.
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That’s it for tonight’s live coverage. More reporting to come.
8.13pm: Recommendation carried despite councillors Ruffell, Chapman and Leach voting against it.
8.01pm: Onto the push to protect the Big Hill and Mandurang Valley areas from development.
Councillors are being asked to reject the finding of an independent panel which slammed council’s plan.
8pm: Motion is carried despite councillors Leach and Ruffell voting against it.
7.52pm: Cr Ruffell slams the proposal saying the investment should go to Bendigo east.
7.45pm: Cr Campbell refutes Cr Leach.
“We’ve been doing this for 10 years, there may be a better site but it may not be available for another 50 years,” he says.
“No other sites are set up with the appropriate buffers,” he says.
“They don’t meet the demand of what’s coming.
7.30pm: Cr Leach rails against proposed business park saying it is on prime agricultural land and that there are many other appropriate sites.
“I’m not saying council officers are biased … others are,” she says.
“But they did provide biased and misleading information to the panel hearing.”
7.25pm: Cr Cox and Cr James Williams both talk in favour of Marong Business Park location, but against the way council went about trying to compulsorily acquire the land.
“It can, in the future provide unprecedented access to and from our ports and to the regions,” Cr Williams says.
He says proximity to Calder Highway and rail network will make it a hub for all of northern and central Victoria with infrastructure upgrades.
“The Calder Highway needs to go beyond Bendigo,” he says.
“It should go all the way to Mildura.
“Every farmer, town and business north of Bendigo needs access to the Calder.
“That can ensure a prosperous and thriving future for the whole region.”
7.15pm: Cr Chapman removes herself from chamber due to conflict of interest as she has property near proposed Marong business park.
7.15pm: Item is carried, petitioners will have to wait.
7.11pm: Cr Leach speaks against the recommendation and in favour of the petitioners.
“How none of them have tripped over and sued us I don’t know,” she says.
7.10pm: Councillors Rod Campbell and James Williams speak in favour of the report’s recommendation which is not to prioritise money for the foothpath.
7.07pm: Onto a petition to build a a footpath for Michael Street, Kennington.
7.06pm: Budget carried – though Cr Chapman votes against it.
6.56pm: Councillor Lisa Ruffell says this is her eight and last budget – “I don’t agree with everything in this budget” but nobody gets everything they want, she says.
“I don’t agree with the Marong Business Park, I think we’ve got enough in Bendigo east and I think we need to be fostering that,” she says.
6.50pm: Cr Cox complains councillors “cop a hammering over rates” but were unwilling to work with ratepayers on a creative solution – reducing general waste pick-ups to once a fortnight, with organic waste being picked up during intervening weeks.
”We’re not prepared to go to citizens and say you can help too,’ Cr Cox says.
“A weekly pick up is going to cost $7 million plus over the next seven years.”
6.45pm: Councillor Peter Cox continues regular attack on pay to staff. Says he hopes a restructure of city staff – which includes 18 new positions – happens slowly so as not to acquire new staff which are not needed.
6.42pm: Councillor Helen Leach raises a familiar argument on the budget, saying ratepayers want their money spent on roads, footpaths and less on arts and culture.
6.26pm: Councillor Elise Chapman leaves room due to conflict of interest as councillors asked to vote on $90,000 for the proposed Marong Business Park and $65,000 for the Marong structure plan.
Item is carried without debate.
6.24pm: Councillor Lisa Ruffell removes herself from room due to conflict of interest in awarding $25,000 to Bendigo Spirit – she’s on the board of the WNBL team.
Item is carried without debate.
6.23pm: Council asked to vote for the city’s biggest spending budget ever.
6.22pm: Council plan is adopted. Onto the budget.
6pm: Meeting underway. First question from public asks wether city can keep giant Marilyn Munro statue … the answer no.